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Chapter 5: Leading from Any Chair- this chapter is a
reminder that everyone is a participant. You contribute from where you are and
empower others to contribute is an important lesson. It reminds me of a friend who counseled youth
drug offenders in a program in San Francisco. His clients were tough
street-smart criminals who would have their records cleaned if they completed
the program. His technique for dealing with them was to put the “badest” one in
charge. That was the one person he could count on to keep the others in line
and it gave him a stake in the performance of the group. Other counselors in
the program relied heavily on medicating their clients into submission. He had
a much smoother approach, giving them self efficacy and using the courts to
back up the consequences.
Chapter 6: Don’t take yourself so seriously. Nearly every
student I have worked with comments on my laughter. I have worked with a many
students with serious emotional difficulties cause mostly by chaotic and
violent environment. I would like to cry but laughing works much better. I take
the reality seriously but try to make the moments working together as light and
happy as possible. I take life this way in general. When my dog ate my wallet
and credits cards, I laughed at how silly I was for not being able to outsmart
her.
Chapter 7: The Way Things Are: It is true that the one thing
we have in common is suffering and circumstances are often less than ideal, but
that is okay. We can look at the way things are and use it to see other possibilities.
I felt especially moved by the description of Jane Goodall’s speaking engagement
because I actually do avoid wildlife programing due to the bleak outcomes.
Often I have had to advocate for children living under duress by telling the
truth about the situations but also pointing out how a teacher can help in the
classroom by providing an escape. It is not always easy sticking to the reality
and people want to tell the story either in the worst possible or best possible
way. Being realistic changes the possibilities.
Chapter 8: Giving Way to Passion: Life is hard and trying to
avoid difficulty by not trying new things will not lesson pain. I always try
new things. If I don’t know it or can’t do it, it is a challenge to figure it
out. True, trying to use cross terrain skates at my age led to falling on my
backside, I still laughed. And I will try again on a less slick surface next
time. Change is hard but we have to fight the urge to hide. I agree with the
authors. Usually, if you have a strong conviction you can bring others around.
If not, enjoying the experience on your own can be good too.
Hi Lori,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your blog post. I looked at every chapter from the teachers aspect as well. For example in chapter 5, I feel that peer tutoring is a great example of leading from any chair. It goes hand in hand with your example of allowing another criminal to lead the others to keep them in check. Sometimes students are able to explain a concept to another student better than the teacher, so pairing them together will benefit both learners. One will gain knowledge while the other enhance what they already learned or know. In chapter 6 and 7, teachers should smile and make the students feel comfortable with them as a person. My rule of thumb is firm but fair but, allowing the students the view me as a person with an everyday life. Teachers should also view things for what they are and nothing more. We need to remember things can change.
Chanda Robinson
great summary of the book and examples where you've seen the ideas in action.
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