Jumping on the Springboard of Tradition

Someone once said: “Tradition is the springboard for innovation.” And I agree to some extent, it does not serve us to ignore tradition, step over it, or move it to the side. Like a springboard, we will have to use tradition, if we want to jump beyond it! But how do we help our students jump (innovate). After we have driven home traditional ideals and practices, what would cause them to let go of all that and jump for innovation? And what exactly is our job as educators? Is it to simply teach the tradition? Have we done our job if we can say, “Here is your tradition springboard – we have taught you what it looks like, how tall it is, and how it was constructed. Enjoy!” No. Handing students a metaphorical springboard on the day of graduation is not enough. We need to teach them how to jump.