Anti-Bullying Day, Earth Day, Aboriginal Day,…
These, and many others, are important days to help raise awareness around wrong-doings that occur in our schools and society. What we MUST be aware of is that just because we participate in these one day events does NOT mean that we have committed to change. Change needs to happen each and every day in our schools and throughout our communities.
If we continue to need these days year after year, are we making enough progress? Will there be a time when these days are NOT needed? Change is slow but should we not have the expectation that the way we treat each other improves more rapidly?
I DO see the purpose of the one day events, school wide speakers, honouring ceremonies, etc but we need to be careful if we think that just because we have discussions around these issues on this day, we are going to create the needed change. The most powerful actions are those that occur in the days/years following these events.
If the only thing we do to end bullying is wear a Pink Shirt on Anti-Bullying day, our society is in trouble. We need to model respectful behaviour every day and encourage change by continually helping both the victims, bystanders and the bullies understand the impact of their behaviours.
Two years ago, our grade 2’s told us that “Earth Day is every day” and they modeled this with their class compost and recycling (and reduction) program as well as their awareness of the benefits of growing their own food. As a school, we have done “litterless lunch days” but then continued on with our same (often wasteful, consuming) behaviours following these days. Yes, the day did get people talking but I am not sure that it created the needed change.
Today, an admin colleague and I stated (paraphrased) “If we think we embrace First Nation Culture just because we participate in Aboriginal Day each year, we are doing our students a disservice… culture of ALL our students needs to be embedded in our lessons every day.” Many of us participate in surface level activities that demonstrate equity and respect but are we having the deeper, needed dialogue around the impact of our Western values on other cultures? Are we creating change every day so that ALL our students have a more equitable opportunity for success, regardless of race or culture?
Many schools are hosting Identity Day fairs that provide students with an opportunity to showcase who they are. In schools, do we continually honour and provide students with opportunities to develop and showcase their passions or do we merely award select students at the end of the year? Are our students more aware of their strengths and what they can do or their deficits and what they cannot?
We need to continue t0 honour and celebrate who we are and where we come from throughout the year. There are awareness and celebratory days in which we should be participating but if we look to a one day event to create the needed major change and solve problems that occur every day, we need to ask ourselves… what are we doing to create this change every other day of the year?
Anybody can work to create change by doing something for a single day… but this is never enough. We must ‘be the change’ EVERY day.
Chris, a great response to the “work” involved in making significant and long lasting change.
Change is not a one-time, one event goal but a process of engagement around moral purpose and identity. Our challenge as leaders (and I think one of the greatest things about our jobs) is to foster meaningful change within the context of human relationships.
Sometimes, I think that these one off, one day events are driven for some by zeal and for others by guilt. Regardless, what needs to be done is to transform the spectacular into the ‘expected’ ordinary (there is more richness in this). And within our focus on the “single day”, we also initiate “the change” by engaging deeply in each single conversation we have and each single decision we make.
Thanks for sharing – looking forward to catch up with your blog
Thanks for bringing this to light in a post, Chris!
I recognize that these designated days are meant to raise awareness intially, but it would be my hope that the goal would be to have them not needed at all.
I have always had this nagging feeling about such days, but it is hard to know what to express so as not to offend, or be misunderstood, or come across negative about whatever the day is about.
That is great about your message, eg. “Earth Day is every day”. The message of continuous importance needs to be there to support the real change that such days could bring about.
I have seen some schools recognize one character education value each month by including it the context of the classroom and curriculum and honouring a few students who demonstrated that value that month. I often felt I was the only one who saw a down side to it. I guess it had some impact and goodness to it with a longer time frame, but again, that nagging feeling….
Thanks for articulating this and helping my own thoughts around these one day events.
It’s definitely important not to make recognizing these important facets of our lives and work into one-shot-and-done celebrations. I think, though, sometimes the idea of Identity Day or #noofficeday is enough to spark an awareness in others about the purpose of such a “day” and how it can apply to one’s work with students.
For example, I was initially uncomfortable with the use of the No Office Day label and promoting certain days of the month to honor it, etc., because as we all know, administrators should be visible and working with teachers and kids every single day. The more I thought about it, I decided it might be a nice wake-up call for those administrators who DON’T make it a priority to get out of their offices and spend time with students, so it definitely won’t do any harm to promote and celebrate.
Like you said, we need to ask ourselves, “What are we doing to create this change every other day of the year?”
Nice post!
