I tried to end my teaching career by disclosing who I am and what I believe in and what I thought was happening to students in the system in which I supposedly teach. The result was an extraordinary outpouring of words and thoughts and sentiments from students asked to respond to my retirement. They responded to the different disclosures, each, apparently according to their interests and personalities. I had an insight into individuals and what they were about, more so than in two years of teaching them as other.
My object has been to create learning experiences which were evocative, but they were not, except at this end. It is ironic that as I try to end my teaching career, at least in the Czech system, I find one silver bullet for engaging students in feeling and writing about that.
