Anyway, his random text inspired me to get back on my
blogging game. I’ve actually got quite a few blog ideas saved on my phone, as
I’m convinced that running inspires my writing. So, it’s a shame that I can’t
write while running, because I do quite a bit of that running thing. Last
night’s tempo run had both my legs and mind churning after what has been a pretty great week at work, so today I made myself sit down and hash out my thoughts.
I watched this video when it first went viral on social
media (I’ll get to the irony of this statement in a minute), and it really
resonated with me at the time. The term ‘millennial’ has developed such a
negative connotation over the years, and while I certainly don’t think I embody
all of the millennial traits, I
definitely possess some of them. After all, I do love avocado toast. Though apparently, it’s the reason I can’t afford to buy a house.
The video is 15 minutes long, but it’s really worth a watch.
Millennial or not. I watched it four times in one school day, and even though I
could pretty much recite it by the fourth time through, I never tired of it.
And I really wanted to be offended the very first time I watched the video,
especially after the opening generalizations about millennials being lazy and
entitled and unfocused, but the longer I watched, the more of myself I saw
reflected in much of what Simon Sinek was saying.
So why did I show this video to my students, who technically
don’t fall under the millennial umbrella? A couple of reasons. One, we just
finished reading Jeannette’s Walls’ The Glass Castle in one of my classes, and we are in the middle of reading it
in the other. If you haven’t read it, I highly encourage you to add it to your list.
You may have seen the movie, but I promise you the book is better. Her story is
pretty unbelievable, but there is such a hopeful message to always go after
your dreams and to not let your past define you. Anyway, one of the things that
Jeannette has to deal with growing up is a father with an alcohol addiction. Of
course, that is something that I have no doubt many of my students can relate
to in some way, shape, or form. Though it’s not an immediate family member, and
not something I was constantly exposed to in the same way Jeannette was, I was
not immune to the effects an alcohol addiction had on my family. So, while it’s true that many of
my students may know the effects of this kind of addiction, I felt very
confident that they would be able to relate to another kind of addiction: one
that fits in the palms of their hands.
 |
| No, not a calculator |
The cell phone situation has been a problem since the first
day I stepped into the classroom. It was a problem when I was student teaching.
And as one of my students pointed out to me today, “it’s only going to get
worse – not better.” This year has been a unique one for many reasons, but my
students’ addiction to their cell phones has gotten out of hand. Before class,
during class, after class, it doesn’t matter. It’s like they’re glued to their
palms. I’ve had many discussions about it within my PLC, and in a recent PLC
meeting as we were again discussing our frustrations, this video was brought
up. With the theme of addiction present in The
Glass Castle, it seemed like a perfect way to sneak in this important
video about what our technology addiction is really doing to our society. I was admittedly a
little nervous about showing my students a 15-minute video, for fear of losing
their attention, but I was amazed at the engagement I saw in looking around the
room. I was also a little nervous about how they would respond to the content
presented in the video, but I was absolutely blown away by both their written
and spoken responses. It was some of the most productive conversation we’ve ever
had.
I felt pretty good about showing them this video – it didn’t
feel preachy because when all is said and done, it’s a video aimed at my generation. Millennials in the
Workplace. I told them to think about Gen Z in the School System. I also told
them that they don’t have to agree with everything Sinek was telling them. It’s
okay if something fired them up for one reason or another – either because they
agree with what he’s saying, or because they wholeheartedly disagree. And it
was nice to be able to share with them my own struggles – I, too, sleep with my
phone right next to my bed, and the first thing I do most mornings is check
social media. When I’m out to dinner with a friend and he or she goes to the
bathroom, my first instinct is to pull out my phone and see what I’ve missed
while I was catching up with a friend. I realize the absolute ridiculousness of
that statement. I feel as though I do a pretty good job when it comes to
relating to my students, but I figured this approach might lead to more
thoughtful processing than just hearing yet another teacher give you a look and
tell you to put away your phone.
I’m not going to summarize the video for you – I’m hoping if you've made it this far through my post, you’ll take the 15 minutes to watch and really listen to what Sinek is saying – but
I do want to talk about how my students reacted.
