On Teaching: Stability

Stability in the Classroom I’ve been meditating lately on the importance of stability in my classroom in the upcoming year. In one of my dictionaries, one definition given for the word stable is “resistant to change of position or condition; not easily moved or disturbed.” I would hope that my students will see my English class this year as being stable in that sense – as a class that’s carefully planned and solidly built and therefore not likely to be confusing, capricious, or chaotic. The idea of trust is important here: I want my students to trust that the foundations of my English class in May are going to be exactly the same as they were in September, and, more importantly, to trust that they can take risks in my class because the foundations of the class are stable enough to support them. An even more interesting definition of the word stable is “maintaining equilibrium; self-restoring” as in a stable aircraft. This aspect of stability is vital to any classroom, including mine in 2005-2006. My teaching must definitely be “self-restoring” – able to quickly right itself (like an airplane), after a stumble or a mistake or a poorly taught lesson, and get back on course. My students, too, must learn to be stable in this sense. It might, in fact, be helpful for them to think of themselves as well-balanced airplanes, able to maintain a fair amount of steadiness through any kind of “rough weather” school might throw at them. Finally, a third definition for stable is “enduring or permanent”, as in a stable peace. I would hope that my students will feel this kind of stability in my English classes this year. I guess I hope they will sense, if only occasionally, that what they are learning in my class will “endure” after the class ends in June. We certainly don’t have a “stable peace” in the world, but perhaps in Room 3 I can create a “stable English” for students – an understanding of our language that will endure in at least a somewhat permanent way.