25
From the story: “Does
he really care or is
he just making sure I
feel valued?” different. Your head
is in a better place
when you know
what’s going on.” A man who’s spent
his life succeeding
by challenging
authority.
We need to get over the idea that
we must become selfless saints to
succeed in the classroom. In the
end, advisers who consistently
PRETEND to value their students
look exactly like advisers who
TRULY value them. I’m not sure the term
“overcommunicating” is used
much in the classroom, but I
think I did that with every great
student I ever worked with (and
should have done more of it). We
touched base all the time, even
though I was confident that he
or she was going to be fine, was
doing the interviews, thinking
about story structure, etc. It’s a
mistake to stop paying serious
attention to our best students,
assuming they have it going on. Schools spend so much time and
effort rewarding rule followers
and “pleasers” that we can forget
that those kids with an “edge”
may be what we really need for
our publications to sparkle.
You don’t have to bare your soul.
You do need to practice the
habits you trust, and to model the
behavior of valuing all students.
From the story:
Kerr [makes] a
conscious effort to
“overcommunicate”
with the players.
Apparently, it works.
“Being able to hear
it from your coach,
rather than it just
happening and not
knowing why, it’s
And I tried to share written
critiques with students, so they
could think about them later,
when I wasn’t around to fill in
details or provide support.
From the story:
Draymond Green may
be the Warriors’ most
important player
while definitely being
their most volatile.
But we make a mistake when we
treat every student the same, just
as we make a mistake when we
treat each of our own children
the same.
People need different things, at
different times, and there is no
simple recipe for how to grow a
great person, a great citizen, or a
great leader.
One kid needs TLC. Another
responds to toughness and
challenges. Another loves your
sarcasm, even as the kid sitting
nearby cringes.
There is no one way to be a great
coach or adviser. But there ARE
better ways!
I’m not saying advising or
teaching will ever be easy. This
goal of giving each student what