"The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity."
- Amelia Earhart
We recently saw this quote from Amelia Earhart and thought it appropriate. As our "Be the Change" movement gathers momentum, we continue to bear witness to a paralyzing fear of acting on your convictions, both by SCSD staff who fear repercussions from the Central Office and by parents who fear knowing too much.
We cannot continue to let fear rule us!!!
We owe more to ALL of the students in this school district.
We are sitting at a crossroads right now and we can choose to do nothing and watch our school district - and with it our kids - continue to deteriorate OR we can choose to act and follow through tenaciously to ensure that we send a message to all students in the district that we believe in them and their abilities. Whether we are speaking of academics or behaviors, they all have the ability to do more than they have been given the opportunity to show.
So now is the time to consciously decide to act and provide our kids - our students - with the support and nurturing that they deserve. Whether you are a parent providing it at home or a teacher providing it in school or an administrator providing programs that keep them safe and lift them up to be the very best they can be.
We can all make a difference - TOGETHER!
I am very proud of all you do!! You are also a very articulate person!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for all you do! I didn't realize all the fear out there until I tried recruiting. So scary in this day and age that people are afraid to speak the truth. Reminds me of those that were frightened in our history to speak against one person. We cannot be afraid to speak the truth!!!Yet... we are..
ReplyDeleteSo many of us are scared. I am a teacher on a T.I.P., plan due to low school scores. Many of us changed buildings and positions very near the new school year. What is the conclusion for many of us that are on T.I.P. plans? My higher-ups do not have an answer for me. Let us all speak out! We are educated well-meaning people who are committed to the vast needs of our community.
ReplyDeleteI have the same problem! Now, I am hearing there might be a two year delay when it comes to our test scores due to the negligent way the state rolled out the common core curriculum. I have no idea what is up!
DeleteMy answer is to document EVERYTHING that the district does WRONG - SOOOO many things they do or don't do that causes our test scores to tank. I fought my "ineffective" rating and had my rating removed....I know in my elementary school we do not receive our "Math Modules" sometimes not until the day before OR day that we are to start teaching...the district has not done anything (that I know of) regarding our SLO's, target % of growth - NOTHING. All of this will come in handy when you fight our evaluation scores AGAIN - or maybe we won't need to, if politicians listen to their constituents
DeleteIt is a very scary environment in the SCSD. Most administrators are very vindictive. There are so many teachers who would love to speak out but are terrified! Sad but True!
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's time for RECENT RETIREES and other staff who have RECENTLY moved on to other districts to speak out. NOTHING to fear!! Speaking of fear, doesn't working in an environment where FEAR is the operative word constitute a HOSTILE WORKPLACE?
ReplyDeleteAfter 20 years in the district, i have never seen such little support from our administration! You are right! They accuse the teachers of not being able to manage their classrooms and not making our lessons engaging!
DeleteI totally agree! I ahve been saying this for two years!
DeleteI fear that our district is such a mess, that it is going to take a very long time to climb up out of the hole we are in. I was asked the other day if I think it's fixable and I said no, but we can improve things every day and every year if we prioritize things and work on them. At this time, I think the priorities are out of sync with the needs. We should be needs focused at this time. If we can address the behavior crisis, we can move on to the next area of need. I know I'm stating the obvious when I say it's impossible to make academic progress if we don't address behavior first.
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