I have been doing this long enough to see the latest and greatest trends in education come around 2 or 3 times. Always under a different name and always with the same fanfare. It's as if every year the powers that be get amnesia and forget every new trend that has been tried in the past to improve some aspect of the educational process. Enough already!!
Lets concentrate on what we know works. Get the best people possible in front of the classroom. Give them the supplies and equipment they need to get the job done and provide the support and encouragement needed when they try something new.
One of my all time pet peeves is the new directive which arrives on your desk on the first Monday morning in September from Central Office stating the following:
Effective immediately, forget everything you've done in the past regarding instruction and from now on you will apply process "X" to your teaching strategy. It makes no difference whether or not what you've been doing in the classroom for the past 25 years has worked! Just use this latest and greatest way of teaching and you will be successful. Oh yeah, you are on your own to figure out how to apply this new process and or course you evaluation will depend on how well you implement this new directive!!
Once and for all, educating children is not the same as manufacturing widgets. Unlike widgets, children bring a host of different attributes to the table and a "once size fits all" approach to teaching is never, ever, going to work. No matter what new directive is issued, some strategies will work for some children and not for others. It's the role of the professional educator in the classroom to differentiate their strategies so that every child learns in a way that is appropriate for them. More difficult for the teacher, yes, but always more successful for the student.
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