Just two days ago, National Public Radio did an article on how deeply angry teachers are about the misperception of the public about teachers and schools. Teachers have always been something of a punching bag for politicians who have nothing better to do than run down our school systems. This is especially evident when a politician has no clear mandate. I believe the thinking goes something like this, "Since our schools are perceived as really bad, any politician can use school improvement as a step up to office." As with many things, the simplistic and highly politicized answers that have been put forward to improve conditions for schools and make for more successful student outcomes have fallen far short. Part of the reason for this is that the perception of the public is not congruent with conclusions of good research and experience. What I propose is that we look at the one factor that research has shown, over and over again, is the most important in student success, namely good teachers.
A 20 year study done by the Federal Department of Education determined that the single most important factor in student retention and graduation statistics is the quality of the teachers. But what, you ask, was the government's response to the high rate of drop outs and the low graduation statistics? Was it more money for teacher candidates to lower their student loan debt, or budgets for professional development? No. The response was to pass federal legislation directly affecting every school system in the US targeted at punishing and closing down low performing schools without providing a single dime of federal money to go along with this legislation. In fact, it mandates that the states must pull money from these low performing school districts if the schools do not improve enough in a three year period.
This strikes me as totally backward for many reasons. First, the United States does not have a school system, it has thousands of systems with wildly different needs and rates of success. What works in New Orleans may not in rural Alabama. Second, the spotlight is put on what isn't working, while ignoring high performing traditional and non-traditional schools, such as those in Harlem. It is time for teachers to look at what is working in their classrooms, in their schools, and in their districts and make a lot of noise about it.
Third, teachers need to make the public aware of the amount of time and money they invest in staying current and building the best environment we can in classrooms that are often technologically or even architecturally inadequate. Teachers are required to receive and maintain a high level of professional training and continuing education that often puts them into the same kind of debt as doctors and lawyers, but their average salary rarely tops $50,000 a year. Lastly, there is great research being done on the links between brain science and learning in universities all over the world, but most teachers have no access to this research and no time to learn or put new techniques into practice. This makes teachers work harder, but not smarter.
I intend to use this blog as a bully pulpit for all the valiant teachers, courageous administrators and innovative school systems who make the right decisions for the right reasons and get the best results despite pressure from State and Federal governments. Teachers make a huge difference in the lives of people, just ask Oprah Winfrey, or Barak Obama. It is time for us to push back at all the misperceptions and bad information. This is what I intend to do. I hope you will join me.
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