Baseball pennant races are among the most exciting events in sports, and with our beloved Detroit Tigers in the midst of a down to wire chase for a playoff spot, there is a real sense of urgency here about the baseball season. Every pitch, every play, every at bat now takes on monumental importance as the team struggles to maintain their lead in the division race and make post season play. This sense of urgency has led to heightened performances for some, and disappointments for others. Mistakes at this point in the season are magnified, and every play dissected ad nausea by analysts. Our schools are in a "pennant race" every day. Never in our country's history has our future depended so much on an educated work force of the future.
There is a tendency in baseball to discount things that happen early in the season. An error in April doesn't count as much as an error in September. This same trap exists for schools. Mistakes that students make as freshmen don't seem as significant as ones they make in the senior year. It's important that we work to overcome that apathy towards early shortcomings, and create a sense of urgency for our students. In baseball and in schools, the error early in the "season" counts as much as the one late, it just may not get the same attention.
Parents, please help us stress the urgency of schoolwork, particularly with our younger students. When we meet with the freshmen on their first day, we emphasize to them that high school is the first time that the grades they receive will actually have a significant impact on their future. These grades will determine, in part, what post high school opportunities are available. Often times this catches both students and parents bu surprise, and there is a tendency to brush off the freshman year in terms of importance. Too often I see seniors who are choosing their schedule based on a desire to improve their g.p.a. because of deficiencies from their underclassman years, rather than choosing courses that will prepare them for what's ahead.
The need to be educated to survive and prosper has never been more urgent. Help us stress this urgency with all of our students, especially our young ones, and....Go Tigers!
The Principal's Office is a blog created by Tim Bearden, Chief Academic Officer and Upper School Director at Detroit Country Day School, an independent school in Beverly Hills, MI. While content will sometimes be specific to Country Day, the majority of posts are specific in scope to issues concerning teaching and learning in the 21st century.
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