I don't know about you, but when I go to the doctor and they take my blood pressure, one could almost bet their bottom dollar it will be higher thank a kite. To my chagrin, and almost as though I'm lying, I utter the words to the nurse, "If you take it again in about 10 minutes it'll be lower." I'm pretty sure they believe me. Yeah. Right. But I do have what has been referred to as "White coat hypertension" meaning that my blood pressure will go up when I go to the doctor until I've been in the office for a little bit.
Know what else makes my blood pressure go up? You'll have to read my previous posts to get some ideas. HA. Seriously though. This isn't a post about doctors or blood pressure. It's a post that I've written about before. Numbers. Numbers are wonderful. They can tell us what we can afford, that our health is getting better, that we are making progress in certain areas. On the flip-side, numbers are just numbers. They can be misleading. Example: I have a digital thermometer that doesn't work properly. The last time I felt ill and took my temp with that little demon, I was pretty sure I was either headed toward hypothermia or on the verge of spontaneous combustion.
We hear things like, "Numbers don't lie" and "You're numbers are down (or up)" and it seems we all just accept these little digits like the gospel. And sure, there's a place for that. But as I previously wrote we are all so much more than numbers; on a scale, a bank account, a grade... a score.
Tomorrow 120+ 3rd grade students will walk into our building to take the state Scantron test. On Wednesday our 4th grade will partake of this festivity and on Thursday our 5th, the old salts of testing (bless 'em), will wrap up their elementary state testing forever and ever amen.
But tomorrow these students, the greenest of state test takers will walk in our school. Some will have knots in their tummies. Some will have butterflies. Some will be perfectly calm. Some students will have been up all night because someone was fighting, the cops were at their house, or they had to take care of their siblings. Some will walk in hungry. Some will come in thinking about that relative of theirs that was killed last week in a drug related incident, an automobile accident, or at the hands of someone who was supposed to love them. Some students will come in wondering who will be at home when they get there, if anybody. Yes, we really hear about these things. Then there are those who will have forgotten they are even taking any tests. I kind of feel I would have fallen in this category.
We have amazing teachers. They work so hard, are attentive to the whole child and let me know if a child seems "off" or "not himself" lately so I can check in on them. The standards are written on the boards and small groups are formed to challenge or support the students in these classes. No stones unturned. Or not many, anyway.
While we are all dotting those i's and crossing our t's, it's important to remember that these babies we love everyday.... the ones that walk through the doors everyday with the issues they have EVERYDAY, will come to us on test days with the same issues. I know. I bought a magic wand at Dollar General and while it's really cute, it hasn't really worked yet. We have to remember that while we work hard and push these students, some days, in the words of my former principal, "Don't you know the last thing on her mind is learning."
Don't misunderstand me, I don't believe in making excuses. I hate excuses! But y'all, please get to know your students and listen to their explanations. There is a HUGE difference in excuses and explanations. Please understand them, or try to. And for the love, just as you are more than a number on your scale, your bank account, your GRE, or your Praxis score, your students are more than a number on their Scantron. They are children....some of them with lives you could never comprehend. They are caretakers, problem-solvers, interpreters, chefs, babysitters, planners.... But for the love... they are children. They. Are. CHILDREN. CHILDREN.
So, dear friends, while holding ourselves and our littles accountable please remember why we do what we do. It is for the love. Not the love of numbers, but the love of children.
Thanking my educator friends for their tireless dedication,
Becky
