I've written several posts over the years about the death of expertise and why it matters. The reason I wanted to write about it again is that I've seen a disturbing trend in education, a sort of populist approach that reduces teachers to facilitators.
It started by asking students to teach themselves, reducing the role of the teacher to facilitator. If you are in the world of education, you have been encouraged to stop being the "sage on the stage" in favor of bing the "guide on the side." If you aren't in education, you might not know these pithy rhyming phrases, but you might have heard your child's teachers talk about being self-guided, using inquiry methods, or using a constructivist approach. It all means the same thing - the blind leading the blind while the teacher looks on.
It might have died the inevitable death of most educational fads had it not been for parents with strong opinions who could find a blog to back them up (yes, I'm aware of the irony here). My most recent school principal has a degree in curriculum, but she found herself in meetings where she had to defend our curriculum choices to people who read an article on parents.net.schoolstuff.something. In a world where "elitism" is being progressively looked down on, my ill informed opinion is equal to your highly trained expertise.
Because I am scared of getting caught in traffic jams on my way to work, I leave far to early and end up sitting in the parking lot for 15-20 minutes before my shift. I usually read in the car, but on Thursday, I found myself fascinated by the landscapers and tree trimmers keeping the area around the outdoor pool maintained.
The first thing I noticed were the amazing tools these guys have. I don't know what to call the saw that looks like a very large electric turkey knife, but the blade is as long as I am tall. And it must be incredibly sharp because they run it along the surface of dense trees and bushes with heavy wood branches, and it cuts through them like they are made of something no more substantial than butter. I don't have access to a tool like that because I don't need it and because it would be dangerous if I tried to use it without expertise.
The second thing I noticed was what they did after running the saw along the surface. They reached out and shook the bushes. I don't mean a little vibration. The entire bush was vigorously shaken. As an outside observer, it appeared to me to be a violent force, and I wondered why it was necessary. Then, I watched as they cleaned up all of the leaves and sticks that had been loosened and dropped out of the plant. If they had not shaken it, it would have looked fine that day, but when the newly detached leaves dried up and turned brown, the trees would have looked worse than before. They knew exactly what to do to make the pants look better that before and thrive without leaving the waste behind.
Because they are equipped, trained, and experienced, they have both tools and expertise I do not have. This meant that the way they did their job looked strange to me, but it was the right way to do it.
Teachers do things that may look odd to the outside observer. Students, parents, and people on the internet have a lot of ideas about education. I have been in conversations with people who have very strong opinions about what teachers should do, in spite of their not having been in a classroom since 1968. They think that, because they went to school, they know how school should look. But that would be a little like me thinking I could inform an auto mechanic on the best way to fix my car just because I know how to drive.
Even within the field, there are varying types of expertise. I may observe teaching methods that I do not know in disciplines other than my own. I don't have the first clue how to teach computer coding or foreign language, but the experts in those fields are trained in that kind of pedagogy and can make decisions with a different kind of professional judgment than I have.
Some teachers are shy about asserting their professional judgment, especially in meetings with particularly forceful parents. Some teachers go too far the other way, believing they should never have to explain themselves to anyone outside their area of expertise. Neither of these is the right approach. You make the decisions you do for a reason, and you should be happy to share those reasons because they come from a good place. You can be open to input without caving to everyone who disagrees.
Teachers, as the school year is about to begin, let me encourage you all to find the confidence to make strong decisions, explain them well, and stand your ground because you have skills, tools, and expertise those arguing with you do not possess.
No comments:
Post a Comment