Failure Is an Option

Originally Published January 2016

We learned from the Apollo 13 movie that failure is not an option.  Unfortunately, it seems that phrase, that call to action issued when the lives of the astronauts aboard Apollo 13 were hanging in the balance after an explosion, has been misrepresented.  

You see, failure is not only an option, it is a certainty for those people who aspire to do something great, something important, something critical. 

Why?

To accomplish something really important requires risks.  Taking a risk is how we find a better way.  It’s how discoveries are made.  It’s how new learning is accomplished.  And risk-taking is part of a growth mindset.  (It was a growth-mindset and lots of trial and error that got those Apollo 13 astronauts home.)

Nowhere is it more important that we develop a growth-mindset than in schools.  And not just in our students.  As the adult educators, we must have a growth mindset and take risks in order to do something great: ensure that every child who enters our schools is engaged in meaningful learning experiences which ignite his/her passions, provide a solid base of content knowledge upon which to build, and give him/her the tools to succeed in an ever-changing world.

Unfortunately, the policies of a test driven society have created a performance orientation, which is based upon scores, comparisons, rankings, and criticism.  But we must develop a mastery orientation in which we focus on the process of learning, the growth of the learner, and the joy of coming to an “Aha” moment.  

Achievement, standards, and assessment are important.  We want to check progress via assessments to ensure that our teaching is leading to learning.  We need to have standards to protect students and to ensure they learn all that they will need.  But how we teach, how we engage, and how we react to the test scores is in our control.  And if we want to be great at teaching so that our students can be great, then we are going to have to try new methods, new approaches.  We are going to need open minds and a focus on our own growth.  We are going to have to be risk takers.  

Why?

Because failing our students is not an option.  But failure might be an experience on the path to becoming great educators.  And that is ok.

References and Resources:

Are We Motivating Students With Data? C.C. Farrell, J. A. Marsh, & M. Bertrand. Educational Leadership, November 2015