Thanks for shedding more light on our troubling situation.

You made a very important comment — we need to get out and vote if we want a change in leadership.

The only thing I can add to your comment is that not only do we need to get out and vote — we need to be more vocal and more active in educating the public about these issues.

Blogging helps — but we, the teachers of Texas, need to do more… we need to attend neighborhood public forums and roundtables to educate parents and community members who don’t have children in the school… we need to write to our state reps (as you mentioned)… we need to find a voice in the main-stream media (if possible)… we need to be creative and find other means of being heard…

We know what is at stake, but many parents and community members are not aware of the gravity of the decisions that are being made at the state level.

We do need to get out and vote — and we need to do everything possible to educate other voters before it’s too late.

Stephanie

I see you are in Houston. I am from the Longview area. Let me tell you that while I was in Austin this past weekend I heard even more troubling news about our fearless leader. He has already decided that once he is re-elected that he will can the TEA commish because she does not offer as many yeses as she once did. He already has a replacement in mind for her spot, and once again the person does not come from an education background. Well, that is, unless you count miserable years on the SBOE a long time ago and then a lengthy stint in the House as the chair of the Public Ed Committee. Yes, you know who I am talking about. It is not a happy time if we do not have a change in the leadership. It really is that serious here in Texas. We just have to get the word out. If the leadership has its way, the pendulum will not be swinging; it will just all of a sudden appear on the other side one morning with no gradual movement.

It is our job to protect our students in this case. We cannot stand idly by while uneducated, no, make that ignorant bureaucrats mess up public education worse than they already have in the last six years. While I teach in a 3A school, I still go to Austin about five or six times a year to fight the good fight for my students. I go to lunch with my state rep. I call other state reps in my area and have become email buddies with several of them (read that as public education friendly reps). My senator calls me for advice. These are the relationships we have to create in order to protect public education. I don’t mind change. I just want to make sure it is positive change before I drink the Kool Aid.

First let me say that words can not express how much this backwards movement by policymakers and state education leaders depresses me.

Why can’t students write on topics of their own choosing and draw on their own background/viewpoint in their writing? Why does this become an either-or situation where the two options are exclusive of each other?

I am continually baffled by people who argue against project-based learning and student-centered instruction because those methods “take time away from preparing students for the test” or from teaching students the basics. WHY CAN’T STUDENTS LEARN THE TEST OBJECTIVES AND THE BASICS THROUGH MORE STUDENT-CENTERED, ENGAGING, and RELEVANT ACTIVITIES!!! (sorry for the shouting — this just aggravates me!)

Why can’t we at least find ways to strike a balance between the two?

You make one statement that I feel the need to repeat — there are many good (and excellent) teachers and administrators working IN Texas schools. I work with them and dialogue with them daily. I am always impressed with the large number of highly intelligent, passionate, and caring people who work IN our schools and who work daily to create more student-centered learning environments DESPITE the actions of our state leaders.

The important word here is “IN”…

The people making these stupid policy decisions ARE NOT IN THE CLASSROOM. State policy-makers don’t have a background in education — how long has it been since our state educational leaders have been in a classroom or participated in professional development focused on research-based effective instructional strategies? When was the last time ANY of them read any of the current research?!

Okay — I’m done (for now).

I’m very happy that you and your wife have located a better public school — although, I am sorry that you had to leave Texas to find it. I remain hopeful that the tide will eventually turn and we will be able to make significant improvement in the right directions before it is too late. It’s taking ALOT of my energy these days to stay optimistic — but I am trying.

Take care,
Stephanie