All this time though I just couldn't help thinking... how do I measure success / my own success on a daily basis? How do YOU measure it? In a world that demands instant success and "evidence", how do we, educators, measure it? I can tell when my students are motivated, when they start asking questions and making associations but, unlike other professions, I guess we have to wait years, even decades to know if we are successful, if we managed to pass on the knowledge we were supposed to and if they can appropriately apply it; if we managed to make a difference in the lives of our students, instill hope for their dreams, support and care for them. So much, Gosh! Surely every teacher in Portugal is now overworked and underpaid but we still strive each day to deal with challenging students, the pressure of higher test scores and curricular mandates and still can't be sure if we are successful...
Anyway, enough digression and time to cheer up... let's pray and bear together for another school year :)
All the best for 2011 / 2012!
