Summertime Expectations
Source/Author: Mike Murphy, Headmaster
May 20, 2016
Who will have bragging rights at the end of the summer?
Mike
Will it be the Upper School student who earned the most money, or the students who mastered level 6 on the latest and greatest video game?
Will it be the student who developed a commitment to a service project or organization, or the one with the best tan?
Will it be the person who chilled, or the child who decided to learn something new?
We live in a country with an educational system stuck in an agrarian calendar when very few of us do or know anything about farming. The long summer break can result in opportunities for enormous enrichment and the development of great skills and values or it can result in a terrible loss of time that could have been used for productive activities. I’m not anti-rest and anti-vacation. I look forward to the change of pace the summer provides to those of us in the school business. But I do not know a teacher or administrator who will not use the majority of the “time off” to do something to enrich their professional and personal lives. And I cannot imagine a high performing student-athlete, student-artist, student-leader taking the full summer “off.”
We recently celebrated the Commencement of the 84 newest members of the Shorecrest Alumni Association. I am sure that the 12 who will compete in collegiate athletics trained during the summer months. I have a high level of confidence that the 66 who received academic scholarships to universities were engaged in some enrichment activities during their summer breaks. I am 100% positive that the students who have been recognized for incredible service to local, national and international organizations did not take the summer off.
As much as I do not want to contribute to what appears to be a generation of over-scheduled children, I do not want to ever look back and think that I should have encouraged year long productivity for our students. I know that emotionally healthy people benefit from breaks. I know that young people who are rested and emotionally healthy perform to the best of their ability. Clearly, there is a balance between rest and work, but I am sure that balance does not mean equal.
Some people thrive on playing 180 baseball games a year and then training in the off season. Some people never take a break from reading and writing. Some people feel better when they exercise every day. A day off creates imbalance for these people.
I wish you and your children a wonderful summer. I hope you all find enriching activities that fill you up personally and as a family.
We look forward to having our Shorecrest Chargers return rested and ready for another great school year of growth and development in August.
Cheers!
Mike
