What about Jimmmy? What about Joe?

One aspect that I have definitely learned during my 10 years of being an educator is that relationships matter. As a coach and a teacher, I've found that it doesn't really matter what you know or how well versed you are in your topic if you cannot identify and understand your "who." The "who" go by many names, but as a coach we understand the jargon, "Jimmys and Joes." And neither Jimmy nor Joe cares about your X or O (curriculum) unless you establish a connection with them.

I'll take sports out of the equation (because generally players within a sport inherently want to participate in that sport) and only look at my Economics/History courses. After 10 years of teaching, I can count on one hand how many students walked through my threshold excited about learning the nuances of market structures and the degrees of competition. I can also count on one hand how many discipline referrals that I have filled out. I attribute that last statement to simply having a connection with students that exists outside of what was created by pure scheduling. It was my job to teach and this student was placed in my classroom because his/her curriculum stated that he/she needed credits in my course to graduate. For me it was important for this to not be the only connection with my students; I eagerly wanted to know them on another level than that of being simply subject matter teacher and subject matter learner. So I attempted to ensure that I went out of the way to talk to students about something other than the subject matter. What is your favorite show on Netflix? How are you feeling about the game tonight? I'm the eldest child in my family just like you; do you feel the same pressure to be a role model? All of these are examples of conversations that I'd have with my students to create that separate connection with them.

I say all of this because as we enter another go round of virtual learning while the pandemic continues to loom over us, relationships will matter more than ever. While I loudly applaud my school district and the others who have made the difficult choice to begin the school year virtually, I would also implore my colleagues to take a little extra time to look over your rosters and establish connections with their soon to be "Zoom students." It might be the difference from that student attending virtually everyday or never. Remember, relationships matter.

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