Dare to be wise

I fell in love with this phrase after reading Ellie Rennie’s post: The Amanda Palmer effect. The post is worth a read and the link to Amanda Palmer’s talk is worth (re)visiting.

As I start a new school year, I’ve been reflecting on some ‘rules’ or ‘wishes’ I have for my classes. One of these was ‘choose to learn‘ – something I’ve been using for a few years now. It’s served me well, I must add.

Yet Rennie’s post and the phrase itself – ‘Dare to be wise’ – have compelled me to re-think and quite likely re-phrase my rule.

I find the phrase more exciting and engaging and I daresay, challenging.While choice can sometimes (often?) necessitate a sense of daring, I think the verb ‘dare’ is more direct and implies risks to be overcome to gain something worthwhile. Wisdom as the goal is also more specific and positive than ‘learn’ (aside: is all learning good? I’).

Implicit in the phrase is the possibility of making mistakes which I struggle to communicate across. I find “It’s okay to make mistakes” a tad trite. Besides, it’s rare for people to set out to fail. Surely, those who expect failure persevere in the hope of eventual success. The act of dare-ing is rendered more significant!

I also love that Rennie highlighted the power or social networking along with the daring of asking (the Amanda Palmer effect). Rennie did not go into vulnerability, what I think is the flipside of daring which, in my experience, opens up possibilities for learning and wisdom.

Perhaps it’s ultimately mere semantics but I do marvel at the effect of words. I don’t know if the phrase will be more effective but I’ll give it a go this year. Marvel and then Dare to be wise.

Marvel

Marvel is my one word this year.

I don’t usually do this thing. However, as the new year ticked over and the Aussie summer school hols was coming to a close, I thought it would be good to have one to help me re-focus back into teaching. So, I picked one!

Marvel as a noun and verb seemed apt as I start not just a new school year but at a new school.

To be filled with wonder or astonishment.

To discover a wonderful or astonishing person, place, thing, etc.

Marvel, I think, is what brings joy in learning… and, truth be told, in teaching as well. 

May the year ahead be full of marvels!

Happy 2016!

Disclaimer: The link above shows an official site for ‘my one word’. I didn’t use the process documented there as I’ve derived my word before I saw the site. Still, I’m sharing for those of you who may find this process helpful.