I have taught at three different high schools, one ranking low in the district and two ranking high. The similarities of these schools were their students. Yes, their life experiences were extremely different. My post is not about this fact, but despite these differences, they all felt the same about their school and education. How do I know? I actually talked to them.
My style of teaching is different than most. My instruction is not the best, classroom management is not the best, but my relationship with students is highly regarded. When a teacher builds great relationships with students, the instruction seems better, and the classroom management is easier. Teaching styles can be another post, my point is that I communicated with students and they felt comfortable talking to me. So much so, that some days when I could tell they were upset I would address their frustrations. “In your groups, I want you to discuss and write your responses on your white-boards.” The questions; “How could your education improve, What do you like or dislike about the school, how do you feel about your teachers, how do you feel about your administration, do you think the system cares about you?” You may think that students wanted easier grades or more time on their phone, but they were searching for more meaning. They are upset that they have teachers that are there for a pay check, only few courses are “watched over” (algebra 1 in Florida has a huge impact on school grades), the courses are not relevant to them, graduation requirements, the stress, the school rules, and the list goes on.
At one school, a district survey was given to the students. One day, each science teacher had to walk their kids down to the computer lab to take it. Weeks later, we had a faculty meeting where the principal addressed the data. It was years ago, but the data point that stood out to me was less than 30% of students were satisfied with their school. The principal spoke as though they felt that the kids purposely gave the school bad ratings. The solution for the student satisfaction was to assign it to the teachers. We were asked to think of reasons the students are upset and make focus groups of teachers to address each group of issues. A month later, all was forgotten. The problem occurred at the start. Why pass it down to teachers who are already part of the problem or are already trying to help? The problem is systemic and needs to be passed up to the district. I can talk about this in another post, but principals are afraid to tell the district their school has issues even though all schools are facing similar obstacles.
The last school I worked for did something similar. I am not sure if it was a district survey or something the principal created. It was posted in each classroom as a QR code by the principal. Students would scan and type away. I watched 50-60 students all write negative comments to the questions, but also provided ways they thought the school could improve and how to do it. I could be wrong, but I do not believe the data was discussed in any way. The teachers were not given any data and no changes were made for the following school year.
At each school I have worked for, I have addressed problems that are systemic. I have been listened to, but not heard. My solution to many of the problems was to create a focus group made of students that the faculty and administration could trust to help make decisions. Each administration I have worked for thought this was a great idea, but never went through with it.
In my opinion, if you wanted to work at a school then you should care about the students. Sadly, that is not always the case. How can education improve if we do not empower, trust, or hear those the education is for?
I am interested in your experiences and thoughts!
Submitted June 07, 2020 at 01:57PM by mattsnotes https://ift.tt/379JEgo
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