Have you ever noticed how many contradictions exist in the way we talk about learning?

We tell students mistakes help them learn, but create “safe places” to make them—implying mistakes are somehow dangerous.

We say struggle is necessary for growth, but jump in to “help” the moment students experience it.

We want students to take on challenges, but describe this normal learning behavior as “taking risks.”

These contradictions reveal a deeper issue in education: We’ve unintentionally framed learning itself—and particularly challenge—as potentially harmful rather than inherently strengthening.

In my “From a Safe Place to a Growth Place” series, I’ve been exploring how subtle shifts in our language and approaches can transform our classrooms:

Why We Need to Stop Asking Students to “Take Risks” with Their Learning

We Don’t Fear Mistakes—We Fear Their Consequences

Struggle Isn’t Anxiety: Supporting Without Rescuing

From Safe Spaces to Growth Places: Rethinking Learning Environments

“Easy Is Earned”: Transforming How We Think About Difficulty

Making Challenge Your Friend: Transforming Classroom Culture

Bringing It All Together: Creating Learners Who Seek Challenge

Read the complete series to discover practical ways to transform your classroom from a place that protects students from difficulty to one that equips them to embrace it as the pathway to growth.

How might education change if we stopped treating challenge as something students need protection from and started treating it as the very thing they need most?

Read the complete series to discover practical ways to transform your classroom from a place that protects students from difficulty to one that equips them to embrace it as the pathway to growth.

How might education change if we stopped treating challenge as something students need protection from and started treating it as the very thing they need most?