Riding a Dead Horse

Common advice from knowledgeable horse trainers includes the adage, "If the horse you're riding dies, get off!" This seems simple enough, yet in education, we we don't always follow this advice. Instead, we choose from an array of other alternatives, which include the following:

1. Buying a stronger whip
2. Trying a new bit or bridle
3. Switching riders
4. Moving the horse to a new location
5. Riding the horse for longer periods of time
6. Saying things like, "This is the way we've always ridden this horse."
7. Appointing committees to study the horse
8. Visiting sites where they ride deadhorses more efficiently
9. Increasing the standards for riding dead horses
10. Creating a standardized test to measure riding ability
11. Comparing how we ride now to how we rode 20 years ago
12. Complaining about the state of horses these days
13. Tightening the cinch
14. Blaming the horse's parents: "The problem is in the breeding."

Have you checked the horse you're riding lately?