On one of my flights today, I was grading a spelling test (you know, so I don't have to do it on a weeknight). It sparked a conversation with the couple sitting next to me and they had plenty of questions about my school and the town. As we conversed, I realized I don't really talk about my school and students anymore - I mean, the basics of what I do, sure, but I don't really share stories about my students themselves anymore. And boy, are there plenty. But how? Unless you are at my school and know the kids yourself, I don't know HOW to tell their story. So I don't.
Ironically, I read the following blog tonight and it sums up my feelings amazingly well. Please click and read - it's definitely a must: Why I Stopped Telling.
"Building the perfect teacher is like building the perfect Band-Aid. It
needs to be a unique fit for each environment, and while Band-Aids do a
lot of good, there are far too many wounds that need much more than a
Band-Aid."
"People don’t want to hear about the system and how it is desperately broken."
Wow, the writer (and teacher) Abby Norman, articulates it so well right there. And that second paragraph, spot on (well the first half, obviously not the labor part for me specifically).
Please click and read - it's definitely a must: Why I Stopped Telling
Liz, she makes a good point that people don't want to hear the bad stuff about schools and the country, but it's because they don't want to hear it that you that you NEED to continue to explain how embarrassing it is that your school doesn't have the right supplies, or enough of them, or kids aren't getting the care they need at home. It is through the persistent and difficult conversations that meaningful change comes. The alternative is no one says a thing, and everyone lives in Pleasantville ignoring a growing majority of our society that is falling behind. They are falling behind because those at the front don't care.
ReplyDeleteWe need to care. We need to care about kids, education, safety, and how the rest of the country is doing. We do not advance as a society because a few get far ahead. We advance when the last one crosses the line.
Keep telling your stories. I want to hear them.