“If we continue to need these days year after year, are we making enough progress? Will there be a time when these days are NOT needed?” Human nature is such that our work will never be done; to think otherwise, to think we could ever irradicate wrongs entirely would be to seriously err. This is not to say that we should not strive for justice; rather to say we should be ever vigilant, and never rest on our laurels thinking the job is accomplished – for it never will be. We will ALWAYS have work to do to fully realize the dignity of each human being.
The International Society of Sports Activities Nutrition discovered
that creatine is a extremely efficient supplement for rising performance and lean body mass when coaching.
When considering utilizing any kind of supplement to help your training, understanding whether or not they’re safe
to make use of and whether they’re more doubtless to supply the outcomes you need is crucial.
These are often made from natural substances that will enhance efficiency
while serving to you to gain power and mass quicker. Here we’re going to dive a little
deeper into the world of steroids (or ‘roids as they’re additionally known) and
take a glance at some nice benefits of taking authorized alternatives.
Bodybuilders all round the world use steroids—but they’re notorious—and for good cause.
The factor about authorized steroids is that they’ve been caught in a world of obscurity for therefore lengthy that most people don’t really know what
to make of them. It is also value noting that injecting at the incorrect location may find yourself in paralysis or demise.
Thus, although it could be argued that injectable steroids are
safer in regard to having decreased hepatotoxicity,
administering them is doubtlessly lethal to the inexperienced.
Moreover, needle contamination is an additional threat;
thus, users ought to be cautious of hygiene and the sharing of needles.
In our experience, here is a listing of the 7 main steroids used at present in bodybuilding, so as of most secure to most dangerous.
Although Deca Durabolin is taken into account a safer steroid for bodybuilding, it can cause some problematic side effects in other areas.
Each CrazyBulk supplement is backed by a 60-day money-back guarantee and is free from
harmful chemical compounds, synthetic hormones, and illegal substances.
The time required to experience the results can be different
for everybody, and there is no standard set for this.
Most persons are in a place to see outcomes inside two to a few months, however when the dietary supplements are used along with a nutritious diet and exercise, the outcomes can show up within weeks.
Such folks ought to never lose hope and be according to the utilization of supplements.
Usage Guide- The info supplied on the website suggests taking three capsules earlier than the exercise.
The best is to take a 30-minute to 45-minute hole between the exercise and the every day dose.
The results may take up to two months to show, take a break of two weeks, and resume taking the complement when you want extra muscle toning.
D-BAL earns its popularity by replicating the consequences of Methandrostenolone, a
substance extensively often identified as Dianabol, sans the
unwanted effects. It accomplishes this without the use of artificial hormones or steroids.
D-BAL operates via a unique blend of pure elements to reinforce nitrogen retention in muscle
tissues. This course of is significant for rising protein synthesis,
the cornerstone of muscle development. More nitrogen retention in your muscles permits for increased protein building
by your cells, leading to larger muscle positive aspects and improved strength.
In such situations, docs often advocate legal steroids to combat this muscle loss.
This usage underscores the safety and effectiveness of those supplements, as they’re
utilized beneath the steerage of medical professionals to aid in affected person recovery and wellbeing.
As males age—especially after 40—maintaining muscle mass and power becomes tougher due to
the pure decline in testosterone levels. This important hormone plays a key function in muscle
improvement, vitality, stamina, and total vitality.
Learn the following to know the most effective pure and 100% authorized steroid alternate options which may be secure to
try.
Combining 5 of our most powerful muscle building and fat
burning formulation for superb, fast-acting results. Both Trenorol and
Anvarol could cause some bodily adjustments that might be undesired
by users. Nevertheless, these unwanted aspect effects are typically much less prevalent with natural dietary
supplements like Trenorol and Anvarol compared
to their steroid counterparts. Natural complement designed to imitate the
muscle-building and fat-loss effects of trenbolone without the side-effects.
CrazyBulk presents a number of the best authorized steroid stacks, just like the Bulking Stack, Slicing Stack,
and the highly effective Ultimate Stack, specifically designed for different
health targets. If you’re slicing down for a ripped, vascular physique or making an attempt to enhance your athletic performance, Winsol is a go-to
authorized steroid complement you’ll find a way to trust.
Whether Or Not you’re bulking, cutting, or just
trying to reignite your athletic performance, Testo-Max is the most secure and
most effective testosterone booster on the market.
Steroids, once the forbidden fruit in sports and bodybuilding, have been around
longer than most realize. Initially, they were solely in the realm
of drugs, treating situations from anemia to continual losing.
Fast ahead a few decades, and steroids are a
household name, but not all the time for the right
causes. The most substantial evidence supports fundamental compounds that immediately gasoline muscle protein synthesis and vitality production during training.