After
reading this blog
on the Washington Post I’m left wondering if inspiration from Bogey
(honestly, is there a better source? No, I didn’t think so) can work here, too.
As teachers, it’s too easy to point a finger at administrators, parents, and even
at students. It’s too easy to pass the buck to the federal government with
cries of “fix it”.
The cries
aren’t unjustified, as the scale is so big it takes federal intervention, but
on the small side, in the classroom, can’t more be done. Can’t instructors
envision a different way to go about the material? Yes, I full know that
correcting students’ writing is time consuming. There are weeks where I can’t
see the end to the essay grading, and I will go through an entire pen in two
weeks. The amount of work feels much like the labor of Sisyphus.
Going about
it in a solitary manner isn’t the way, either. Surely there are packs of
teachers (see where I’m going here?) that can come together across all
disciplines to figure out something more that can be done. While an individual
teacher may not be able to be heard, and it’s too unwieldy to band all
together, can’t small groups push forward and keep Sisyphus’ rock from
backsliding?