Is it fear?
Tuesday, April 7, 2015 at 05:52AM 
On NPR recently, a comment was made that "politicians' only goal is to stay in office" (or something to that effect). It made me wonder if that may not be the goal of many educators as well - to simply maintain the position they hold regardless of circumstances.
A workshop today concluded with Clint Smith's old but powerful TEDTalk, The Danger of Silence:
Smith's words that resonate for me are "We spend so much time listening to the things people are saying that we rarely pay attention to the things they don't. Silence is the residue of fear."
Why is not every educator speaking out against the idiocy of over testing? Why is not every eductor blogging about funding inequities? Why is every educator not demanding differentiation in instruction? Why is every educator not loudly questioning unfair teacher evaluation practices?
Is it fear?
Why do so many of us only speak in the utmost politically correct terms? Why do we so rarely express an opinion or present an alternative point of view? Is it really so awful making our principal, superintendent, school board a little pissed?
Why do so many educators, surely recognizing the injustices and inequities and politicization of education, remain silent?
Is it because our primary job has become keeping our job?
Is it fear?
Reader Comments (4)
Hmmm, I don't think it's fear--it's discouragement. Teachers have been telling our story for decades, but apparently no one wants to listen. No, they'd rather blame us for problems we haven't caused but are desperately trying to overcome--poverty, discrimination, inequity, too much "standardized" testing (is there such a thing as a "standard" person?). No, they'd rather turn to politicians & media blowhards who've never spent a day in a classroom. No, they'd rather make decisions based on their own faulty memories of their school days. Our blogs are read by us, not by the folks who really need to hear them. We are not silent--we are just not being heard. Thank goodness for leaders like you, Doug, who are able to be out there in more public view, telling our story. But please, don't let your discouragement over them not hearing the message lead you to believe that we are silent!
Thank you, Barbara. This is was good reminder for me and an alert that while I had administrators in mind when encouraging outspokenness, it was interpreted as criticism of teachers. Not my intent to be sure. Thank you again.
Doug
My apologies for commenting anonymously here. As I wrote I realized this would kick back on me in my workplace, so I’ll offer this guerilla-style.
I’ll comment here as a teacher, a former union rep, and now someone who is in the occasionally unenviable position of making suggestions to teachers that are often met with hostility and fear. I actually do think it’s fear at the root of the silence, Doug, but the evolution of it is complex.
The educational system I’ve been a part of since 1985 values compliant behavior in its teachers seemingly above all other attributes. I recently read – I’m embarrassed to admit I can’t remember where, I've been perusing so much literature of late – I came across a study in which principals were asked to rate their first and second year teachers as to teaching ability. Those teachers who principals rated the most highly were in fact the most compliant in terms of scheduling, meeting attendance, and presenting a cheerful affect in social settings. In-class observations by the researcher indicated these were in fact the teachers having the most difficulty managing classrooms and who were struggling the most of all staff. Compliance is rewarded with tenure and favorable assignments and support. Speaking out against inequity and injustice is punished, maybe not overtly, but trust me on this one. Ask any teacher and see if you can find a single one who was not told when they began their careers some variation of, “Just try to smile and keep your mouth shut until you get tenure, honey.”
By the time teachers reach that golden “permanent” status, they have learned that compliance works, and compliance with an essentially conservative operation, one that seeks to sustain what works from day to day to keep the school running smoothly, is what keeps them able to make a living. It explains why cultures of school sites become essentially immutable, and why it’s often more effective to simply close bad schools or wholesale swap out staffs than to attempt to change them.
My job is to teach technology to teachers, and no matter how I describe the clear advantages of the many excellent tools I bring to educators, I can’t avoid the smell of change when I do what I do and that quality alone is more often than not met with fear-laden hostility. What students need, what their futures require, what the nation’s employers are crying for – all this is perceived in ten point Arial Narrow font when the foundational premise of American school culture is written in sixteen point Arial Black: Change this system at your peril. School districts are heard to say the things they are expected to say about achievement gap, cultural/social discrimination, climate, etc., but when decisions are made at the highest levels it is generally in deference to status quo in those locales which have not identified change as a desirable path. My own district is considered “progressive,” but has proven itself incapable of change, and proud of it. Our unwavering achievement gap is its hallmark. Our reputation for this dedication to inequity is solid. Just ask the real estate folks.
Disruption is necessary to make instructional headway, but in places where outspoken, disruptive people who bring innovative and socially progressive practices to stable, unwelcoming systems, they are either forced out or sequestered in corners where they can’t hurt anything, and they are most carefully not elevated to posts where they could actually get traction. There are many of us teachers and principals who are willing to fight the good fight, to use our voices, but we are either discouraged as Barbara says above, or walled off and/or gently threatened. Such is our lot.
Hi Disruptor,
Having taught since 1976 myself, your reply resonates with me. (I wrote a rather sarcastic post on this topic in 2007 which I have never been able to get published in a main stream journal <http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/blue-skunk-blog/2007/3/14/the-illusion-of-change.html>.
When both administrators and teachers (and communities) are complicit in maintaining the status quo, I remain at a loss if what might be even possible. Other than to continue to agitate.
My current school district is currently pledged to a drive for greater equity for all students. The message is right. We'll see if admin can walk the talk - if we can actually work the plan for using technology to help close some achievement and opportunity gaps.
I really appreciate your insights.
Doug