Politics of Change

The most interesting part of my interviews on politics this week came when I asked “In a time where policy and legislation shapes our profession, what role do we have in informing/changing our field?” A teacher I interviewed suggested that this change can be brought about first within individual schools. She says that “by celebrating the things that aren’t driven by testing in your classroom that are still successful” you can make these activities essential, too. She also strongly encouraged getting parents involved. She also said that when it comes down to it, it is the parents, not the teachers that have the voice in the school. Events like musicals, science fairs, etc. get parents involved and definitely move beyond rote knowledge for a standardized test. Once any change has been brought about in a single classroom, it can move throughout a school, district, state, etc.

Another teacher immediately replied, “I don’t think I can answer that, it doesn’t affect me.” Based on previous interviews, I believe she was referring to the fact that she does not feel restrained by policy and legislation HOWEVER I was concerned that she had no thoughts about how to create change in our field. If teachers are not advocates for their own programs and do not constantly seek new and inventive ways to change education, positive change cannot occur. A different teacher remarked, “times are changing, and many older teachers are resistant to change.” It is important to remember that change starts in individual classrooms. If we as teachers are resistant to this change within our own teaching, there will be no positive change in the field as a whole.