"I do what I can. I find loopholes. I blend the learning into a
project-based framework. I use technology and advocate for a more authentic
pedagogy. However, ultimately, even a bolder teacher like myself must face a
wall of bad policy. True, we can stand up like the teachers in Washington.
However, we are also in a hyper-red state, in a low-income area. Standing up
will cost us our jobs. And I have a hunch that they would rather have a
compliant warm body than a non-compliant professional. "
That last sentence is truly frightening. How, as a brand new teacher, am I to stand up for what I believe in without losing my job? I don't want to spend the first 5 years of my teaching career being a "compliant warm body", but is this the compromise I will have to make?
Tricky tricky indeed. I hear exactly what you are saying! I think yes and no, our first couple of years will be spent getting familiar with everything and I think they will fly by so fast that we may not even have time to complain. On the other hand however, once we do get comfortable, how do we start to question what is in place that we do not agree with? I think we will learn in time, and as one of our professors would say, if you don't like how something is, change it! :)
ReplyDeleteIf we spend our first couple years learning the ropes, the curriculum, and discovering ourselves as professional educators, I think it might be easier to imagine how to "subvert the dominant paradigm," if you will. It has been said that it is easier to change the system from within. Once we're "in", perhaps figuring out the best way to serve our students will become more clear to us.
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