The Gasp

 

In the middle of all-school tefillah at Albert Einstein Academy in Wilmington, Delaware, one third grader announced publicly that he hated God and that he hated prayer. The outburst had its own behavioral issues; the theological quandary, though, also needed to be addressed. ...

 

Winaker drew upon his experience as a pulpit rabbi to introduce theology as a way for students to wrestle with their emotions and with larger issues of life:

 

I said that it is okay to be angry with God. I also said that I believe, though others may feel differently, that God—who we say is infinite—is big enough to take our anger without getting mad in return.

 

I was reminded of this article by a blog I just read by Gary Wexler, a communications professional and professor at UCLA. Wexler writes of a panel he recently moderated:

 

The first question of the evening I posed to this distinguished panel:

“From your professional knowledge and experience, if the Weinstein Company were your client, what Communication advice would you give them?”

 

There were immediate gasps and then a dead silence, both on the stage as well as in the audience. It was exactly my plan...

 

He continues: "I have learned that when moderating a panel in front of Millennials, you must take risks. You must create tension to keep the generation riveted."

 

In the case of Winaker, the gasp originated, unplanned, from the student; the teacher/head of school needed to manage it. In Wexler's case, he intentionally built a "gasp moment" into the beginning of his presentation. In both cases, the gasp creates a powerful moment for reflection, for breaking out of routines and usual ways of thinking, for confronting what we really believe and care about.

 

Have you or a colleague ever had to respond to a gasp moment in school?

Have you ever engineered a gasp moment as an educational device?