We’re both inclined toward all things optimistic and tend to question the status quo. So when we came across the work and thoughts of Dewitt Jones (2017), freelance photographer for National Geographic, we were more than intrigued. Jones speaks often of the creative processes in his photography, of how a change in perspective takes his work from being good to being extraordinary. During presentations, he illustrates his point with pictures of the same subject matter, but taken from different vantage points—from different perspectives. He notes that finding the best perspective for a photograph often takes imagination and risk. He speaks of the value of creativity, of having made the mistake of stopping taking pictures when he thought he had the “right answer” only to discover that someone had taken a better picture by being creative. Thus, he is always in search of the “next right answer.”
Looking for the Next Right Answer
Some people are uneasy with the notion that there is such a thing as the next right answer—as if it nullifies the rightness of the previous right answer. Or, that giving up on what we are now doing somehow is a betrayal of our venerable past. This attitude can lead to a refusal to look forward, to move forward, to change, and to grow. But reluctance to thinking differently risks stagnancy, irrelevancy, and ultimately extinction. In contrast, we are thrilled that the possibility exists of a next right answer.
In September 1992, JOPERD published a special edition called the Critical Crossroads Report. The authors described the dilemma that the field of physical education faced and shared a conviction that if we made the right moves—found the next right answers—the profession would survive. Conversely, the authors warned that if we changed nothing, kept doing what we had always done we will have “fiddled while Rome burned!” It was a time when the brightest minds in our field were challenged to face some brutal possibilities: Either become relevant or risk disappearing entirely from our public schools. This led to a concerted effort to identify PE’s failings and barriers to its success.
