so here's the thing

all day and half of last night my little inner voices have been arguing with each other. am i admitting to craziness? not quite. perhaps you might relate.

have you ever found yourself wondering if you're doing the right thing? i have found that it is very disconcerting to really try to do what you believe is right, and then have people question you or not understand you. granted i am not referring to some huge crisis, just a small one.

last evening, i received an email from a parent, a really good, caring parent. she tells me that her daughter hates school, which she has never done before. the mother tells me that she doesn't remember 8th grade being this hard for her older two kids, one of whom i taught. she is concerned that religion is too hard. she asked me to respond her email with my thoughts when i get a chance.

so of course, my brain has been whirring with potential responses since i read the email last evening. my first thought is that i feel really awful that her daughter is hating school for the first time ever because of my classes. maybe it's not just mine, but i think it's safe to assume that mine must be the worst. as i have always hoped to create an environment that made students feel encouraged and excited to learn, it's really a blow to hear that someone hates what i am doing.

so then i must question: am i too hard, especially in religion? i know that i expect the kids to learn the material of church history, which has a lot of names and events that most people don't know, much less 8th graders. i don't give open book tests, as i suppose other teachers do. so is it wrong to expect them to learn this info? i give them notes and a study guide; we do activities that i intend to help kids learn the material. some do very well, but some, like this girl i guess, are overwhelmed. then there is this diocesan-wide test, the acre test, that measures how well our school teaches religion. and there is so much they don't seem to know/remember.

then do i change it? am i doing something wrong? i really don't think i expect too much. it is harder perhaps, but so is high school. i guess the hardest part for me to know is whether i'm doing the right thing the right way for the right reasons. i sure try to. is that enough?