Be Curious: Was that a compliment?



Last week, I was returning to the Society Office after a meeting and was taking a phone call as I parked my car and walked towards the main entrance.  From behind me, I heard a group of Grade 10 girls exclaim:



“Hey, Mr. Rogers - are you wearing AirPods?”

I responded:

“Yes, sorry, I was just on the phone - hope you’ve had a great day.”

They responded:

“I can’t believe you’ve got AirPods, you’re just like a teenager.”

I laughed, thanked them, and went into the the school.  Later, I reflected on the sentence - “You’re just like a teenager,” and wondered” ‘Was that a compliment or an insult.”

For me, it is much bigger than the technology we use or the way we carry ourselves.  These young ladies’ statement took me back to our focus for the year, “Through the eyes of our students.”

As I thought about this, I came around to the fact that their statement was certainly a compliment.  I do believe it is all of our jobs to remain curious about what the student expand adolescent experience is and find ways to connect to empathize and relate.

I left wondering, what else can we do to better understand our student’s lived experience, and I leave you with this exact question.


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