Louise Sawyer (Thelma and Louise, 1991) taught us “You get what you settle for.” Hearing Susan Sarandon voice these words many years ago, I found that they apply all too well to the many situations in public education today where we have settled for low and gotten even less. And, once settled low, it is harder than heck to get anything better.
My finger points at us, the public. In too many states and too many communities we have allowed public education to be so disparaged that the resulting lowly state of affairs has caused teachers to lose their passion and teaching to lose its appeal for talented teacher candidates. Disparaged by governors using education funding to balance state budgets. Disparaged by parents who have used arguments for school choice to demean public education. Disparaged by legislation that purposefully stunts educator salary and benefits to keep promises to taxpayers. Disparaged by community members who believe that public employees are a drain on their personal wealth. Disparaged by anyone with an axe to grind, we, the public, are settling for a public education that will not give us what we need to get from our public schools.
The “this is what you get for settling low” is the exodus of educator talent from public schools. Many of our best and brightest teachers also will be best and brightest in other endeavors. By the thousands, talented educators annually choose to leave their schools for careers that will appreciate their talent and passion. The loss of this talent has become irreplaceable. Doubling down on the problem is the reality that the next generation of best and brightest career-seekers do not give the merest of consideration to education as their career of choice. Why should they volunteer to be disparaged? Why should they volunteer to be under appreciated? The best and brightest of the current and most recent generations do not become educators. As a result, every state struggles for find the talented teachers that children deserve. Richly trained teacher candidates are a rarity today. In fact, teacher candidates of any quality are rare in most states. The result of career disparagement is a growing number of schools beginning and finishing the school year with unqualified substitutes as permanent teachers. State government deepens the “low” settlement by endorsing local school boards to hire non-teachers to teach. The depth of our current low now allows high school graduates with “qualified work experience” to be employed as teachers. In our current state of low settling, almost any body will suffice as a classroom supervisor – not a teacher.
If I overuse the term “disparage”, it is with purpose. Synonyms for this word are: belittle, denigrate, depreciate, trivialize, undervalue, underrate, and play down. Read any contemporary educational journal and count the number of articles with one of these words as its theme. Listen to radio broadcasts of state legislators talking “live from the statehouse” and the positions they take on public education. Examine the names of the funding groups of TV broadsides proposing educational reform; the names that are in the small print, to understand the forces that disparage public schools. Read the “teacher wanted” job postings that are a fixture in local newspapers. Read any of the literature of the PAC-based education foundations, like EdChoice.com, to understand their argument for school choice at the disparagement of public school. The term is used because it is the right word for this argument.
My argument is not a “poor teacher” rant. Within every high quality teacher is the passion to cause children to learn. This passion is in their bones and greater than monetary compensation. However, all passion is vulnerable to continual denigration. The argument is based on the overwhelming social, cultural, economic, political and educational value that public school has brought to our nation. The American Dream and public school are entwined. Settling low for what we want to get from public education today will have consequences for the nation we get in our future. I loved the Thunderbird that Thelma and Louise drove, but to avoid their inevitable fatality, let us not allow public school be driven over the cliff.
My argument cannot close on such a low and dismal note. Whereas, it is unwise to think that the strong community support of local schools in the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s will return, it is wise to describe a new kind of support that will raise the community value of public schools. We will not and cannot see PTA groups of stay-at-home mothers rallying to every school initiative as they did decades ago. In our new age of virtual and seemingly offhand commitments, we, you and me and our fellow citizens, can assist a revitalization of community support for public schools. My finger points at –
• our demanding highly qualified teachers in every classroom and a refusal to settle for “any body.” Insist that School Boards do not settle low in their employment practices.
• our recognition that high quality teachers are more than content and skill instructors. For many children, the teacher in the classroom is a mentor, a role model, a guide and many become a life-long friend. These quality relationships are difficult to quantify as a monetary value; they are priceless.
• our understanding that many parents choose public schools as their school of “choice. Parents choose their family residence based upon school districts. Moms and Dads choose public schools that resemble their positive experiences in the public schools they attended. Parents often identify a particular strength in a local school’s academic, arts, activities and athletic programs that they want for their children. Public school is a wonderful choice.
• our being informed that choices are good things. School choice is a good thing. But, all schools need to be available for the choosing. We need to respect all choices and the schools that are chosen.
• our appreciation that many parents cannot afford financially or in their family commitments the needs of a charter or voucher program. For families just starting economically or who have become economically disadvantaged, public school is their only school.
• our knowledge that strong schools are essential for a strong community. Schools may be the community recreation and entertainment center. School teams and activity groups create essential community identity and pride. Schools also are essential responders to community tragedies and critical events. These schools may be public, private, or parochial. Strong communities need them all.
These will not happen by accident. They will happen because we, the public, refuse to settle low regarding our schools and our teachers. And, by raising the bar for what we settle for, we will get even more.