From the comments
Anybody hear about a PTO meeting a few nights back at Oak Hill? Word has it that a member of the current school board made quite an "impression".
Showing posts with label comment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comment. Show all posts
Friday, February 29, 2008
Friday, February 8, 2008
Education is Different
Below is taken from a comment. These are not my words, but I wish they were.
In business, there are certain leadership characteristics and smart business plans that drive whether or not such a business will be successful. In today’s time, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you must hold a higher ed degree to be successful (look at some online businesses started by high school students). Instead, you can learn from other examples of profitable businesses to glean best practices.
Education is different.
I’ve never quite been convinced that school boards are in the best interest of educating our children. Yes, education is a business “on the books” and yes, there are certain business practices that must be implemented (handling budgets, especially), if a school system to be run efficiently. But, in no other business in the world is there such a need for MORE than just good business practices.
Teachers and administrators are required to become experts in the field of CHILDREN. They must hold degrees with coursework in child development, teaching methodology, pedagogy, curriculum, research and best practices. They are required to intern under a master teacher and then learn from a mentor upon becoming a beginning teacher. They are required to commit to ongoing professional development to renew their certifications. They are required to meet the needs of each child, no matter the disability, background, social/economical status, prior knowledge, or home life.
They are required to be held accountable for their performance in the classroom, and trust me- they are. Teachers today are worried about test scores (despite the fact that almost all of them believe that one test will never show what a child can do), the pressure of all those tests, how to prepare EVERY child for the future. They spend more time thinking about how to help their students than they do with their own family. They study research to make sure they are implementing best practices in the classroom. They write grants to get more funding for the things they know their students need.
Determining what is best for our students doesn’t take just some good business sense. It takes EDUCATION. That’s right. The same thing we demand of our teachers must be a requirement of those who choose our school leaders. It is so heart wrenching to hear members of the board say that they know who is best suited to run a school. You have no idea.
You don’t know what kind of principal it takes to lead a school to success. It isn’t the same as choosing employees in a business world. Deciding whom is the best leader for a school requires that you be educated in the many facets of children and learning. You must know the research in child development, school leadership, 21st century skills, how school environment affects learning, and pedagogy.
School boards have the legal rights and responsibilities to run a school system (whether I agree or not). But, most of the time, school boards recognize that the superintendent they hire has much more knowledge in the art and science of teaching, learning, and leadership of schools than they do, and so they leave the decision making that requires such knowledge to him/her. Things like choosing school leaders (and teachers, for that matter).
Our school board has decided to have a say in the hiring of every single employee of the school system, rather than trusting our principals and superintendent, who have advanced degrees in teaching and leading, to decide. What in the world could the members of this board have to say to defend such actions? Nothing, other than quoting from school board documentation that states basically that they “are the boss.”
That’s just not a good enough reason. Being the boss doesn’t mean you have to make all the decisions, or micromanage the system, or develop an arrogant nature. In fact, good leadership qualities are quite the opposite. They are part of a team, they rely on the strengths and knowledge of those around them, and they inspire and challenge.
Educators are good about making the best of bad situations. They search out support and resources when none is given, they fight from the trenches while the rest of the world fights from the political rings and state offices, and they empower their students to become learners. So, we’ll keep keeping on, despite what decisions are made in board meetings. We always have, for the sake of the children.
In business, there are certain leadership characteristics and smart business plans that drive whether or not such a business will be successful. In today’s time, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you must hold a higher ed degree to be successful (look at some online businesses started by high school students). Instead, you can learn from other examples of profitable businesses to glean best practices.
Education is different.
I’ve never quite been convinced that school boards are in the best interest of educating our children. Yes, education is a business “on the books” and yes, there are certain business practices that must be implemented (handling budgets, especially), if a school system to be run efficiently. But, in no other business in the world is there such a need for MORE than just good business practices.
Teachers and administrators are required to become experts in the field of CHILDREN. They must hold degrees with coursework in child development, teaching methodology, pedagogy, curriculum, research and best practices. They are required to intern under a master teacher and then learn from a mentor upon becoming a beginning teacher. They are required to commit to ongoing professional development to renew their certifications. They are required to meet the needs of each child, no matter the disability, background, social/economical status, prior knowledge, or home life.
They are required to be held accountable for their performance in the classroom, and trust me- they are. Teachers today are worried about test scores (despite the fact that almost all of them believe that one test will never show what a child can do), the pressure of all those tests, how to prepare EVERY child for the future. They spend more time thinking about how to help their students than they do with their own family. They study research to make sure they are implementing best practices in the classroom. They write grants to get more funding for the things they know their students need.
Determining what is best for our students doesn’t take just some good business sense. It takes EDUCATION. That’s right. The same thing we demand of our teachers must be a requirement of those who choose our school leaders. It is so heart wrenching to hear members of the board say that they know who is best suited to run a school. You have no idea.
You don’t know what kind of principal it takes to lead a school to success. It isn’t the same as choosing employees in a business world. Deciding whom is the best leader for a school requires that you be educated in the many facets of children and learning. You must know the research in child development, school leadership, 21st century skills, how school environment affects learning, and pedagogy.
School boards have the legal rights and responsibilities to run a school system (whether I agree or not). But, most of the time, school boards recognize that the superintendent they hire has much more knowledge in the art and science of teaching, learning, and leadership of schools than they do, and so they leave the decision making that requires such knowledge to him/her. Things like choosing school leaders (and teachers, for that matter).
Our school board has decided to have a say in the hiring of every single employee of the school system, rather than trusting our principals and superintendent, who have advanced degrees in teaching and leading, to decide. What in the world could the members of this board have to say to defend such actions? Nothing, other than quoting from school board documentation that states basically that they “are the boss.”
That’s just not a good enough reason. Being the boss doesn’t mean you have to make all the decisions, or micromanage the system, or develop an arrogant nature. In fact, good leadership qualities are quite the opposite. They are part of a team, they rely on the strengths and knowledge of those around them, and they inspire and challenge.
Educators are good about making the best of bad situations. They search out support and resources when none is given, they fight from the trenches while the rest of the world fights from the political rings and state offices, and they empower their students to become learners. So, we’ll keep keeping on, despite what decisions are made in board meetings. We always have, for the sake of the children.
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