The ?

It takes most of a school year for things to come into focus with my students. Kids, like adults, have characteristics that come to light, or at least to my comprehension, over time. These aren't bad qualities- I think they are just the habits we all have that we might not be aware of. I have roughly ninety students this year. Most are above average; a good number are exceptional in knowledge of the scriptures. Every seven class days or so, we have a test covering the material we've discussed. My tests are basic. There is a memory verse, true-false questions, short answers, definitions, listings, etc. Every other exam, I include an essay component to the mix. (Several times per semester, I give essay tests.) I tend to make the exams chronological to the notes most recently taken. We use a chronological study of the Gospels so that only makes sense, at least to me!

I mentioned earlier about tendencies showing up as the year progresses. Sometimes, they need to be addressed.  For example, on the Gospels test we took on Friday, I told two young men they were going to have to start writing larger or they might have to rewrite the whole test when finished. They did somewhat better so we are moving in the right direction. You take every little victory you can in the classroom! Both young men are very bright but if the instructor can't read their responses, their insight is hidden and they might as well leave the answer blank blank. And that would be a shame.

That brings me to a third student, who also falls in the extremely bright category. This teenager also has a trend. For the most part, I let students grade their own daily quizzes; it's good discussion time and it allows privacy to the ones who add prayer requests. But I grade the tests. This student has a fascinating quirk. Next to each question they think they miss, they add a ?. Remarkably, they are often correct in that they are incorrect! Part of me wants to tell them not to draw attention to their perceived mistakes. Maybe they think they are being helpful by making my job less difficult. You know, "you might want to look at this one closely, Coach!" I've resisted the urge to intervene; like I said, they are bright and I grade the tests closely so it's extremely doubtful any grade was lowered by the posting of the dreaded ?. Or maybe not!

I have no idea why the ?s keep showing up on the exams. Who knows- maybe it's subconscious. I think we see adults doing this in their real lives, not  just kids who sit in a classroom for forty-six minutes stretches. Maybe they/we lack confidence in making choices. We doubt our decisions. We set the bar so low that it's natural we choose the wrong path and we build in excuses. We have the safety net of I told you so when we err. Maybe it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. My guess is we have a grasp on which arenas of life in which we we have and lack proficiency. I'm good at teaching/ I'm weak at technology. Those aren't life and death categories. When it spills over into the spiritual aspect of our thought processes, we can feel guilty about everything. Every decision is wrong. Shame replaces joy as we look for opportunities to kick ourselves. I see it in my some of my players in shooting free throws- a couple of misses and they think every shot is a clunker! That isn't how it should be when we follow our Lord and Savior. Jesus promised abundant life, not hesitant life. There will be struggles in our human existence but our confidence should give us more !!! than ???. Easier said than done, isn't it? But it's not out of the question.

Applicable quote of the day:
The Savior isn't our last chance; He is our only chance. Our only chance to overcome self-doubt and catch a vision of who we may become. Our only chance to repent and have our sins washed clean. 
Sheri L. Dew


God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com