In the national discourse on education there have been lots of terrible things said about teachers. Often they are said by people who haven;t got a clue as to what really goes on in classrooms. More than that people are demeaning of teachers without understanding the power of political winds.
Teachers don't often get to talk back. First this week was the eloquent written piece by Larry Cuban about
urban schools and teachers and how trust should be a part of the relationship of teacher to superintendent and now here is your beautiful piece that applauds the work that teachers do.I liked the part about trash talking about teachers as a negative thing.
With all of the angst in teaching these days we have to look to the future . Teachers touch the future.
It probably is a great idea to think about how they are affected by the things that go on , on a daily basis in the news. We have fewer and fewer people attracted to teaching. The dialogue all seems to place the blame of society's woes on teachers as the cause.
I had the best fun of my life defending teachers in an international forum of the Global Alliance on Development, GAID. of the United Nations. I was in Monterrey , Mexico in a forum . Everyone was
blaming teachers. Well I am not in a classroom and who was going to stop me from having my say?
So I asked, who makes the rules for how teachers work?
Who allocates the funding and decides policy?
Who creates the funding stream for professional development and support for teachers?
Who decides what curriculum they use? This was an international forum and in the auditorium there weren't that many people. I had forgotten that it was being webcast.
In the next panel, the same complaints came up about teachers. I asked in that panel, about teacher education , and how we create a technofluency within the schools. THere was dead silence , except for the
Minister of Education in Cuba. He apparently has been thinking about transforming teacher education whether he was working with one teacher in a remote area or many. I did get their attention.
Long story short, I was asked to write a piece for an upcoming publication about the blame game in education. In education the teacher is often the target, so how refreshing it was to see this essay.
On Facebook, as a teacher I was initially warned by people not to be in touch with students I had taught.
Invades their privacy , or something like that it was said. I did not seek out the students I taught. They
asked me to be their friend. From them I got stories and ideas about how I was effective and lots of thanks, and letters of appreciation.
Feedback , appreciation and understanding of teaching is important.
Thank you.
Bonnie Bracey Sutton
One student's mother and I were at odds about her going to an aquarium. I paid for it because I did not want the child to miss the experience. All these years later she wrote to tell me what a magical experience going to the National Aquarium in Baltimore was for her, and how it changed her life. She also shared
her experience of taking her children to that same aquarium. I never knew that that simple act of deciding that she WOULD go to the aquarium would make a difference. That is one of several stories that
I have learned using the participatory culture. Thanks over the years from students who are now adults , are a powerful thing. Recognition of the power of teachers and a pat on the back now with your inspiring writing may keep teachers from changing occupations, and create interest for aspiring teachers.
In the national discourse on education there have been lots of terrible things said about teachers. Often they are said by people who haven;t got a clue as to what really goes on in classrooms. More than that people are demeaning of teachers without understanding the power of political winds.
Teachers don't often get to talk back. First this week was the eloquent written piece by Larry Cuban about
urban schools and teachers and how trust should be a part of the relationship of teacher to superintendent and now here is your beautiful piece that applauds the work that teachers do.I liked the part about trash talking about teachers as a negative thing.
With all of the angst in teaching these days we have to look to the future . Teachers touch the future.
It probably is a great idea to think about how they are affected by the things that go on , on a daily basis in the news. We have fewer and fewer people attracted to teaching. The dialogue all seems to place the blame of society's woes on teachers as the cause.
I had the best fun of my life defending teachers in an international forum of the Global Alliance on Development, GAID. of the United Nations. I was in Monterrey , Mexico in a forum . Everyone was
blaming teachers. Well I am not in a classroom and who was going to stop me from having my say?
So I asked, who makes the rules for how teachers work?
Who allocates the funding and decides policy?
Who creates the funding stream for professional development and support for teachers?
Who decides what curriculum they use? This was an international forum and in the auditorium there weren't that many people. I had forgotten that it was being webcast.
In the next panel, the same complaints came up about teachers. I asked in that panel, about teacher education , and how we create a technofluency within the schools. THere was dead silence , except for the
Minister of Education in Cuba. He apparently has been thinking about transforming teacher education whether he was working with one teacher in a remote area or many. I did get their attention.
Long story short, I was asked to write a piece for an upcoming publication about the blame game in education. In education the teacher is often the target, so how refreshing it was to see this essay.
On Facebook, as a teacher I was initially warned by people not to be in touch with students I had taught.
Invades their privacy , or something like that it was said. I did not seek out the students I taught. They
asked me to be their friend. From them I got stories and ideas about how I was effective and lots of thanks, and letters of appreciation.
Feedback , appreciation and understanding of teaching is important.
Thank you.
Bonnie Bracey Sutton
One student's mother and I were at odds about her going to an aquarium. I paid for it because I did not want the child to miss the experience. All these years later she wrote to tell me what a magical experience going to the National Aquarium in Baltimore was for her, and how it changed her life. She also shared
her experience of taking her children to that same aquarium. I never knew that that simple act of deciding that she WOULD go to the aquarium would make a difference. That is one of several stories that
I have learned using the participatory culture. Thanks over the years from students who are now adults , are a powerful thing. Recognition of the power of teachers and a pat on the back now with your inspiring writing may keep teachers from changing occupations, and create interest for aspiring teachers.