My Existential Teaching Crisis: Or, What’s a Girl to Do?

For the last month or so, I have been caught up in an existential teaching crisis. The school in which I work has an innovative spirit, which means that we are often the first to try new things, whether that’s piloting a new bell schedule or going 1:1 with devices. These changes are almost always framed by healthy discussions in our building and we come to consensus on decisions. I feel ready for what’s ahead because I’ve had a chance to take part in the process and feel like I know what to expect.

This time, the changes that are coming feel almost covert. The transparency that I have come to expect over the last 6 years is missing. I don’t feel like I’ve had a chance to hear the rationale for why this is happening, and I am left with many more questions than answers. I have found myself frustrated and angry, but most of all, I am unsure. Can I get behind this change? And if not, then what?

Thanks to the advice of my BSWP thinking partners, I’ve decided to shift my teacher inquiry focus to explore what is at the heart of this crisis:

I commit to making my classroom a place for community. I believe that learning is a social activity. We need each other to collaborate, to think more deeply, to defend our ideas, to challenge our assumptions, and to learn from each other’s expertise.

I am concerned that using the Summit platform will get in the way of these collaborative relationships.

I commit to making instructional choices that respond to who my students are and what they need. We spent days looking over a range of student data prior to our ELA curriculum adoption in 2016. I believe that whenever possible, texts and topics should be tailored to my students and that they should be allowed voice and choice.

 I am concerned that the curriculum pre-loaded in to the Summit platform does not suit the needs of students in our district.

I commit to engaging in productive collaboration with my peers and teaching community. I want to freely share things that are effective, to learn from others, and to study results together so that we can improve as a whole.

I am concerned that the team structure used for Summit will limit the opportunities I have to collaborate in my content area within my building, the district and beyond.

I hope that by examining these commitments and concerns, I can come to a decision that I can live with.