Toolboxes are just places we keep tools. Which tool you pull out depends on several factors. We’ve talked about a lot of those factors indirectly over the last couple of weeks. One factor is the task you need to do. Another is the collection of tools you have in the box. A third is your familiarity and expertise with the tool. A fourth is your familiarity and understanding of the task. This complexity has given rise to some aphorisms about tools.
“When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.”
When we don’t have a tool we need, we tend to use a tool we have. While this saying is usually applied as a derisive comment, there’s a certain reality that must be acknowledged. Yes, we need a good set of tools, but the reality is that it’s rare that a person has all the possible tools. Sometimes, you just have to use a hammer.
“How many administrators does it take to change a light bulb?”
“None. Call a custodian.” This little ditty is rather a smack at administrators because afterall, everybody should know how to change a light bulb. Sometimes, a person lacks the skills or requisite knowledge. It’s a pretty savvy individual who really knows when a task is outside their area of expertise and calls in an expert.
“Tools arm the man.”
Presumably the woman as well, but this saying has to do with being prepared for eventualities. One doesn’t know where the next challenge will come from or what the nature of it will be. We take precautions in advance – for example, in our cars by packing some rudimentary tools and parts, and the knowledge to use them. Sometimes that’s just a cell phone and a AAA card. The key concept here is that when the time comes to use the tool, one knows how. That means preparation, practice, and forethought.
“To do good work, one must first have good tools.”
If you’ve ever tried to use one of those cheesy little socket wrench sets to do something meaningful, you’ll understand this one. Likewise, if you’ve ever used Microsoft Works after having access to tools like Word, Wordperfect, or OpenOffice. Good tools are robust, have the requisite features, and perform reliably.
“Jack of all trades, master of none.”
When you know a little about a lot, sometimes that means you don’t know a lot about anything. We live in a world of specialists. To really master a subject takes time, effort, and a willingness to focus. When I decided to begin working with computers back in the 60s, I knew that I’d be closing the doors completely on other venues. Over the course of the last 40 years, I’ve made other choices — degrees, credentials, jobs, locations, etc — that have focused my expertise further. I know about other things, too. Food, writing, teaching, and the miscellany that comes from being a car owner and home owner and father and husband, but my expertise is in managing these devil-boxes called computers.
Finally, one of the most important sayings isn’t about the tools at all. As we analyze the efficacy of online efforts and look at criticisms of various environments, this one is the critical issue.
“It’s a poor workman who blames his tools.”
September 21st, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Nice quotes! I especially like the first one (“when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail”). Teachers definitely learn to make use of the tools they have. We don’t always have the tools we might “want”, but we can make the best of the ones we “have”.
September 21st, 2008 at 7:01 pm
You CAN drive a screw with a hammer, but the result is none to secure, and the effect on the wood is devastating. There’s a corollary here and that’s
“When faced with a job where the hammer doesn’t work, don’t use it anyway.”
September 21st, 2008 at 9:29 pm
There are many tools that we can use. I find the hardest part is choosing the best one for the students. I have to reflect after I use a tool. For example I like using Audacity to record retellings of stories and having students listen and tell how they can improve. I have on students that hates listening to his voice and he is embarrassed. I give him a choice to tell me one on one or writing. He uses the simple tools of paper and pencil and I get the same outcome. I agree that the tool was damaging his comfort zone, resulting in not achieving the goal.
September 21st, 2008 at 10:23 pm
Almost everybody hates their own voice.
One of the most gratifying moments was when I found out that the people who were listening to my podcasts liked it for the same voice that I hated
September 21st, 2008 at 11:40 pm
“When faced with a job where the hammer doesn’t work, don’t use it anyway.”
I think that is so true in our schools. We have a lot of screws (students) within our schools, but our teachers continue to use hammers because they have always worked with nails. Our teachers need to conform to our students and not face their ways just because they have worked in the past.
September 22nd, 2008 at 5:15 pm
You don’t really need to have all the tools just either pick the best you have or borrow. I have learn over the past few years anything you need and don’t have someone does and they will let you borrow it. If it comes down to it don’t use the tools.
September 24th, 2008 at 11:20 am
I really like the quote, “To do good work, you need good tools.” I am a firm believer in this statement. I often think, If I had this tool…I could make this lesson so much more interesting. I also agree that if you don’t have the tool, you can probably borro wit from someone else. That is a good point. I found that last year, as a first year teacher, my best resource were my colleagues.