“If you refuse to be corrected, you are only hurting yourself. Listen to criticism, and you will gain understanding.” Proverbs 15:32-33
There are times we want to think we’ve got it all under control, we know all there is to know, or it’s hard to admit “I was wrong”.
When these times occur, mistakes are often made. We don’t have it “all under control”. If we think we do, we are probably kidding ourselves. When someone comes along to correct us or give us advice on a situation we believe we totally understand, we don’t always want to listen. Maybe we should. They are looking at it from the outside (objectively) and their insight may be very helpful.
As a teacher, I get observed and evaluated often. Do I always agree with the criticism my peer evaluator may be giving me? No. They sometimes focus on that one or two students who are not on task instead of the other 98% who are rockin’ the lesson. (Or at least it appears that they seem to focus on all the negative things going on instead of the good. Don’t even get me started on this whole thing.) But, I do need to take their observation into account and allow the criticism to make me a better teacher. That’s when I say to myself, “Put your big girl panties on and deal with it.” If I refuse to be corrected by someone who sees only a minuscule of my teaching day-in-and-day-out ability, then I truly am hurting myself. I need to listen and learn from their insight and gain understanding and grow from the experience. I will become a better person and educator when I heed the advice of others. Good or bad.
You may not always agree with the one who is giving you correction or criticism, but you can grow and become better in your field when you realize, “You know, I don’t know it all.” Smile. Be gracious. Step back to view what they saw, and learn.
| June 17 |