I suspect that I’ve been treating teachers a bit harshly over the past few weeks, reporting on conversations that are happening in conjunction with work I’m doing with education leaders (administrators and school board members). They’ve asked many times and in many places, “How are we going to get teachers to start teaching this way or that way?” I heard it again, last week, at the Colorado Association of School Boards, during the follow up session to my keynote on contemporary literacy.
I’m traveling across the country, speaking to and having conversations with the full range of school stakeholders, including parents and students — and the push-back is coming mostly from the teachers. But I think that there is good reason for this. Teachers have, for years, especially during the NCLB years, been the ones who’ve been told, “Fix this! Do this better! Do this harder! Make this happen! You are the one! You’re accountable! You have to work this miracle — loaves and fishes!”
It’s no wonder that teachers get skittish when I talk about such radical changes in teaching and learning practice –– especially the young ones who have only known classrooms that are rigid, regimented, rigorous, and quantifiably measured.
I’ll say here what I’m saying to those school board members, “You have to give teachers permission and the keys to the car.” We have to be able to… I have to be able to say, “Here’s what needs to happen before we can expect teachers to retool their practices.
I tell them that teachers need:
- Time to plan, collaborate, research, assess and adapt, build, and innovate (I tell them 3 to 4 hours a day — everyday).
- Classrooms that are equipped for learning in an abundant information environment, rather than an information-scarce environment (This means wifi, a laptop in every teacher and learner’s hand, one or more projectors in each classroom, and access to the emerging technologies that channel contemporary literacy).
- Permission to safely innovate and facility to engage in professional conversations about the changes needed for relevant education.
This is just my list right now. But I suspect that education leaders and other stakeholders must come to realize that some architecture needs to happen before we can renovate the classroom and reinvent education. When that’s happened, then we can start to expect teachers to facilitate the learning that our children deserve.
Image Citation:
TWM, “Clocks Go Back.” Twmâ„¢’s Photostream. 29 Oct 2006. 4 Dec 2007 <http://flickr.com/photos/twmlabs/282089123/>.
I’m not convinced that school board members truly understand the needs of the classroom and the future needs of our students. What sense of this are you getting from your experiences? Many teachers are still teaching the way their teachers taught even our newest teachers. I hear all the time that the technology skills of these new teachers is better but I don’t see that they have a clear idea of what it means to effectively teach with the technology tools that are readily available to them in my district. We can all retool our pedagogical practices if we understand what those changes ought to be. Too often we’re told that we need to do things differently yet no one has a clear idea or vision for what exactly “different” is.
As soon as someone claims to know the next step, the next step morphs into something different. I’m not sure that anyone can provide a “specific” direction right now to point teachers to the “right” pedagogies for the 21st century. What I CAN say is that the staff members in our district who are getting the closest to understanding what the right general direction is are the ones who have the most access to technology and use it religiously on a daily basis. That is why simply putting the technology in the hands of the right people (not ALL the people, mind you, we don’t have the money for that) is a good start.
Dave,
IMO the word administrator needs to be added everywhere the word teacher appears in any discussion about change in the classroom. Your 3 points are very valid but administration needs to be 100% in favor of change and can’t just mouth the word. Change has to be built into the evaluation of teachers’ performance and administrators need to model the behavior they expect.
From your blog to my administrators’ ears. Great list. I would add “a trusted instructional technologist to support, encourage, motivate, and inspire them”.
I’ve been thinking about this for some time now and as I read so many bloggers who point out the need for educators to work/adapt/learn in this digital age, I wonder if we engaged in a thought experiment to imagine the ideal situation. What would it look like?
Using the points you made:
1) Time.
Nothing new can be added to a teachers plate (there’s no room.) New must replace something they’re already doing, especially ‘techie’ stuff because it’s usually hard enough to learn as it is. So, if a teacher starts a class blog, have it replace the class newsletter, Skyping peers to conference about students? PLC time, etc. This may seem obvious, but often they still do both.
2) Equipment.
The ideal setup here can be as varied as the teachers using it, but what I’d like to think of as the base: Computer + Internet + Projector. Or access to the like. Arguments could be made that one needs a camera or smartboard or a laptop vs desktop, etc. but I would be ecstatic if those three components were as standard as a chalkboard in every classroom.
3) Administrators.
Possibly the deal breaker. With an administration supportive and invested in these changes, teachers can and will be more likely to embrace them and impress everyone with their ingenuity. With out it, they’re out on a limb.
4) Assessment.
My own addition, BUT if as a teacher you have the time, ample equipment and administrators on board, yet cannot showcase student work in a way that is meaningful to them and their parents, the rest becomes meaningless.
Assessment needs to be created collaboratively by all those who use them.(see #1) Work must be digitized and web based for access to all.(see #2) The system must be universally supported so no teacher is left out on a limb.(see #3)
The assessment system must provide feedback to the students, parents and teachers about actual student work, not a
subjective score placed on the work by someone.
Is all this possible? I think so.
I would add (someone else alluded to this too) we have to get permission to do things differently. I hear business people and others say all the time that the schools need to change how they do things – but human nature doesn’t allow for change easily. Those that say they want change are often the first one to complain when changes are made.
“The report card is different … its not how it was when I was a kid so I’m not sure what it means. You did that to cover up how things are going. Just tell me … is this like getting an A?”
We want things to change as long as when we’re done changing them they are pretty much the same as when I went to school. Otherwise I’m not sure if my kid or others are doing well.
Learning is messy!
I’m retired but working with a school library association. I frequently hear that tech administrators effectively block the use of many of the tools that should be useful in connecting students and faculty to the unprotected world outside the walls of their schools. Until the entire administrative team along with the school board and faculty are on “the same page” progress toward effectively using technology to teach is going to be limited.
You are kidding about the 3-4 hours daily right?
No! It’s what college professors have — roughly. When we look at that suggestion from the educator point of view, then it seems a little over the top. But when we look at it from the student’s point of view, and start to think about the learning experiences that they might enjoy from a teacher with three hours of planning every day, and then decide that this is the type of education that our children deserver, then it starts to make more sense — to me.
Yes, it works. We have given each of our teachers a laptop; scheduled continual in-service using the tools we hope they implement with their students; made blogs, wikis and moodle available, and upgraded student machines. The result after 2 years – ever changing teaching and learning.
I think you forgot one important resource: Someone designated to help the teachers (think Classrooms for the Future Coaches) whose job is to help teachers integrate the technologies and ideas into their lessons.
Jimbo, you may have a point here. But I wonder, if teachers had three hours a day for professional planning, research, collaboration, etc. Would we need tech facilitators. I’m frankly not sure. If all they do is help teacher integration, and do not think so. But if their duties are more like those of librarians, then there may be a place. Again, I just don’t know.
Thanks for the comment!
Dave,
I agree, that more planning time is required. In Virginia, we have ITRTs (resource teachers dedicated to integrating technology). As Jimbo suggested, they are there to help get technology going. I have always felt it was a band-aid solution. I think your call for more time to plan to create quality instructional experiences is spot-on!
In addition, as John mentioned above, a focus on changing the minds and spirits of administrators is required. I feel it is their responsibility to be changing the climate for teachers and convince the school board members to support access and funding to make significant change happen.
In my local consortium we constantly are dealing with how to involve administrators, give them training, etc., to support the Read/write web, in particular.