I saw a social media post a while ago listing the various technical and educational hurdles they cleared to create a virtual concert. One of them included the phrase “yelling at kids to […]”.
That’s where you lost me. I believe in the importance of musical excellence, of motivating students to achieve their potential, of teaching the value of hard work. I believe in being a leader who leads.
I think you lose it all when you yell at kids. You lose moral authority. You lose trust. You lose students’ vulnerability. Sometimes you even lose students.
Yelling at kids is a perfect example of “Power Over” instead of “Power With” or “Power To”, to use Brené Brown’s terminology. And while “Power Over” might work in the short term, it leads to major long term problems.
We who teach are called to be leaders who nurture, leaders who build up. Yelling at doesn’t nurture, it demeans. It doesn’t build up, it tears down.
I’m not a perfect leader, but I am fairly certain you’ll never hear me yelling at my students. Because as much as I value the music, I value their humanity more.