In education, I believe I haveseen it all. I have seen teachers who love what they do and would probably do itfor free. I have seen teachers who, it seems, are punching a time clock andwould not dream of working over forty hours a week. And lastly, I have seenteachers who undoubtedly must live at the school in which they work because theynever leave the building before dark, no matter what the season. I have madefriends, enemies, partners, and developed friendships with just about everyperson I have come into contact with in the field of education. I createfriendships with all teachers because I believe it is in the best interest ofchildren, and, because I want to make the difference in the life of a child.
Nomatter what the intent of being in a school setting may be, there should be onlyone goal: making the difference in the life of a child. How often is this simplethought forgotten when it comes to the students learning? As part of theeducational system, my first concern is that of the children. For the firstthree years of my career, I have been fortunate enough to work foradministrators who, I feel, had the same beliefs I do, a child-centeredattitude. As they worked, I watched and I learned. I wanted to some day have thetype of climate in my building as they had in their own. And, as I start topursue my dream of being a building administrator, I often think I have the samedesires as the wonderful building principals I have worked for. I want to createan atmosphere that matches theirs a positive place for students to learn,created by all the stakeholders of the district.
PUTTING THE CHILD IN THE CENTER
One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of thechild. The first and primary goal I would have as an administrator would beall to hold the belief that there are no disposable students. Some students maynot learn how or exactly what we want them to, but at the same time, that doesnot make them disposable. A large part of our population believes that manychildren are not fully educable. Trainable for a job, but not educable for theduties of citizenship and the things that are essential to a hood human life(Adler, 1982). Having disposable children is a belief of some teachers becauseof how schooling has traditionally been delivered.
A change in this thoughtprocess must be met by each and every adult the student comes in contact withduring his or her schooling to ensure both his or her academic and personaldevelopment of every child. There should be one adult advocate for every childin the school, giving the student the feeling there is someone in his or hercorner. In order for this to occur, students need to be actively involved in thelearning process.
The (student-centered learning) environment providesinteractive, complimentary activities that enable students to address theirunique learning interests and needs” (Land, 1996). A major part ofstudent-centered learning is the empowerment of the student to make choicesconcerning their individual learning. This style, in turn, would help studentsto feel valued and respected, which would also help with a studentsself-esteem. Because of the environment created, students in the building, Ihope, would feel more motivated to be actively involved in their own learning,and therefore, would be responsible stakeholders in their own education. In thiseducational environment, students would build stronger relationships withstudents and adults, and hopefully would help provide a sense of community inthe school.
WHAT KIND OF PROGRESS IS BEING MADE? Schooling has traditionallybeen about people memorizing a lot of stuff that they dont really care toomuch about, and the whole approach is quite fragmented (ONeill, 1995).
This is why I believe we lose some students in the educational process. Ifstudents were actively involved, were interested in what was being taught, andworked cooperatively with other students in a hands-on learning environment,more students would feel empowered by the opportunities they were given, and,they would respond in a more positive manner toward the educational process.
Learning by doing rather than by drill would lead the students todevelopment, formation, integration, unification, continuity, progression, andespecially growth (Diggins, 1989). Progressivism, which was introduced in theUnited States and Europe in the late 19th century, is a collection of beliefsthat opposed traditional schooling, a movement originally led by John Dewey.
This non-traditional system emphasizes concern for the emotional and physicalwell-being of the child, (Grollier Multimedia, 1993), rather than the usualfocus on rote memorization. Progressivism would hopefully provide a basicphilosophy for my staff to operate. The first concept within the model would befor the students working together to problem-solve, and the second would be thatstudents would have the ability to make a positive contribution to society asadults. These two concepts tie together to help create a democratic society, onein which people must work together in order to make a positive societalcontribution. Schooling must prepare all of them for the continuation oflearning in adult life, during their working years and beyond. How? By impartingto them the skills of learning and giving then the stimulation that willmotivate them to keep their minds actively engaged in learning and provideguidelines for exploring (Adler, 1982).
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: I feel itis important for educators to grow professionally, and I believe that one way todo this is through professional development. If teachers and educators alike arethere to make a difference in the life of a child, there should be no questionas to whether or not professional development opportunities are offered andparticipated in. Professional development is a factor in the reformation of ourschool system, both for the teacher and students. Professional development,in contributing to the advancement of school improvement is evident in severalstate and national reports, as well as in research reports on schoolrestructuring initiatives (Abdal-Haqq, Ismat, 1996). Many times, teachers getlost in the box.
Teachers are afraid of two things: change, and thinkingoutside the box. It is quite simple to get by as an educator, consideringall the ready-made curriculums, workbooks, and teacher guides. But, how creativeand innovative is this approach, and even more importantly, how much does thistype of teacher challenge the students?
Answering this question honestlywould help many teachers see the value in attending professional workshops, indevelopmental seminars, and even in taking more college credits. If teachers areafraid to think on their own, how can they expect their students to think ontheir own?
As principal, I would instill in teachers of the building I work theimportance of professional development. I feel Adler gave excellent insight toprofessional development in his book The Paideida Proposal An EducationalManifesto by saying, All skills of teaching are intellectual skills that canbe developed only by coaching, not by lecture courses that are required forcertification (Adler, 1982)
LEADERSHIP STYLE: As was previously stated, Iwant the building in which I am an administrator to be one with a publicizedvision of the child-first attitude. In order to achieve this, I believe theadministration must remove the thought of a top-down model of leadership wherewhat the principal says, goes. If administration is to create achild-centered atmosphere, the principals must work to achieve consensus fromstakeholders about the schools vision, but they must also intervene withthose who hold values inconsistent with commonly shared goals.
In other words,the administration must have everyone who is a stakeholder on its side by beingless direct and more collaborative. Sergiovanni, in his book Building Communityin Schools, states, Relationships are based on shared values rather thanbureaucratic roles, resulting in individuals who care, listen, understand,respect others and are honest, open and sensitive (1994). This type ofleadership is considered to be facilitative and is defined as, the behaviorsthat enhance the collective ability of a school to adapt, solve problems, andimprove performance (Conley, Goldman, 1994).
But instead of just saying,This is the way it is going to be, principals are able to invite followersto commit effort to the common cause. This type of leadership offers teachers adaily opportunity to bring the vision of the school to life. As I continue topursue my first professional goal, I believe deep down I have a passion forstudent success, both in the classroom and outside. I will create a climate thatis in the best interest of the children and I will continually ask myself andthose around me, Is it good for the children? This question in itself willhelp to keep this deep-burning passion alive in my heart.
