Embracing Change
It’s the time of year when students are both ending their semester as well as facing a new frontier.
Rather it’s a Pre-K graduate who will soon face the rigors of Kindergarten, or a college graduate who will begin a career, change is both exciting and a bit daunting.
In the span of one school year, students have learned, matured, adjusted, accomplished, and now brace for the next phase. It is a cycle upon which change becomes the new norm. As soon as one set of skills is mastered, it’s time to pursue the next. It is both amazing and humbling to recognize how fast students progress through their academic careers. Beginning with the end in mind, is never more paramount than during these developmental times.
By encouraging regular dialog and exploring facets of their student’s talents, parents can offer substantial insight into career paths which are well aligned with their child’s interests. Having some idea of where one may aspire to end, is a powerful motivator for a student as he labors through the many academic challenges of his career. Students without such a beacon often find these successive steps of the academic ladder to hold less appeal, as they are uncertain when or where the journey will end.
It is also noteworthy to accept that the change impacts one’s entire family. As students initially join the K-12 realm, parents have to adapt to a set schedule and scholastic deliverables as well as extra-curricular attachments. This is a dramatic change for parents whose first child leaves home where schedules had revolved around parental obligations. As children matriculate from elementary to middle school, notable changes are also felt by the entire family unit as academic challenges expand, extra-curricular options increase, and social calendars develop. If this weren’t a dramatic enough adjustment, high school years bring an even wider options for academic development as well as supplemental options and social pursuits which call upon children, for the first time, to have to choose between a variety of selections as time is truly limited.
Exiting from the high school climate, change is especially dramatic. Now students face not only what to become, but where to develop the skills and knowledge to evolve into this future adult. Selections include a wide variety college and university options as well as career and technical pursuits. There are also options for military interests as well as blended versions of each of the choices. Naturally, there are regularly a series of adjustments as one focuses on his future life. These are also part of the change matrix to which student must learn to adjust.
Change can be wonderful and exciting! It can also be intimidating and overpowering. Regardless of a student’s position in his academic career, rather just beginning the process or finishing up on a lifelong goal, change is always part of the landscape. By helping students both anticipate and embrace the changes, parents can empower them to truly become the best that they can be. Perhaps Harriet Tubman said it best, “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”
Dr. Angela Farmer is a lifelong educator, a syndicated columnist, and an author. Serving Mississippi State University as an Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, she can be reached at asfarmer@colled.msstate.edu