4th Inning--Be Flexible

Yoga.  Pilates.  Cross Fit.  Spinning.  Core.

15 years ago, when I was finishing up my collegiate playing days, I had heard of (I think) one of these.  Yoga, as far as I was concerned, was a meditation technique prevalent in Eastern culture.  The rest of those words, well, they meant absolutely nothing to me.  For all I knew, they were methods used to increase productivity in industry.

What do they mean to me today?  Take a glance at any good high school, college, or even professional baseball conditioning program, and you will find one or more of these activities to be a prominent part of what today's baseball players are participating in to develop strength, balance, and flexibility.

As times change, and our students (as well as the expectations around them) change with them, we need to learn to be flexible---as much now as any other time in our profession's existence.

"15 minutes to warm up? Does a lion warm up when he's hungry? 'Uh oh, here comes an antelope. Better warm up.' No! He just goes out there and eats the sucker."

-Jack Lalanne, "Godfather of Fitness", 1954

Click HERE to view a video of the pre-game warm up routine of Trevor Bauer, pitcher for the Cleveland Indians, 2013.

Today's conditioning routines are a far cry from the "old school" workout programs of yesterday.  In 1999, my senior year at North Park, my pitchers' workout routine consisted of three things.  Lift weights in the off season.  Stretch before practice.  The rest of the time?  Run.  Run during batting practice (pitchers weren't really allowed near the bat rack).  Run before games.  Run after the games you pitch.  Run the day after you pitch.  Run the day before you pitch.

And that was about it.  Times sure have changed. And (thankfully, for those pitchers who didn't sign up for the whole cross country routine), the game's approach has changed too.
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Last Monday, my district began the 2nd semester with a teacher institute day.  This particular professional development opportunity is always a personal favorite of mine, as it is completely led by colleagues, who volunteer to lead one-hour break-out sessions on topics of their choice.

Tony Pecucci, a business education teacher at our sister school, West Leyden, did a great deal of research to put together his presentation, "Where Do West Leyden Students Come From?".  Having taught in the same community for more than a decade now, Tony felt that it was important to take an in-depth look into the lives of our students and what they are dealing with during the hours that they are not walking the halls of our schools.

The results of his research were certainly eye-opening.  You can view the details of the presentation yourself, but the common theme of it is clear:  many of our students' paths to academic excellence are steeper than the hill Walter Payton used to train on.  Economic hardship.  Family instability.  Gang violence.  Peer pressure.  Drug abuse.  Language barriers.  Residency and citizenship concerns.  The list goes on...

Obviously, not every school is going to have identical concerns for  its students.  Some students might have it "better", and some might have it "worse".   But the fact remains that, while we interact with our students in our classes, on our teams, and in our hallways, they are often carrying around baggage about which we are completely unaware.  Each individual student walks into our classrooms every single day with a unique story-one which describes how they got there, and where they hope to go.

For that reason, we need to be flexible.

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One morning many, many moons ago, I had an experience that every teacher dreads.  I woke up on a Tuesday morning feeling very well-rested.  I immediately knew something wasn't right.  The sun was out.  In January.  On a Tuesday.  And I was just waking up.

Yep...I had completely overslept.

Needless to say, the drive in to work was a stressful one.  I was certain that this was it.  I was going to lose my job.  Surely, upon my termination, this story would also be spread quickly to every district in the Tri-State area as well, thus effectively ending my teaching career.  I arrived at school in time to teach 4 of my 5 remaining classes, and then faced the gut-wrenching walk down to the principal's office after school.  It was time to come clean and, hopefully, save my job.

On that long, slow walk, I thought about all of the excuses I had.  Papers to grade.  Family member who was losing a battle with cancer.  Master's class that ended at 10 the night before.  Then I realized something:  I sounded just like some of my students when they arrived late to class or failed to turn in an assignment on time.  After I asked myself how I generally reacted to such excuses from my students, I came to two realizations:

1.  Save the excuses, because your boss doesn't want to hear them, and

2.  I need to start listening to my students a little more closely.

I can thankfully report that I did not lose my job that day.  In fact, the response I received from the principal on that fateful January afternoon is one that I will never forget, as I think it's a lesson we can all consider from time to time.  His words were (approximately):

"Tim, we all start with an empty jar and some marbles.  When you do something to help our students, or do good for the school as a whole, you put a marble in the jar.  Sometimes, you do something that requires you to take one out.  Today, you had to take a marble out.  But your jar of marbles is still very, very full.  Just make sure you put another marble back in soon."

And that was about it.  No pink slip.  No push-ups.  No waterboarding.  Have a nice day, and see you tomorrow. (Enter your own joke here about how many marbles I have left...)
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There has been no greater lesson that I've learned in my six years as a dean than the importance of flexibility when dealing with students.  A fellow dean once described what happens in the dean's office in a very clever way:  the dean's office is like the CIA.  If you don't hear about what's happening in there, that means it's working.  There are many, many tools in a dean's toolbox.  The blunt object is not always ideal.

In my 2nd inning post, I wrote about the importance of being proactive.  This attention to relationship-building is truly key to the dean-student relationship.  Once a certain level of trust has been initiated between the two, it allows for much more flexibility and, most importantly, much more success in regards to the ultimate goal of removing the behavioral barriers getting in the way of a student's academic success.

I want my students to know that I'm firm, but that I'm also flexible.  If they have circumstances outside of school that are affecting their performance within it, I want to know.  And I tell them as much, right up front.  I don't view them as excuses.

They're teenagers, and they're dealing with a lot...sometimes, a lot more than we will ever know.

And everyone needs to realize that, from time to time, it's OK to have to use one of your marbles.