Lack of Trust
Left to ourselves, we do well among our colleagues. On rare occasion, there is disharmony, but this is, for the most part, the exception. Left to ourselves, we do quite well, accept constructive criticism and depend on the support of fellow teachers. This support is critical for educators and when it is undermined, students are affected. It is fair—I would say, necessary—to ask ourselves if we are content professionally as teachers here at Jordan.
Are we having fun teaching because our students are receiving the life-long benefits of our efforts? Learning is, by its very nature enjoyable, fulfilling and satisfying. Likewise, so is teaching and when it ceases to be, it should raise a red flag of warning. And, please, discard the thought (if it dare arise) of “Well, if you are not happy here at Jordan Mr./Ms. Doe, why don’t you find another school where you can teach?” We should enjoy teaching, and when this joy is not present, it is a symptom on an educational illness. What is the source(s) of our illness?
As teachers, we are not trusted to, for one, mess it up, and, two, fix it when we do. It’s a simple “We trust you to mess it up and we trust you to find your way back to make it right. In the meantime, we will support you in this process for we understand the long-term benefits it will bring to Jordan.” Sadly, after all these years of SLC’s, PLC’s and their benefits, all the talk about distributive decision making and how there can be no real accountability without autonomy, talk about fiscal transparency and accountability, how critical is collaboration, it is amounting to a hell of a lot of hot air. Left to ourselves, we do well with one another, if we have real support. Instead, the support we have is pre-determined. We are told what our needs are and no one is really listening to what we have to say. We are getting the bad end of an understanding that was full of promise and genuine reform is increasingly heading in the wrong direction. At present, we are more dependent than ever on our administrators and coaches. This is a bad sign.
Dependencies, especially in education, should only exist temporarily. The best teachers have a workable balance between a stubborn individualism and independence that inspires students, and an ability to collaborate with their colleagues on shared objectives. They are advocates for their students’ needs and do whatever is necessary to fulfill them. This balance at Jordan is continually undermined. The very kind of teacher that Jordan students need most all too often leaves out of lack of support and compounding frustration. The supports we have are not the ones we ask for, but no one is listening.
When teachers are not allowed to fail and, subsequently, figure how to fix it, collegiality is cut at the root. Yet we will be informed that we were granted control over millions of QEIA spent, curriculum taught, student discipline, the bell schedule, professional development, participated in the hiring of new teachers and administrators, so on and so forth...and, we blew it!
“Let me tell you what you really need…” followed by a resounding “No Se Puede (No, We Cannot),” is what we get when we express our needs and concerns as teachers. No one is listening. If it walks like duck, acts like a duck, talks like duck, it is not an SLC. It is also not autonomy...or distributive decision making, or a PLC. Do you see a Green Dot in your future?
There is a solution for us.
Want to know what it is?
Are we having fun teaching because our students are receiving the life-long benefits of our efforts? Learning is, by its very nature enjoyable, fulfilling and satisfying. Likewise, so is teaching and when it ceases to be, it should raise a red flag of warning. And, please, discard the thought (if it dare arise) of “Well, if you are not happy here at Jordan Mr./Ms. Doe, why don’t you find another school where you can teach?” We should enjoy teaching, and when this joy is not present, it is a symptom on an educational illness. What is the source(s) of our illness?
As teachers, we are not trusted to, for one, mess it up, and, two, fix it when we do. It’s a simple “We trust you to mess it up and we trust you to find your way back to make it right. In the meantime, we will support you in this process for we understand the long-term benefits it will bring to Jordan.” Sadly, after all these years of SLC’s, PLC’s and their benefits, all the talk about distributive decision making and how there can be no real accountability without autonomy, talk about fiscal transparency and accountability, how critical is collaboration, it is amounting to a hell of a lot of hot air. Left to ourselves, we do well with one another, if we have real support. Instead, the support we have is pre-determined. We are told what our needs are and no one is really listening to what we have to say. We are getting the bad end of an understanding that was full of promise and genuine reform is increasingly heading in the wrong direction. At present, we are more dependent than ever on our administrators and coaches. This is a bad sign.
Dependencies, especially in education, should only exist temporarily. The best teachers have a workable balance between a stubborn individualism and independence that inspires students, and an ability to collaborate with their colleagues on shared objectives. They are advocates for their students’ needs and do whatever is necessary to fulfill them. This balance at Jordan is continually undermined. The very kind of teacher that Jordan students need most all too often leaves out of lack of support and compounding frustration. The supports we have are not the ones we ask for, but no one is listening.
When teachers are not allowed to fail and, subsequently, figure how to fix it, collegiality is cut at the root. Yet we will be informed that we were granted control over millions of QEIA spent, curriculum taught, student discipline, the bell schedule, professional development, participated in the hiring of new teachers and administrators, so on and so forth...and, we blew it!
“Let me tell you what you really need…” followed by a resounding “No Se Puede (No, We Cannot),” is what we get when we express our needs and concerns as teachers. No one is listening. If it walks like duck, acts like a duck, talks like duck, it is not an SLC. It is also not autonomy...or distributive decision making, or a PLC. Do you see a Green Dot in your future?
There is a solution for us.
Want to know what it is?
posted by Aureliano Nava at 9:01 AM
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