Where I teach there is an expectation of excellence.
It is on the court, it is on the field, it is in the classroom, it is in the arts department, it exists most everywhere.
But it is not an expectation that is so overwhelming that it smothers you. It is just expected.
And what is great is when that success does occur, it is celebrated by everyone. The students seem genuinely happy for their classmates.
And when that success does not occur here, there is not a feeling of "oh we just ruined the only chance we had to win in the last 20 years", there is a feeling of let's get back to work and make sure it does not happen again, this losing.
And where I teach and coach is a public school, a medium sized public school. It is not overwhelmingly large in student enrollment and it is not a private school where people from all over the area attend.
So where does it come from this expectation of excellence?
I have worked at many different schools, but it is different here. At each of these places there were great kids, great teachers, and great coaches, but the success level was not always as high as here.
I believe it starts in the home.
Mom and dad expect their children to compete, do well, and not blame anything on their lack of success other than they were beaten.
Of course, there are exceptions to this, but I believe culturally, the success has started in the home and has carried over into this building. And that is how it should be.
