In Stop Stealing Dreams, Godin argues that our current system of education was built for an era in which the industrial revolution depended on obedient workers to realize mass-production. This system has been in place now for nearly 100 years. According to Godin, it is reflected in our obsession for standardized testing, straight rows of desks in our classrooms, and the obey-me-or-else attitude of an unfortunately large number of American teachers. This system, Godin argues, has turned our education into a factory.
Whenever I run into people whom I have not seen for a long time, the conversation typically goes something like this:
Friend: “What are you doing these days?”
Me: “I’m a high school teacher.”
Friend: --Awkward silence and then a forced “Good for you!”
On one occasion, I ran into the same friend a couple of months later, and the conversation went something like:
Friend: “Are you still teaching?”
Me: “Yes.”
Friend: --Awkward pause-- “I just always figured you would do something more meaningful with your life . . . like teaching is sort of beneath you, don’t you think?”
It pains me to post these conversations for my fellow teachers to read. But something tells me that they have also had similar experiences and conversations.
To be fair, these friends I run into are speaking from their own experience and background with traditional education based on standardized testing and traditional teaching methods--can I expect them to respond any differently when they themselves went through a system that likely sucked out any air of creativity in their own learning experience?
I agree with Godin in that changing school does not involve “sharpening the pencil that we’ve already got.” In other words, school is not broken, it is working just as it was designed to work. The current educational system does not need to be improved, it needs to be changed all together.
This is why I love surrounding myself with like-minded teachers at USD, at my current student-teaching placement, and online via my PLN (personal learning network).
It is energizing to go onto Twitter and find so many explorative teachers who are so positive, who share so many amazing resources, and who are searching for and experimenting with forward-thinking and progressive ways that transform the educational experience in meaningful, productive ways.
There has never been a more exciting time to be a teacher. The challenge before us is great. It is a challenge that requires creativity, innovation, and forward-thinking minds. We are truly at the cusp of something amazing. Teachers across the nation and even across the world are connecting, sharing, exploring, and searching for ways to change the system. For me, exploring ways to use technology in the classroom is invigorating. I get so excited about it. It is electrifying.
Next time I run into a friend who asks me what I am doing these days, I am going to respond, “I am currently transforming the educational experience for students. What about you?”
Whenever I run into people whom I have not seen for a long time, the conversation typically goes something like this:
Friend: “What are you doing these days?”
Me: “I’m a high school teacher.”
Friend: --Awkward silence and then a forced “Good for you!”
On one occasion, I ran into the same friend a couple of months later, and the conversation went something like:
Friend: “Are you still teaching?”
Me: “Yes.”
Friend: --Awkward pause-- “I just always figured you would do something more meaningful with your life . . . like teaching is sort of beneath you, don’t you think?”
It pains me to post these conversations for my fellow teachers to read. But something tells me that they have also had similar experiences and conversations.
To be fair, these friends I run into are speaking from their own experience and background with traditional education based on standardized testing and traditional teaching methods--can I expect them to respond any differently when they themselves went through a system that likely sucked out any air of creativity in their own learning experience?
I agree with Godin in that changing school does not involve “sharpening the pencil that we’ve already got.” In other words, school is not broken, it is working just as it was designed to work. The current educational system does not need to be improved, it needs to be changed all together.
This is why I love surrounding myself with like-minded teachers at USD, at my current student-teaching placement, and online via my PLN (personal learning network).
It is energizing to go onto Twitter and find so many explorative teachers who are so positive, who share so many amazing resources, and who are searching for and experimenting with forward-thinking and progressive ways that transform the educational experience in meaningful, productive ways.
There has never been a more exciting time to be a teacher. The challenge before us is great. It is a challenge that requires creativity, innovation, and forward-thinking minds. We are truly at the cusp of something amazing. Teachers across the nation and even across the world are connecting, sharing, exploring, and searching for ways to change the system. For me, exploring ways to use technology in the classroom is invigorating. I get so excited about it. It is electrifying.
Next time I run into a friend who asks me what I am doing these days, I am going to respond, “I am currently transforming the educational experience for students. What about you?”