Throughout this site, there are often wise and wonderful observations by individual teachers, some professional, some opportunistic. But a broader view of what's happening to our professional educators today reveals real reasons for concern. Many of today's teachers lead quiet lives of desperation, knowing what they should be doing but unable to fight the system (local or national) to do it.
Two sets of postings started me on this diary today, one the combined observations of some wise commentators in the "Teacher's Lounge," and separately, a line from MamaMedusa
I struggle with the tensions between respecting and encouraging open-ended experiential learning, and the constraints of needing to impart specific cognitive skills/bits of information in a limited time period. I have no brilliant solutions.
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I must begin with a line about my background--somewhat of a disclaimer. Trained as a scientist, I spend much of each day now teaching teachers, mostly online. Over the next month I'll contact over 100 a day. What they tell me about the state of our nation's classrooms should concern any progressive. Here are just a few of the problems they face:
- A crumbling infrastructure: The Society of Civil Engineers has given America's schools a "D" grade for quality of infrastructure.
Rodent and roach infestation. Mice droppings. Mold that has caused mushrooms to grow. Asbestos. Extreme heat or cold in classrooms. Peeling paint and broken flooring. Severe overcrowding. Nonfunctional bathrooms...These are just some examples of the appalling physical conditions found in thousands of our nation's public schools, a recent AFT report revealed. These conditions are adversely affecting millions of students and school staff—and potentially every student and school employee who walks through the doors of our public schools
I've had teachers write me to beg for help to get hot water--or even water at all. I've had teachers describe unbelievably crowded classrooms and their Hobson's Choice decisions between dumbing down their curriculum and risking the health and safety of their students.
It's not always about funding. I've toured perhaps a hundred newly constructed or newly-renovated schools in the past five years and seen some of the dumbest wastes of money you can imagine. About two weeks ago I sat on a long plane ride next to two Broward County, Florida school administrators (who had a few too many drinks on route.) THeir joke: The administrators in charge of planning for new school construction were going to rape the budget for science supplies to get astroturf for the new football field. "Won't the science teachers be surprised!" one of them laughed. I bet they will.
- Fear of liability: Partly because of the situation above, partly because of an increasingly litigious society. The American Legislative Exchange council suggests that citizens are using lawsuits to express their dissatisfaction with teacher and schools.
The mounting fear of lawsuits is now redefining school policy. Schools are run under a new fear of potential lawsuits. Increasingly, this fear has been dictating school policies and programs. As a result, schools are becoming more rigid in their policies, going to extreme measures to eliminate any possibility of litigation brought against them. By resolving differences of opinion and enforcements of school policy in the courtroom, money is ultimately being taken away from the students.
When you read about an accident in a school, wait a week then google the situation. You'll often find the most common hits to be ads from "ambulance chasing" attorneys.
- Fear of Testing: Every day, teachers tell me they no longer have time to allow students to explore and experiment. A generation from now, researchers will probably find that the demise of America's dominance in the world's science began with No Child Left Behind. The National Science Teacher's Association surveyed many teachers who say the same things that mine say to me.
I think that the assessments become reading tests and not measures of what students know and can do in science. I also think that science assessments that are completed through on-line testing and multiple-choice questions have the potential of becoming 'trival pursuit' assessments and not true hands-on, minds-on assessments. How can we conduct science assessments in a meaningful inquiry model, not just a "repeat it back" model? Most of our teaching is process-oriented and inquiry-based; our local and classroom assessments also reflect this. Yes, we do emphasize building 'specific information' as well, but not exclusively. Shouldn't our state and national assessments reflect similar inquiry-based investigations?
Within all this negativity, our nation has an army of men and women who are devoted to their jobs, devoted to the next generation. But very little attention is being paid to their daily challenges. Throw in administrators who struggle with their own challenges, and you get paranoia.
With the advantage of the "long view" (a long career and many great contacts) I fear what all of these pressures are doing to our society. When diaries in this and other sites talk about the advantages of home schooling and private schools, I want to shout "What about our society?" "What about our democracy?"
The ultimate effect of neglect of society's most important function is that we create educational robots, and future citizens who are unable to see the forest for the trees. I can't help but think this is deliberate.