by Alicia Moore, SPS Professional Learning Specialist
I know why you come to work every day. To
reach kids. To see that spark of understanding after days of explanation,
modeling, and review. To insure that the kids of Springfield have the mental
tools to construct happy and useful lives for themselves. To know that there
are people out there who picked up some morsel of wisdom in your very own
classroom, and that they’re using that wisdom to make our society a little
better.
Day after day, year after year, teachers
tough out the not-so-glamorous aspects of the job because we have a purpose. Our
purpose is to help young people discover their own. It’s a long journey for
most students, and seeing it happen is a little like watching an acorn turn
into an oak. Educational consultant Tony Wagner (2012) believes that children
progress through three stages in this journey. They begin by exploring the
world through play, then discover something that ignites a deeper passion,
and finally gain the experience and knowledge to turn that passion into purpose.
He also notes that almost every young innovator he has studied arrived at their
purpose with the help of a mentor.
Teachers, it turns out, are naturally
well-suited to serve in this mentor role, and not just because of the hours we
log with kids each day. Our real advantage is the nature of the goals we tend
to set for ourselves. Daniel Pink, author of the bestselling book Drive (2009), names purpose as one of three forces that motivate modern people.
He describes one study that surveyed new college graduates about their life
goals. The students’ aspirations were divided into two groups: those focused on
helping others or improving the world were labeled “purpose goals,” and those
concerned with status or money were labeled “profit goals.” Follow-up
interviews with the graduates revealed an interesting contrast. The
participants who felt they were attaining purpose goals were happier and
less anxious than they had been as college students. However, those who felt
they were attaining their profit goals were no happier—in fact, they showed
higher levels of anxiety and depression than they had in college. As Pink puts
it, “…satisfaction depends not merely on having goals, but on having the right
goals” (p. 142).
So congratulations! You chose a career that is very focused in
the purpose department! I wish you well in
your role as a mentor to your students. In the playful moments and passionate
discussions, you have an opportunity to steer them toward a deeper purpose in
life. Enjoy the knowledge that you are creating meaning not only for yourself,
but for all of your students as well.
Pink, Daniel H. (2009). Drive. New York, NY: Riverhead Books.
Wagner, Tony. (2012). Creating innovators. New York, NY: Scribner.
