The Difference between right and almost right

“Discernment is not knowing the difference between right and wrong. It is knowing the difference between right and almost right.” Charles Spurgeon.

As my old PE coach said, “almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.”

What is the difference between right and almost right? It is the difference between the tunnels meeting as the chunnel was drilled under the English Channel. It is often the difference between disciplining a child and abusing a child – many things children do are wrong and deserve correcting but some parents go over the top when trying to make their point.

Other examples:
* The difference between being helpful and kind and being a pushover that never holds children accountable.
* The difference between listening to a parent's side and never backing up your teachers.
* The difference between listening to students and never holding them accountable for their actions.
* The difference between holding teachers accountable and unfairly punishing them for the intellectual capacities and wealth of their children (which are often higher indicators of test scores and student success.)
* The difference between fairness and unfairness is most often in this fine shade between right and almost right.

We should all look at our actions in the classroom and schools to determine if what we are doing is right — or almost right. Almost right isn't good enough. I believe that good sense has been suspended and some people are just doing something to show they are doing something, when in fact, they are just shooting holes in ships that are already sinking.

We need rational thought,wisdom, and discernment in times like these. The new thing isn't always the best thing and be very wary of those who have all the answers.

I've found that the only teachers and educators with all the answers are those who have never taught before the week before they start teaching and those who have never taught before but make it their life's work to tell others how to teach. Most coaches have played the game they are coaching – it gives them a baseline for understanding and relating to the players.

I just want to encourage you today to consider the difference between right and almost right in your life and classroom and to commit to doing the RIGHT thing.

Have a great day! Remember your noble calling, teacher!

– Written on my iPad using Blog Press by Vicki Davis, author, Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds

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Vicki Davis

Vicki Davis

Vicki Davis is a full-time classroom teacher and IT Director in Georgia, USA. She is Mom of three, wife of one, and loves talking about the wise, transformational use of technology for teaching and doing good in the world. She hosts the 10 Minute Teacher Podcast which interviews teachers around the world about remarkable classroom practices to inspire and help teachers. Vicki focuses on what unites us -- a quest for truly remarkable life-changing teaching and learning. The goal of her work is to provide actionable, encouraging, relevant ideas for teachers that are grounded in the truth and shared with love. Vicki has been teaching since 2002 and blogging since 2005. Vicki has spoken around the world to inspire and help teachers reach their students. She is passionate about helping every child find purpose, passion, and meaning in life with a lifelong commitment to the joy and responsibility of learning. If you talk to Vicki for very long, she will encourage you to "Relate to Educate" or "innovate like a turtle" or to be "a remarkable teacher." She loves to talk to teachers who love their students and are trying to do their best. Twitter is her favorite place to share and she loves to make homemade sourdough bread and cinnamon rolls and enjoys running half marathons with her sisters. You can usually find her laughing with her students or digging into a book.

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