On any given day, I'm simultaneously encouraged and discouraged, happy and sad, impressed and amazed, shocked and chagrined by what my students know and what they don't. While watching "In Search of Greatness," the legendary soccer player Pele admitted that he took up martial arts for two years because he needed to learn how to fall. As he spoke, the video aired clips from "Enter the Dragon." I was unsure if my students recognized either icon. When Bruce Lee came on the screen, I turned to my students and said "Do you know who that is?" They all did. I smiled. I never assume. I always ask: Do you know...?! This simple check-in is not to be underestimated. How? Why? Learning, education, the search for truth and the quest for knowledge is dynamic. It is an unfolding reality—both humbling and exciting. But it's not lightning in a bottle. For example, in his annual address to faculty, my friend Daniel McMahon, the principal of DeMatha High Scho...