I love it when students complain

A student who is generally not motivated about school came to me to complain. She had a long list of points on her phone. She paced back and forth in my office, explaining that it would be good to have more structure, a student council, and more varied learning.

Students should get to know one another, she said, even though she pretty much keeps to herself. Teachers should give more varied work, even though, when asked, she finds it hard to decide what that should be. I was elated. She is starting to ask for what she wants, she took the time to put her points together, and she had the confidence in both our school and herself to trust that asking would be worthwhile.

A complaint like that is not a problem to manage. It is a sign that a student feels safe enough to speak up and invested enough to want things to be better. When a teen who usually keeps quiet starts asking for more, something is going right.