Time

I’ve been busy. It takes a lot of time and energy to teach one-hundred and thirty teenagers in six different classes.

You can’t just walk into a room and teach. Most people don’t think about this. For anyone who doesn’t teach, think about the last time you had to prepare for a presentation or speech. How long did it take? And did you really engage an audience or just talk to them and show pictures?

Preparing to teach a lesson takes time.

Student’s don’t (and shouldn’t) work without feedback. I’ve found a few learning experiences that students enjoy just for the fun of it, or because they’re curious enough to engage, but even if minimal feedback wasn’t required for nearly every activity, we still have to assess for learning in multiple ways. For anyone who doesn’t teach, think about how much time you take to pay the monthly bills, or file your tax returns. Or maybe it’s the monthly maintenance around your house. Sometimes it’s more enjoyable than others, but sometimes you just have to do it. And the consequences of not doing it can be disastrous.

Assessing student work and giving feedback takes time.

That alone is a full-time job, enough to consume an entire workday and beyond.

If you really want to engage with your family, involve yourself in the community, and maybe enjoy an hour or two of personal leisure in the week it’s hard to do much more. It’s hard to even do your best.

That’s why we’ve been so quiet lately.