Wolves... sheep... mentors... mentees...

As I read "Outlearning Wolves: Surviving and Thriving in a Learning Organization," I automatically related the story to my current work environment. Relating it to my mentee and her environment was not such an automatic response - in fact when I initially read the story my mentee did not even occur to me - perhaps because I am something of an outsider in her "organization," whereas I'm an "insider" in relation to the organization where I work.

Later, as I reflected on the story, I could see how it might relate to any number of situations, organizations, people, etc. It is sort of a "myth" in that way. I don't mean "myth" as "fiction" here. Rather, I mean "myth" as in an allegory for a universal principal or archetypical set of characters and situations. Maybe this isn't as dramatic as the story of the "hero's journey" - but does have some qualities in common with a good myth.

Note - I've decided to preserve my mentee's anonymity in this blog (since blogs are somewhat more public than Bb and other class communications). For the sake of that anonymity, my mentee will be referred to as "Sam" (a nice androgynous name... even though I've already identified her as a "she.").

In a case of reverse timing, I met with my mentee on Thursday afternoon - several hours prior to reading the myth of the sheep who learned to be smarter than the wolves. So, rather than have the story in my mind while I met with her, I have to reflect on our meeting with the story in mind.

This was a difficult week for Sam. Her three sisters came to stay with Sam and her grandmother as their mother (who Sam has not lived with for some time) became violent and their home was no longer a safe-haven for them. The added pressure of having to help take care of her sisters has caused Sam's advisor (also one of her teachers) to believe that she may not be able to finish her work in time to graduate in May. I understand the concern but do not necessarily agree with the way it was communicated to her. Graduating in May is doable if she can maintain her focus. She needs to know that given her current situation, there is no shame in taking an extra month or so and graduating in the summer - but she also needs to feel supported in her determination to maintain her focus and graduate in May. I understand the need to prepare her for the possibility, but I think that the way it was done was discouraging rather than supportive. My introduction to the situation was also a bit awkward. I had just sat down with Sam. I could tell something was wrong by the way she was carrying herself. I asked her how her day had been and she said it wasn't the best day. At that point her advisor/teacher came over and informed me that Sam was now set to "prove her wrong". I asked what the challenge was and was told that we would see if Sam "proved her wrong" by graduating in May rather than in June or July. This bothered me a bit because I got the distinct impression that there is now the hint of an adversarial relationship between her and this advisor.

We then went on to talk a bit about the possibility of using a regular editorial style blog as a way to work toward some English credit (I suggested a quarter credit only). It looks like there may be some obstacles there as well. Although she is in an "alternative" program, the English teacher believes in a fairly traditional model of teaching. She lectures and assigns short packets of work (mostly reading short articles and stories and then writing short and long responses to specific questions which are graded for spelling, grammar, content, composition, and answering the question). Apparently, Sam has already approached this instructor about perhaps writing some fiction or poetry and the instructor said absolutely not - as that doesn't meet the requirements for her class. Sam is enrolled in another writing class (fiction/mystery writing with a different teacher) - so she does have an outlet for her creative writing. I don't yet know if we will be able to work out some guidelines for the bloging that this teacher will feel are valid for "credit" - but I introduced Sam to www.blogspot.com anyway. She enjoys reflecting on things, so she may find the blog a fun outlet and a way to practice her computer and typing skills if not a means for credit. We are not yet giving up on the idea of credit.

After we worked on setting up her blog, I suggested a walk (around a few blocks) - just to get her out of there and give her a chance to talk without feeling like she was being "overheard."

We spent some time talking about how she might approach the more traditional work (English class again) and how she might approach working with this instructor (who she already doesn't like). We talked about some of the reasons why the more traditional work is also valid and how completing it might help her with her creative writing. I think this has more to do with a personality clash with the teacher than with the work itself - she actually likes some of the articles and stories she is reading for the class. So - we also talked about separating the work itself from the person who assigned it. She can read the articles/stories because she enjoys them (rather than avoid them because she doesn't like the teacher) - and she can answer the questions as a way of reflecting on what she enjoyed and improving her writing skills for the creative writing class (which she loves).

We also talked about what's going on at home (well - really I listened, she talked, I occasionally asked a question to help clarify my understanding). I don't want to put a lot of details in here (anonymity again) - but suffice it to say that while there are some real challenges that are not under her control, she does have a couple of very supportive people helping her (grandmother and boyfriend). We didn't get a chance to work on the material for the driver's license test - but I did find out that the program has a written packet for 1/4 credit Driver's Ed (no behind the wheel). Her thought was to take it after she got her license. I asked if she needed to earn her license to complete the credit and was told that only completing the work in the self-study packet was necessary for the credit. So - I suggested that she might want to do the packet first, as maybe it would not only help prepare her for the "real test" but also might help her overcome her anxiety regarding passing the "real test."

So - how does all this relate back to the myth of the learning sheep?

I'm still not completely sure - I sort of feel like Sam is part of two different "flocks" (family and school) and I am an outsider to both. I suspect that within her family she is moving from a position of being the passive (head down, don't make too much noise or draw too much attention) member of the "flock" to a position more like that of ... Oh maybe Curley or Gigi. She wants to be the brave and creative problem solver but she is still exploring that potential in herself. At school - she is motivated but easily discouraged - not so much the creative bellwether yet. I worry that her teachers are more like Otto than Marietta - so far out in front and offering lots of ideas but not exactly showing real confidence in the "flocks" ability to "really learn." Of course - most of this is based on my conversations with and work with Sam and only a few encounters with her advisor and one of her teachers. So - my analysis is bias.