8085 MD4 Discussion 2
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Assignment Task Part 2
Read a selection of your colleagues’ postings.
Respond to 2 of your colleagues in 150 word Responses , commenting on areas of agreement, disagreement, inconsistency, and challenge with regard to how courage can be used to support policy and advocacy within the field.
7 days ago
Katheryn Gonzales
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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The presentations for this week’s discussion have influenced my perceptions of the common good. They have highlighted the importance of policy and practical wisdom and their fantastic effect on education. For example, in Bruno’s presentation, she discusses the importance of due process, which leads to others owning their decisions and making necessary changes that affect the greater good. Bruno also imparts her wisdom on the importance of documentation to support due process (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2014). Schwartz outlines the importance of using practical wisdom. Practical wisdom is the moral will to do the right thing and the skill to know the right thing (TED Conferences, LLC, 2011). A wise person can be flexible when dealing with others and knows how to bend the rules for the greater good with the proper needs in mind. Practical wisdom requires the person to have a desire to do the right thing.
Schwartz uses the example of a teacher who listened to a consultant trying to help the school boost its test scores. The consultant’s advice was for educators not to waste their time on students who will pass the test, don’t waste time on students who won’t pass no matter what, and kids whose scores will not matter. This consultant’s idea is to focus on the bubble kids, the kids that will make a difference. The teacher was upset by this advice because she believed all students matter. Schwartz’s point is that rules are essential, but some rules will demoralize the practitioners and the practice. Rules and incentives create people who only work for the incentive.
Similarly, we, as educators, work to reach students through incentives. Students begin to work for the incentive rather than the desire to learn. Thankfully there is a way out of the rules and incentive system through people willing to be system changers. The system changers use courage not to leave the system but to work to change the system (TED Conferences, LLC, 2011).
Courage is needed to make system changes. We have policies and rules because we see the importance of having a standard of operation. However, not every situation fits the standard. Therefore, flexibility and practical wisdom matter. Fromberg presents the idea of high-stakes testing as sanctioned child abuse. She highlights the importance of play and risk-taking in the learning process. Unfortunately, administrators and teachers are placed in positions to use standardized tests and scripted lessons. However, there are system changers using courage to break away from high-stakes testing. Some programs are pushing back the age for kindergarten and hiring teachers that have been through early childhood education courses and understand the unique needs of kindergarten students (TED Conferences, LLC, 2012). Robinson points out that high-performing education systems understand the importance of individualizing teaching and learning. They attribute high status to the teaching profession, which requires investing in the profession. These education systems know that the decisions must be made at the school level. Education is not a mechanical system but rather a human system that requires an approach that is flexible and individualized.
Current early childhood educators and leaders need the courage to make decisions for the greater good. Education leaders should focus on creating a climate of possibility. Leaders need to learn to be flexible, be system changers, and focus on revoluntizing education by taking the emphasis off of standardized testing and placing it on the needs of individual students. To make the necessary changes in education, school leaders need courage.
References
National Association for the Education of Young Children (Producer). (2014). Reflections on early childhood program management
[Video file https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9ftoju83fE
TED Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2011). Barry Schwartz: Using our practical wisdom [Video File]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDS-ieLCmS4
TED Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2013). How to escape education’s Death Valley: Sir Ken Robinson [Video file]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX78iKhlnsc
TED Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2012). What kindergarten should be: Doris Fromberg at TEDxMiamiUniversity [Video file]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=YhpM_jbVopo
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3 days ago
Beryl Watnick WALDEN INSTRUCTOR MANAGER
Dr. Watnick to Katheryn RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
3 days ago
Simon Kim
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
6 days ago
Simon Kim
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
3 days ago
Beryl Watnick WALDEN INSTRUCTOR MANAGER
Dr. Watnick to Simon RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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Simon,
I appreciate your passion and commitment to encouraging parental involvement. Working with diverse parent populations can be challenging but incredibly rewarding. I always opened my initial conversations by asking them to share what they wanted me to know about their child. I made sure they saw my sincere interest in my facial expressions and my intentional listening. It takes multiple conversations to establish trust and help parents feel comfortable with an educator in a school setting. But this is key to all that follows.
Dealing with trauma and abuse can be devastating. But the law is clear about such issues. I had a second grader who was physically aggressive in my class. I spoke with the counselor who instructed me to request a meeting with his mother. His mother came to my room, listened to my concerns, and punched her child in front of me. I was given no choice in this situation. It also made it clear as to why this little boy was so aggressive with his classmates.
I also taught for a term in an elementary school in a very wealthy suburb. The principal told me not to assume that the children in my class did not have issues at home just because of their socioeconomic status. She was absolutely right!
Some folks underestimate the courage it takes to work as an educator!
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2 days ago
Katheryn Gonzales
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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Thank you for your post Simon. I agree with you that to have courage means to be bold, be forward acting, acting with integrity, and taking action. As educators it is easy to say we think of the "whole" child and that we are working with the child in mind. However, it is also easy to slip into old habits and routines that may not always be "best" for the child. When thinking about policy and practical wisdom, the needs of the child are not always put first. As an educator and an advocate we are challenged to lead with courage. As a kindergarten teacher I have had to speak up for what is developmentally appropriate for my students even when it was not the most "popular" decision. Most of the time I am brushed aside and given excuses, but I know that I am a voice for my students and I do not regret speaking up.
