
I have mentioned before that it is not my intention to be the "leader" of our group. I would, instead, prefer to be just another participant. That said I would now like to post one part of chapter two that has struck a strong chord for me, talk about my thoughts, and then hope that others of you might respond... Here goes:
"... they still carry a belief that they're not as clever as they make out, because they failed the eleven plus... Some of the most successful people I know still carry the burden of failure at eleven." pg 78
Is it possible that this is happening again? Is it possible that this terrible scar is being stamped on a whole new generation? One of my great fears as a teacher, specifically a fourth grade teacher, is that I might have a child leave my class hating writing. I work hard to make my room a place without inhibitions. To make my space safe for young voices. Often I have students come to me with a fear of writing, and even a belief that they are not capable of writing anything of worth. It is my belief that this fear of failure stems largely from widespread assessment, and assessment in turn is directly connected to our history of strong held belief in academic ability. Turn it in and it is assessed. 1-2-3-4. Returned. Pass or fail.
For most of my students I find that they do not know an in between. You may tell them that they have been working hard and are making wonderful progress, but ultimately that number is all they care about. It is as though it is tattooed on their shoulder. A few twos on some writing work and it doesn't take long for children to begin to believe that they are not writers.
I find it amazing to think that this perception of self might persist on into adulthood, even after they have achieved success.