Self-Esteem

This image is copyrighted by Bill Watterson and is taken from http://danaloewenblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/low-self-esteemis-pride.html, which I found via Google search 5/29/13.

I posted the comment below on my personal Facebook page earlier, and thought I'd repost it here.  I've had a week-and-a-half of feeling pretty discouraged with the state of public schools and the lack of a work ethic of so many of our students.  (Not, mind you, of all of our students.)  There are many categories of kids, some with great work ethics, some with lousy, and countless in between.  But the general sense of apathy or a lack of aspirations is getting to me more and more lately.  It's everywhere and so incredibly disheartening.  If I think too hard about it or let it get to me, I come home thinking I can't possibly teach another day.  Something happened yesterday -- more than I can type here now, but which I will hopefully get to come back and fill in -- and this was what was on my mind this morning.

My Facebook post:

Some thoughts on "self esteem": I will not coddle you. I will not tell you that you are better than you are, but I will absolutely tell you when you are better than what you're doing. I will not make you feel all warm and fuzzy just for the sake of warm fuzzies. I will tell you the truth, because self-esteem should be earned. Whether you are failing or passing, best in the class or the worst, I will tell you the truth and I will demand your best. I will help you get there. I will do whatever I can do to teach you and to give you support to learn. I will give you whatever tools you need and I can provide, and I will even research new ones, just to help you be successful. I will -- even if I don't think it makes sense -- work harder at this than you work. I will tell the truth whether you like it or not, and I will never just tell you what you want to hear. I will bust my tail for you and with you. But I will NOT lie to you or anyone else for the sake of your self esteem.

--Jen

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