Tonight in my quantitative methodology class we learned about something called “The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  I should say that some of us learned about something called “The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  I heard about something called ‘The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  I would suggest that there is a difference between learning and hearing.  Learning implies some sort of understanding and some ability to make meaning from whatever it is that had been learned.  Hearing simply implies that the some sounds went into some ears.

To no fault of my wonderful professor who actually has an uncanny ability to help me understand things I would never have imagined being able to understand, it didn’t happen tonight.  You would not be well served to ask me about “The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  If you did, I would more than likely say, “Huh?”

I felt a bit like Charlie Brown.  I think I understood one of every four or five words that she said.  I heard something like, “Wha, wha, mean, wha, wha, standard deviation, wha, wha, wha, wha, wha, two group population comparison…” and so on.  I began to feel not smart.  Some people in my class engaged in the learning by contributing thoughts and ideas, making connections, and showing that they understood what was going on.  Some of them even expressed enthusiasm.  I began to feel even more not smart.

At one point my professor said, “We know that the standard deviation is equally distributed because it’s the third part of The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  I wondered why she used the word “we.”  I didn’t feel like “I” knew very much, certainly not very much that’s connected to or confirmed by “The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  Ironically, as evidenced by the inordinate amount of times that I’ve already written it inside of this reflection, I really like the words, “The Strong Law of Long Numbers.”  When I write or say them I feel like I’m writing or saying the name of Jedi bylaw, or the title of some sort of mathematics-wizardry concept.  Also, all class long I fought an almost uncontrollable compulsion to put the words, beware of in front of them…as in, “Beware of The Strong Law of Long Numbers!”  A little intensely dramatic music and a few canned screams and you’ve got a potentially viable sci-fi thrilled concept.

The thing is, I disengaged.  I drifted off.  I lost my place.  Words blended together.  In the beginning I pushed my brain to keep up, but it simply couldn’t.  Whatever was needed to follow that part of tonight’s lesson was not in me.

Eventually, I took myself out of the game entirely.  It was better than sitting there feeling not so smart any longer.  I got silly (which happens to me occasionally).  I cracked a few jokes to person sitting next to me.  Here I was, an elementary school principal, a grown man in his final PhD class, a relatively well educated and responsible individual spending gobs of time and money for the privilege of doing this work, goofing off and being a distraction to boot!

Enter the light bulb.  I was that kid!  Tonight, I was the student who I would’ve been considerably frustrated with.  I was the one who couldn’t understand the concept or do the work, and consequently, I was the one whose frustrations and insecurities led me to entirely disengaging from the learning process.  I was the one who was willing to risk diminishing the culture of learning in the classroom rather than facing what seemed to be an insurmountable learning challenge.

Once I realized what was going on it went from a relatively mortifying experience to incredibly fulfilling one.  As an educational leader it was wonderful to be sitting in the shoes of a student who didn’t get it.  It was exhilarating to feel that compulsion toward tuning out and goofing off that I so frequently misunderstood in the classroom.  Tonight, I’m extremely thankful to have been given the gift of what seems to be an enhanced perspective.  I may never understand or be able to apply “The Strong Law of Long Numbers,” but I can safely say that its presence in my life has giving me an opportunity to enhance my practice, and subsequently, my impact on the incredible students that I serve…even the ones who are tune out and goof off from time to time.

Please join the global gratitude movement tomorrow as we focus on “things that help us better understand and appreciate the children we serve” all day long in the Thankful Thursday Twitter chat, using #thTHX.

When you seek to genuinely consider the perspectives of your students, what do you find?

Live. Learn. Lead.

Dream Big. Work Hard. Be Well.