Brilliant Defiance

As far as I can tell, the borderline between defiance and disobedience isn’t that hard to distinguish although they imply a lot of similarities in meaning. But “defiance” is my pick of word to describe this scenario – whether or not it’s blunt or soon would cause distortion to other minds – it is by no means my intention.

As an educator, I’ve learned to challenge every theory for the better, and so being defiant isn’t always a bad thing. I defy but not provoke and so these are totally poles apart in implication. If anyone doesn’t have the courage to change a thing, then he/she will never be able to see what bold individuals call – a defied description or beyond description.

For I rather be typecast as an insolent man or a maverick teacher than being submissive to rote learning or a monotonous teaching – a suffocating environment I couldn’t imagine myself engaging.    

To defy or disobey whatever current at the moment doesn’t mean a negative connotation – it’s but a wonderful intention of a detour – I won’t regret still using this jargon or let it be a taboo for awhile.

 This week is our school’s project week, to call innovative and creative learners come out of their shells – a week of fun and imagination and ingenuity and inventiveness putting the routine on the back burner.

Not that I don’t fancy artistic mind’s eye or the idea of this ingenious task, it isn’t just my cup of tea at the moment. I have useful alternative than this complex project.

And so I defied the mainstream ideas especially the middle-of-the-road ways of teaching to engage with the unconventional side.

“I want to do something different then, if it’s OK?” I told our Academic Coordinator at the meeting days before this week.

One reason, it won’t work this way for my entire class. I know them – one thing I am sure about. That is why I thought of a better plan to supply something beneficial and yet interesting and fun. And so there’s no project for me and my learners this week.

Another reason, Project Week like this has no mileage for my type of students – it is not something they would look forward to – they want something useful. I am not saying that this idea isn’t creative or isn’t nifty or it’s useless – I have just a dissimilar point of view.    

Everyone is busy doing load of stuff at school, at work, at home and it’s not just a great idea to add more pressure. Then I defied subscribing a project week, but as promised I have provided my students things they won’t regret not doing projects this week.

I was right with my decision because it went really well. And so it is worth flouting after all. It’s a brilliant defiance for sure – not for the worst.

Here are some of what I have given them this week.