The Power of Words

24 AUG 2018

When a teacher says the word "Test", students clench up and get anxious. Even the best students fall prey to this. Educators have tried to get around 'test anxiety' in a few different ways, such as calling them exams, assessments, or analytical tools, but these semantic workarounds do not 'work'. Today in class though, something truly extraordinary happened. 

One thing I do as a teacher to allay student fears about approaching tests (shhh, don't say the T word!) is to warn the students several days in advance. I warn them a test is approaching, like a Hurricane spotted on the horizon. Look, yonder to the west, It's Hurricane Assessment! And then I make sure they know what will be tested and I remind them as the day approaches. I usually work through sample test problems too, going over the material multiple times in multiple ways.

So, back to today. Today is Friday, a day when tests are given in class. I hate to give tests on Monday. It literally takes an appearance by the Almighty Teaching Gods for me to schedule a Monday test. They must descend from on high and force my hand. But today was a Friday and thus fair game for testing.

I warned my students on Wednesday. "Hey, you're going to have an exam on Friday. This is what it will cover." I went over the material on the test on Wednesday, Thursday, and even discussed it with the parents that came on Back to School Night that Thursday night. This was to be a writing assessment, covering ancient cultures. Wait, that sounds too rough. Assignment. Yes, that's much better. Writing assignment sounds so much better than test, doesn't it? 

So today was the day. I got them started, even put a big timer on the board. Every single student got straight to work. It was magical. Here's the funny part. Halfway through the assessment, um, sorry, assignment, one of my students, out of the blue and in the middle of furiously working away on the assignment, says, "Hey, aren't we supposed to be taking a test today?" 

Her neighbor looked over at her like she had just grown a third eyeball in the middle of her forehead. 

The first student realized her misunderstanding a moment later and blushed a deep red as I stared at her in confusion. My expression translated as, "What do you think you've been doing for the last twenty minutes?!" 

She started laughing so hard she actually started crying. 

I tried not to laugh, my body shaking in mirth while I hid my face behind a piece of paper. The power of words indeed. I had taken the mighty anxiety-producing 'test' and turned it into an assignment that the students ate up as a chance to prove themselves, not a barrier standing in their way but a challenge to be triumphed over with hard work and determination. If I had called it a test I would have had students moaning and groaning like extras for The Walking Dead. By calling it a writing assignment, I had students cheerfully typing away for a straight 50 minutes without one complaint. My students had spent the period working away on a 'test' without so much as a frown. Nice!

The power of words...something to think about when writing...

Picture for today: 

The Walking Dead, Halloween, and Running Inspiration

01 OCT 17 What would Halloween be like in a world full of death and desperation like The Walking Dead? Would people still want to celebrate? Would the traditions of Halloween mean more or less if loved ones could come back, albeit as brainless flesh-eating monsters? What would the costumes look like? These are the types of questions that keep authors up at night. 

My personal take on it, which I may work into a story sometime in the future, is that, much like Halloween today is an amalgam of superstitions and traditions from around the world, the future in a post-apocalyptic world with real dead walking around would see a mixing of old traditions and new. Sort of like El Dia De Los Muertos with a side of 'let's do things that keep them rested and in the ground'. Maybe a group of people figure out a way to keep restless spirits 'resting' and these practices spread around the world as an annual holiday tradition with some purpose. I could see dressing as outlandish dead, putting some sort of gifts on graves, to bribe the bodies to stay underground. Maybe too when people die, teeth are automatically removed when possible. That way there is no worry about getting bit. Who knows. Still have much to think on this idea. Some of the stories I plan on telling will be set in a world where death is not absolute.

I had a great idea while I was running today (which means I'm limping now lol)! Those endorphins 'jogged' something loose in my brain. Can't really reveal the idea though, it's still in its infancy, but it has to do with one of my main characters, his relationship to the dwarves, and dwarven culture in general. It will help define both the dwarves and my main character quite a bit, making them more unique in my world. Looking forward to writing again. I have to go running more often, see what other ideas spring forth!  

Three pictures for today. Two of them are mine, one is from the mighty Internet. The first is a black and white pic, a root that looks like a 3. I like taking the occasional black and white. Some things just look better like that. The other one that is mine is a Dia de Los Muertos gato (or Halloween Day of the Dead Cat, as my daughter said)! Bought it and it will go on the Christmas tree this year. The last pic, not mine, is a cat with a hat!