How fast "should" a dolphin swim?

Our local aquarium has dolphins, and up until recently they had a pretty cool dolphin show. You got to watch the dolphins perform some really cool tricks and they educated you on some dolphin trivia. And lost in amongst the myriad of interesting facts about dolphins, was the following.

 Dolphins swim faster than they should.

 It seems they have studied the musculature of dolphins, combined with the other elements of their movement patterns. The speed limit they calculated is slower than the speeds they have witnessed. Interesting. Good thing they didn’t tell the dolphins. They might have slowed down, limited themselves to the “correct” speed. What a tragedy for the dolphins.

A family member told me that that the same concept applied to bumble bees. It seems that when you take the wing size, body size, weight, etc in to account, they shouldn’t be able to fly. But they do fly. Quite well, actually. Don’t tell the bees. They might forget about their past successes and find themselves grounded.

I have the burning desire to post this on the entrance to every building of education, make it the first sentence of every syllabus. Post it on the wall of every office and remind everyone I know every day.

As a teacher of foreign language, one the most significant barriers I fight is confidence. Sure, some students have more natural academic ability than others. Some have better memories and some just focus with less effort.  And then again, some just work harder. They just accept the discomfort of hard work more gracefully. Yearn for the pride of the accomplishment to come.

Years ago, I had the following conversation with a student. On the first day of class.

Student: I’m not going to do well in your class.

Me: Really? Why?

Student: Because I was tested and I have learning disabilities. I can’t memorize well. I won’t do well.

Me: I don’t believe you.

Student: (pissed off) You don’t believe I was tested?

Me: No, I believe you were tested. And I believe you about the result. I just don’t believe that you won’t succeed. I just expect you to work harder and ask more questions.

Student: (staring directly at me, challenging… then walking away) Humph.

 Would you believe that she earned a solid B+ in my class and was one of my prize students? Of course you would.

The ones who lack the confidence are, for me, the most tragic of situations. I have been forced, on way too many occasions, to look into the eyes of a student and know that they were not going to succeed if they didn’t break past the barriers they placed in front of themselves. If they didn’t void their heads of the limiting thoughts that had been instilled there over time.  I mean, nobody told the dolphins they were swimming “too fast” or the bees that they shouldn’t be able to fly.

I suppose this topic is bit of a soap box for me, being someone who doesn’t like to be told what I can and cannot do. Not to imply that I don’t have a healthy respect for authority, because I do. But I do expect to be seen as an intelligent adult with good judgment and being informed that something is out of my reach is by far the best way to help me achieve it. Wanna dare me? Go ahead… I’ll prove you wrong.

So maybe these dolphins were in a hurry. A hurry to get the food. A hurry to get a mate. Or simply a hurry to catch that really big wave. So they pushed themselves. Good for them. I hope they achieved their goals. And to you little bumble bees, you keep on flying. I believe in you.