By Tracey
Welcome back to Stories from School! While we still have a few more weeks before the school year begins, our blog is back in session, with three new wonderful bloggers joining the dialogue. Our stories from our classrooms are critical. I’m realizing this more and more, especially today, in Washington DC, as I talk with people and explain to them why I came all the way from Seattle to participate in the Save the Schools March. So many people truly don’t know. And, unfortunately, some of these people make policy decisions.
I want to begin by sharing one of my greatest concerns, and one of the reasons I felt so moved to travel to DC. Jonathan Kozol says it much more eloquently than I. So, I videotaped his speech to the thousands of teachers who came. In his speech, he says that segregation in schools today is worse than it’s ever been since 1968. I’m seeing the inequalities in my school, where the education my students, 80% of whom get free or reduced lunch, is not the same as the education on the other side of town in the affluent neighborhood. Their parents wouldn’t allow the arts, science, and social studies to be absent from their child's program. But, we remove it altogether, or we offer a truncated version of it for our low-income students. And the result, as Kozol attests, is a modern-day version of Jim Crow in our schools.
He ends his speech with the words, "I don't care what happens to me, or what price I may be forced to pay, but I intend to fight in this struggle to my dying day." Thank you, Jonathan Kozol. I think we'll have a lot to talk about in the year ahead.
The presence of a PTA is a huge! But I’m not sure I can get behind a longer school day, if everything else remains the same. I’m already leaving at 6:00 pm. Who do you know leaves at 3:30???
Tracey,
You’re right about the segregation and unfair access to opportunity.
There are schools in Seattle that have had their arts and recess cut to make more seat time. What ended up happening is that parents whose kids were at standard academically pulled their children and fought to get them in other schools that had recess, art and music. And of course, in Seattle some schools have PTAs that raise tens of thousands of dollars a year (like fifteen or twenty tens…) while some schools don’t even have PTAs. Those dollars buy art and music teachers while some schools just can’t afford them, because they need reading teachers.
So what’s the answer? I think one solution might be to get the families to fight to keep art / music / health in the curriculum. Have them refuse to allow the entire day (and after school clubs – like at your school) to be hijacked by addiction to test scores.
I think another solution is a longer school day. I don’t know how to make it happen – I know it boils down to money money money and teachers who don’t want to give up being able to leave work in the afternoon (whether or not we take it home, it’s nice to be able to leave at 3:30) in order to have an 8-5 school day.
Maybe what we all need to do is throw our weight behind a longer school day.
So maybe we need to be more specific – more precise – when we talk about education needing more funding. Because you’re right, people DO think we’re just talking about increasing teacher pay and benefits. We need to say “more funding would mean fewer students per teacher and more individualized attention,” or “more funding would mean more fresh fruits and vegetables in school lunches,” you know, specific examples.
Mark, your comment is so true about what people hear when teachers ask for more funding. They think we’re asking for money to put in our pockets, and not smaller classes, more and better resources, or anything that would improve learning for our students. Perhaps it’s easier to think that when making the cuts. Which is why, you’re right Clix, we need to talk to our legislators and our friends, family, and acquaintances. It’s probably naive me to think this, but I do: I think that if they just knew about the two homeless kids in my class, or the 9 ELL students, or the 2 autistic boys, or the one who wakes up at 4 am to help her disabled dad shower, or the one whose parents are both in jail, or the15 who wouldn’t get breakfast at home; they wouldn’t vote this way. We need to tell our stories and share what’s real in our classrooms. We need to make the argument convincing that we are all better off (even the rich) if we’re all better off. They need an educated, healthy middle class.
Unfortunately, most of my friends (nonteacherly) tend to be social and fiscal conservatives (read: Republican) and when they vote, education is not the factor which influences their decision most. Their vote tends to be based on philosophies which override their respect for me. For example… a number of my friends base their vote almost solely on a candidate’s stance on a certain “big” issue, such as abortion, tax philosophy, or the like, just as I always base my decision on the candidate’s platform on ed reform.
I agree, though, with both the points you suggest, Clix. I’ve contacted my elected officials in writing, email and in person in the past. I perhaps need more of Tom’s teacher advocacy training.
True – but we are many, and I tend to think that most of the people we know in person respect us. I definitely think that we could have an enormous impact if we did two things on a personal level:
1 – Contact our elected officials regularly (handwritten notes are best, but email is better than nothing)
2 – Regularly explain to friends, family, and acquaintances why we plan to vote a certain way – why it matters so much to us.
You’re right, Clix…which is why I (and many other of the WE) try to elect leaders who are willing to turn the reins over to the teachers to make decisions. Unfortunately, we teachers are not the only ones voting.
I don’t know, Mark. The government is the people WE elect, after all.
There is much to think about here. What I worry about as well is leaving it to the government to equalize things. They will just mess it up.
Nonetheless, there needs to be reform (and I don’t know what it should look like) in how schools are funded, period. Part of the message in promoting this reform must be…loud and clear…that when teachers are calling for more funding for education they are NOT simply asking to be paid more! I’d rather the taxpayers’ dollars pay for more teachers than pay teachers more… and I think the majority of teachers would likely agree.