Berkowicz, J., & Myers, A. (2018, January 16). Educating the “Whole Child” Requires Courageous Leaders. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/opinion-educating-the-whole-child-requires-courageous-leaders/2018/01
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2 days ago
Brionna Boyd
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
2 days ago
Katheryn Gonzales
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
1 day ago
Michelle Hampton
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
1 day ago
Beryl Watnick WALDEN INSTRUCTOR MANAGER
Dr. Watnick to Michelle RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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Michelle,
Thank you for your post. I think it takes courage to be an educator in today's school system. Many policies are being crafted by politicians rather than educators. I previously shared a report from PEN America in previous module discussions. While I certainly understand the role of politics in crafting policies, I am also concerned about the direction we are heading. I was a Florida public school educator before entering higher education. There are certainly policies being implemented that I consider dangerous and unacceptable. I do not believe I could sit by silently when told "Don't say gay" or be forbidden to introduce my students to the New York Times 1619 Project which speaks to the roots of slavery in the shaping of our nation.
There are policies being pushed forward that diminish the critical thinking skills of our students. Are there specific policies in your school district that make you question your position as a teacher leader?
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11 hours ago
Amy Brown
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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Main Post
Early Childhood leaders create and manage change by improving educators knowledge, beliefs and practices in the key areas of the classrooms. Sir Ken Robinson mentioned that high status to the teaching profession recognize, you can not improve education if you do not have great people to teach, and the system must provide support in the professional development, it is not a cost but an investment to the school. Teachers should be given the opportunity to learn academic content and literacy skills during professional development training. A challenge for early literacy education is finding ways to facilitate literacy for children in the preschool classrooms. Teachers want more literacy trainings, but the Board of Education wants more training on assessing how well the child knows their upper case and lower case letters. Children at early levels of primary school require appropriate guidance in their literacy skills. When talking to a preschool teacher, she mentioned that teachers are teaching the test to students, and not much learning is going on in the classroom, because schools are being pressured to make sure the child's test scores show an improvement in their learning. Some teachers are bending the rules when it comes to their teaching strategies in the classroom. Bob Schwartz commented in his talk, we need people who want to do the right thing and wise people who know how to improvise. Everyday teachers are being courgeous in using different strategies in their lesson plans, some are taking a risk by bending the rules when assessing the children in their class. Teachers are capable in increasing and improving children's insight in their progress.
Children who show great enthusiasm in their academics such as literacy will want to become more interested in their reading routines. According to Sir Ken Robinson, the system has to engage students in their curiosity, creativity, and individuality, that's how you get children. Teachers have a huge responsibility and are expected to create everything while at the same time ensuring that children achieve learning outcomes. Early childhood leaders create change in the curriculum and in the system, this means listening and learning from professional development trainings and implementing what they learned into the classroom. Teachers can assess by looking, listening and writing (Fromberg, 2012). Intentional teachers have a purpose for the decisions that are made for the children and can explain the purpose and reason for the decision.
Sir KenRobinon's quote from Benjamin Franklin: There are three sorts of people:
1. People who are movable, these people do not get it.
2. Movable people, people who see a need for change and are prepared to listen
3. People who move, these people make things happen.
Teachers today are people who want to make things happen. Teachers and parents are working together in New Jersey to make sure that the students have the resources and support they need for childre to learn, grow, and thrive. Children want to learn, just not in the way we want them to, children need access to diverse and innovative tools that can make learning exciting and help build bridge literacy gaps.
References:
Ted Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2011). Barry Schwartz: Using our practical wisdom [Video file]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==JDS-ieLCms4
Ted Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2012). What kindergarten should be: Doris Fromberg at TedxMiamiUnviersity [Video file]. https://.youtube.com/watch?v=YhpM_jbVopo
Ted Conferences, LLC (Producer). (2013). How to escape education's Death Valley: Sir Ken Robinson [Video file]. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX78iKhlnsc
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7 hours ago
Kelli Barnes
RE: Discussion 2 - Module 4
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Initial post- Main Discussion Post
Courage is a trait that we often use when referring to our hero and when bravery is shown. However, it takes courage to love a child, accept them for who they are, instruct them, and guide them into developing achievers. While manuevering through education as a teacher, we must take into mind our responsibility as teachers and what is best for the common good of our students. Abiding by the code of ethics and best practices provided for teachers is not the only requirement that we have as teachers. Do what is right for our students, their families, and our community is also a concern. Of course, we know that as teachers becomes veterans at their practice, they exude a level of experience that is unlike those new teachers to the profession. In addition, with that experience comes the knowing how to balance power of leadership roles, politics within a school, and of course the ethics that are laid before us (Glanz, 2010). But what about courage? Does managing a balance of power and politics make teachers brave? What does courage look like in the profession of education?
As a former kindergarten teacher, I especially was drawn into the presentation by Doris Fromberg. Her Ted Talk What kindergarten should be had me agreeing aloud (TED Conferences, LLC Producer, 2012). Kindergarten is not what it used to be. Playtime and centers have become a thing of the past, and often, young children are required to sit in a desk for hours in a day, pencil in hand, working to complete tasks. This is most certainly not developmentally appropriate for a five year old, who should be engaging in play and social developing skills . To make matters worse, high stakes testing has become implemented into kindergarten programs and it is dire. Our education system has become broken. When No Child Left Behind was introduced, children were to be supported and not left in the wings of failure. However, in a sense of irony, our system has done just that. A program designed to support has left children failing high stakes testing and dropping out of school in older grades (Microsoft Partners in Learning, 2012). Here is where courage is imperative. It takes courage for teachers to step up and become a voice for more play in the primary grades. Speaking on what is important developmentally versus a test to record data. It takes courage to eliminate programs that are implemented for the sake of a dollar. These are the crucial steps that teachers can take now to be the hero for their students, their families, and for our education system!
Glanz, J. (2010). Justice and caring: Power, politics, and ethics in strategic leadership. International Studies in Educational Administration, 38(1), 66–86. Retrieved from http://gseuphsdlibrary.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/justice-and-caring.pdf
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1 hour ago
