Destroy the Teacher

Global warming exists. Is it anthropogenic or not? What does history tell us? What about the rate at which the earth is warming? What explains the dryness of last winter versus this winter? So many questions, and so many ways for opinion to skew science. Science is not always science. Like any argument, we pick and choose the facts that support what we believe. People have become so limited in accepting this duality, that few choose to stand up for anything anymore. "It depends," and "Both are true," plague classrooms and conversation. What happened to "I believe," or "I know for a fact"? The truth is, we are wiser for acknowledging our ignorance, and therefore forgiven for what we don't know. It seems like a cop out. This is an exercise in babble.

Yesterday I witnessed something beautiful in my classroom. A student actually went through the process of changing her opinion through a heated discussion. She called people out when they contradicted themselves, she was aware when she changed her mind and made note when she agreed and disagreed with others, even when she had started with a different position. It was great. And although every time the word "like" was uttered, I imagined a little *ding* going off in my head tallying them all up, I think I am beginning to understand what Whitman meant when he said, "He most honors my style who learns under it to destroy the teacher." Not that the student performs to honor the teacher, but that the teacher is most honored when she is no longer necessary and in awe of the student.