My desks are currently arranged in groups of four, as my
students are working on group projects. Immediately after the video ended, I
had them log onto Google Classroom where they would find a few questions to
think through and respond to. No right or wrong answers here, but I did ask
that they back up their opinions with some sort of evidence. As I was walking
around the room, a little part of me expected them to talk about how much they
hated it. To my surprise, most all of them were in total agreement with all the
information presented. One even went so far as to say that Simon Sinek is her
spirit animal. It’s okay, I feel the same way about Brené Brown.
But many of them told me about how they go to camp and
they’re not allowed to have their phones. And it’s admittedly tough at first,
but then they’re so grateful to not have that distraction. Or how they went on
a cruise and had no service for the week. And enjoyed their time spent with
those around them. Or maybe how their phone broke, but now they’re learning
just how much they can get done in a day when they’re not scrolling through
Instagram every free second.
And some of their comments broke me. They admitted to
having low self-esteem and little patience as a result of their constant
attention to their devices and growing up in a world of instant gratification.
They admit to having superficial relationships, and that their phones may
provide temporary fulfillment, but overall they feel as though something is
missing.
After reading some of their responses, I wanted to give
each one of them a hug and assure them that it was not my intent for them to
criticize who they are as people. As Sinek kept saying, they’re a wonderful,
talented, and intelligent group of kids, who were just dealt a bad hand. But
were they?
I’m on the fence. And maybe that’s because I’m one of
these millennials. But the message Sinek was sending wasn’t about how awful technology is. I
think technology is great. In both my personal and my professional life. We
have so much information literally at our fingertips, it’s an incredible
learning tool, it’s an easy way to stay connected to others as well as meet new
people, and it’s enjoyable. It is. What I want my students to understand
is that our addiction to these devices is preventing us from forming these deep
and meaningful relationships. And I don’t want them to miss out on that. I may
have x amount of Facebook friends (and I realize Facebook is archaic), but how
many of them would I call in the midst of trouble? I’m extremely grateful for
the true relationships I’ve formed — starting in elementary school all the way to the working
world — and I want my students to experience that, too.
I want them to know what kind of message a cell phone —
face-up or face-down — sitting on a desk sends to teachers. It’s the same
message we as adults send to one another in a meeting. Maybe I’m not looking at
it, but the temptation is still there. I want them to be all in. To be present
in the moment. To notice and appreciate the little things that we don’t necessarily notice and appreciate when we’re distracted by a phone. I want them to know how to have a
conversation with a peer or an adult. To make eye contact and really listen and
to be grateful for their everyday — both the exciting and the mundane — and to not
be envious of someone else’s highlight reel.
I told them that this change wasn’t going to happen
overnight. I watched the video four times in one day, and I still went home and
charged my phone right next to my bed, glancing at it when my dog woke me up in
the middle of the night. I can’t give you data on how much of an impact this
conversation will have, but in their words, not mine, they all assured me that
Sinek’s 15-minute speech really opened their eyes and caused some serious
self-reflection.
I’ve known this all year, but my students are bright.
They’re probably brighter than I give them credit for, and they totally get it. Their analysis of this video and the connections they made absolutely blew me away. I think we’re all so quick to make assumptions regarding this digital
generation, when they’re just trying to navigate the high school years with the
tools they’ve been given. And I think, as educators, we’d be throwing away a
wonderful opportunity to play to their strengths and interests in the classroom
by banning devices and not having these conversations.
I know devices are a hot topic in the education world these days.
And sometimes I want to gather up these dang smart phones and throw them out my
third-floor window. And then hand each student a pencil. I don’t know what the
answer is, and I don’t know how many of them I really got through to. I’m sure
that, come Monday, I’ll be starting all over again. We may not fully know the
effects of these devices, but I’m fully confident in saying that my students
have brains full of deep and meaningful thoughts.
Here’s to hoping this blog post ends the drought, and
inspires me to push out the rest of the content I have running (pun intended)
through my mind. I hope you all enjoy a wonderful weekend!
