You may recognize the name Mario Vargas Llosa as the most recent Nobel Prize winner for Literature.  He was nominated and awarded the prize all while performing a teaching stint at Princeton University.  Some folks, his students included, may wonder why Mr. Llosa continues on in the classroom.  Why would a Noble Prize winner spend their time preparing lessons and listening to college students?  The answer is evidenced in a New York Times article and can easily be summed up in two words:  it's important!

Whether you are a prize winner or the recipient of a promotion, teaching what you know to others, particularly the next generation, is an important task.  In the business world, CEO's who take the time to share with their employees what they know and how they came to know it, make a direct and lasting impact on their workforce.  But it doesn't just apply to CEO's, folks who move up within the hierarchical structure of your organization have clearly demonstrated their knowledge and ability, so why not take advantage of that and have them teaching others?

In the education world, we see older students pairing up with younger ones to strengthen and encourage their skills in a way that the teacher may not be able to accomplish.  Teachers have always known the importance of sharing what they know but it is equally important for the students to be given the opportunity to share what they know in an authentic way.  We can instill our students with the sense of importance and significance that comes with teaching when we allow them the opportunity to become the teacher.