SPIRIT Journey: Reality
“Reality” means “the quality of being real.” It is also defined as “sincerity”.
REAL has its roots in Latin, from “res” meaning “thing”. Then, in the early 14c., “actually existing, true;” mid-15c., “relating to things”.
“Real” meaning “genuine” is recorded from the 1550s, and today, we use it to mean “authentic”, like when we say “are you for real?”
We also use “real” to emphasize the significance of something, like when we say something is a real problem or a real pain in the…well, you get the picture!
Perhaps, in summary, I could say that to be REAL means to be AUTHENTIC, TRUE and SIGNIFICANT.
I spent my entire teaching career trying to make learning for students real and meaningful, full of purpose and connections to the real world and relating everything to their personal worlds and how that fit into the bigger picture of humanity.
Years of research and personal experience taught me that if students don’t see a “REAL reason to learn this stuff”, then, they will not own it. It just becomes part of a virtual reality. I think that is what is going on right now with online learning. It doesn’t feel or seem like “real school”, but even more so, what they are being asked to “learn” is rote, prescribed, computer-generated, impersonal and disconnected…not real.
The same is true for teachers. Teaching has become so prescribed and scripted that most teachers don’t REALly understand what they are supposed to be teaching or what the students are REALly supposed to be learning.
What is important, significant and meaningful for students to learn in school? What is for real, and what is just for a test? What are we teaching them about being kind and loving human beings? Where are the connections and the community?
Everyone remembers Coca-Cola’s ‘It’s the Real Thing’ campaign from the 1970s, right? Coke’s then brand manager, Ira C. Herbert, proclaimed it as a new direction that “responds to research which shows that young people seek the real, the original and the natural as an escape from phoniness.”
Real, original, natural…same feeling as authentic, true and significant.
We are seeking “the real thing” in education.
So, how do we get the “real deal” in the classroom?
Learning is all about life, and life is all about learning. There is something magical about the process when one learns first hand through a real world experience. After all, don’t we say that “experience is the best teacher”? There is great power in curiosity and discovery and experimentation and allowing students to explore things on their own.
When giving presentations at conferences, I would tell teachers that I was not a teacher, but rather a facilitator of learning. “Fácil” in Spanish means “easy”, so I literally tried to figure out how to make it easy for students to learn something. And I found that the best way to do that was to make it personally meaningful and motivating to them…to make the material and their experience authentic, true and significant.
I described my strategy as “leaving Reese’s Pieces and sprinkling fairy dust”. Like Elliott did in E.T., I would leave sweet tidbits of information or ask curious questions that would lead the students on a treasure hunt for the answers. In fact, the way that Elliott and his siblings teach E.T. about his new environment and how to communicate about it is a great example of how real learning unfolds. Check it out here.
Like E.T., students feel curious, but are afraid to venture too far into this new foreign land of knowledge where they are not sure of what to do, what to say or how to act. We can’t overwhelm them either with too much input or stimulation at once. We need to introduce them to what they need to know and let them experience it on their own in a safe and nurturing way.
But also, as humans, we are wired for connection. We are social creatures by nature, but we need to feel safe and supported in our environment. I will talk more about this later in “introspection” and “trust”. But for now, I’ll just say that my students always had a partner and interacted in pairs and groups for many activities. There was a sense of family and that we were all in it together.
That is what is being conveyed in the famous Coca Cola commercial about “The Real Thing”, “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony). Each person is an individual with his/her own song to sing, but together, in harmony, with others. Individual and diverse, but learning and growing together…we are all connected.
The fairy dust came from the personal connections, epiphanies and “magical moments” that the students experienced when they made a personal connection to what they were learning and felt that dopamine hit of “ah-ha” covered with excitement and eagerness to keep going and learn more. The irony was that my whole “schtick”, from Yiddish meaning “piece” and usually associated with a gimmick or something that was not real, became “authenticity” and “realia”. It kept me grounded and focused on what was REALly important. It kept my heart open to listening to what students wanted and needed, and finding a way, a path, for each one to go on a learning journey. It kept me balanced and centered on teaching the whole child, not just a standard or “flavor of the day” initiative passed down from the district.
Keeping it “real” was my secret “love potion number 9”. In fact, nine has always been my favorite number. The number 9 in many of the world’s wisdom traditions represents the “Divine completeness of Spirit”. In China, it represents “longevity” or “continued learning”. In numerology, it represents wisdom and integration of all the qualities of numbers 1-8. In other words, 9, like most numbers, is symbolic and represents some secret lesson or quality of the universe that we humans need to learn and experience.
That’s why keeping it real for myself and for my students filled in the “holes” or “learning gaps” and brought all the pieces together to create “whole”-some learning experiences. As well, I passed on love in everything I did for students. They felt it, they knew it, and it motivated me and them to do our best together to learn and grow and become the highest versions of ourselves every day. Love is the only reality in this world. EVERY THING that is worthwhile, worthy and essential comes from love and returns to love. Period!
AUTHENTIC…TRUE…SIGNIFICANT learning should be the reality of the classroom; not prescribed, one-size-fits-all, same path, same destination, same…same…same.
When teachers and students are not allowed to be authentic, true and significant (have meaning), then, things go off path. The “reality” of things become skewed by the shadow side of people because they are stuck in the lowest survival levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy and not being allowed to self-actualize. Fear, resentment, disappointment, frustration, anger, depression, anxiety and a sense of hopelessness prevail.
People either check out or act out. That is what we are seeing in schools, especially now with virtual learning.
We need to let in the light, lighten up and light the way to our true north…to our true home where we feel comfort, meaning and purpose…all that is authentic, true and significant to each of us…just like E.T.
Follow the spirit of teaching and incorporate REALITY into your lesson plans each day. By doing this, you will be setting your intentions from the heart.
This is what it might look like in your plan book:
Essential Question of the day: REALITY
How can I make learning authentic, true and significant for my students today?
Can Do Statements:
I focus my attention on my real intentions that flow from my True Self.
My path is clearly illuminated and will take me to the land of “ah”s” and “ah-ha’s”.
My inner light guides me and lights the way for others.
Best Practices for today:
I will allow my students to be curious and explore what is real and meaningful to them in the lesson.
I will be flexible and open to all possibilities because the learning journey is not one-size-fits-all.
The lesson will have a real world connection as well as a heart connection to the humanity of life.
Inspirational song:
I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony) – Coca Cola commercial 1971
Photo credit:
“Virtual Reality Headset Prototype” by Pargon is licensed under CC BY 2.0
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