What did I think about YNI?
Well, now it was a little while ago. I’ve had time to reflect on my experience,
which, I hope I can speak for many, is a necessary requirement for really
understanding what occurred.
The foremost aspect on my mind is the stress. It is certainly stressful. Yet, what worthwhile endeavor isn’t? I
suppose the analogy is similar to learning any new subject. You start off ambitions. If you continue to pursue the goal, you soon
learn how much more it was than you ever realized. You struggle and fail.
It’s courageous to take on such an endeavor. Do you know what that means? It’s life
changing. Not just for your life, but
for the lives of others. It’s a tsunami
and you are the wave, remodeling everything that once was.
Soon, you realize that you can achieve your lofty
ambitions. With seemingly infinite
wisdom surrounding you, you will learn all you desire. Your work bends and sways, growing and refining. Using vast human and archived knowledge, the
unit will slowly come into form.
A YNI year is like climbing a mountain. Everything builds up to the final Wednesday
in the Intensive Session and declines into August. Yet, realize you are climbing a mountain
range and another stands before you. The
school year begins and you implement your unit, seeing how well it actually
works.
Some people turn back.
However, the majority are successful.
They find promise in the journey and continue climbing over every rock
and every hill. Regardless of how far
you pursue these rocky bluffs, how do you think you’ll feel when you finally
descend? No matter how far you travel, even if it is for one year, you will
always return stronger.
Even better is that this is neither metaphor nor analogy. This is real life. You connect to many open-minded educators in
increasingly inspiring settings. YNI
wants teachers to take control. Teachers
are in control and it has the power to change the world.
Is this an accurate account of what happened? Not by any
means. I think this is the package
before it’s opened. There were many
different gifts throughout this experience.
As time allows, I hope to share them with you.
