What Change Are You Trying to Make?

It sounds like a simple question, but it’s a big one—because it makes you responsible. It puts you in charge of creating change for others.

As teachers, we’re fortunate that this responsibility is both our job and our passion.

The change you aim for might be small, like encouraging a student to join an after-school club. Or it might be transformative, like reshaping the culture of a school to foster a healthy and active environment. Maybe you want to turn non-engagers into movement enthusiasts.

Whatever the specifics, the desire to create change is what defines you as a teacher. Recognising this is the first step. But the real challenge is figuring out how to do it.

It’s tempting to aim for something grandiose and nearly impossible, like, “I want every child to discover a love for sport.” It’s a noble goal, but it’s also a heavy burden—and a convenient excuse to prioritize fun over effectiveness. When you design lessons for the students who are least engaged, you often find yourself frustrated by a lack of impact.

Why not start smaller? Begin with a hurdle you can actually clear. Pick one specific, achievable change that will have a meaningful impact, and make it happen. Then, build on that success, tackling bigger and broader challenges over time.

“But we don’t need to change—what we’re doing already works.”

It’s natural to want to defend the status quo. It’s easy to look at a change that’s already occurred, reverse engineer it to fit your current program, and sprinkle in some buzzwords to justify it.

But is that really the change you set out to make?

Let’s set out to make real change happen. Let’s make a promise to our students, our schools, and ourselves—and then find a way to deliver on that promise. Start small, but start intentionally, and let those small wins build into something greater. The impact you want is within reach—one step, one change at a time.