Showing Up

Thirty minutes late, but my last student arrived yesterday. He’s a recent immigrant to the U. S., and I’m pretty sure he has trouble finding a ride each morning.

Another student, a young lady, came 15 minutes late. “Forgot to set my alarm,” she told me. But she got up. She came.

And that encourages me. All 25 summer Comp I students showed up for a midterm. At 7:30 a.m.

I’m encouraged because it tells me something about their futures. Pupils who take my midterm almost always take my final. They finish the course.

But it’s bigger than that. Students who show up for exams tend to show up for other hard life events, too.

Which, in my book, is a big predictor of success: Just showing up.