What The First Day of School Should Feel Like
Remember your first days of school?
I went to a small public elementary school in the 2,000 person town I grew up in, and I remember actually leaping over the stone school steps on the first day back at 3rd grade, I was so excited. My mother wouldn’t allow me to wear a t-shirt: the first day of school was too important to dress casually, she said. But even suited up into a simple button-down shirt, I could barely hold back my excitement.
My elementary school was a healthy, safe place of learning and curiosity. I can still remember my teachers and the impact they had on me. Mrs. Forseth was passionate about math; Mrs. Volk helped us learn geography by having us map imaginary countries; Mr. Girard (aka Mr. G), gave us puzzles that brought wonder to science.
We are in the middle of a national fight about public education. Some people — backed by big billionaire hedge funders who would rather do away with the public part of public education — are trying to push Common Core high stakes testing down the throats of kids. But they have run into powerful resistance by parents, leading the national opt-out movement, who understand that children aren’t widgets, and teachers are good people who care deeply about their kids.
On this first week of school, let’s talk about what public education should look like, and what we, as a society, should aim for.
Schools need the resources and staff to keep them clean, comfortable, and safe. There should be nurses to meet health needs, counselors and social workers to make sure that children are making healthy choices. In a strong school system, teachers establish connections with the home, and ensure that anti-social behavior like bullying is addressed, while children struggling with such behaviors are supported to change.
I remember when I got in trouble in second grade, acting up in music class, I was disciplined; but I wasn’t rejected from the school and didn’t feel shut out: my teachers made sure I knew what was acceptable and unacceptable, but also treated me like I had potential and things to learn and contributed, instead of as a pariah.
Every child is different. It is essential to have a challenging and enriched curriculum, that respects the diversity of learners in the class. Students who struggle should get the support they need in the classroom and outside of it — my first job out of college was as a special education teacher’s aide in small rural public school, and I saw what a difference a supportive school system made.
Every school is different, too — look at Monticello, Tri-Valley, and Liberty, three school systems within 30 minutes of each other but each with different populations, with children bringing different gifts and different challenges. The one-size-fits-all model of the high stakes testing just doesn’t respect the differences within rural areas, let alone within the entire country. Local leadership in schools not only strengthens schools, but strengthens community.
Every school deserves well-prepared teachers who are evaluated and supported by well-trained school leaders and expert peers — not arbitrary high stakes tests. Teachers have some of the most rewarding jobs in the world, but the most difficult, because all the world — and the challenges in it — comes to the classroom. Teachers should have ample time to collaborate, learn, and grow.
It is painful to see great teachers, bringing enthusiasm and commitment to children, having to spend their time teaching to the test — and to Common Core testing standards that are disconnected from the curriculum. High Stakes testing narrows the curriculum, encourages teaching to the test, does not work, and pushes great teachers out of teaching when we need great teachers more than ever. Standardized low-stakes testing, given to a random sample of kids, can provide the feedback we need to know how our schools are doing.
Finally, something that can be forgotten by elite politicians and abstract technicians who don’t understand children: children need time and space to play, to be outside, and to do sports. All schools should provide time and space for arts, music, physical education and hands-on learning experiences. For many kids, not only do such experiences develop their gifts and talents, they motivate them and keep them wanting to come to school. When I was an awkward teenager, knowing I had track team at the end of the day made the challenges of chemistry class bearable. I’ve talked to so many adults who said they stayed in school for sports, or for just one class or one teacher they loved.
Sports and art and recess and music aren’t luxuries — they are part of who children are, and they call on the full child, and allow for long term growth and flourishing.
This week, as kids go back to school, remember your own first days of school — whether they were good or bad!! — and think about what you want children today to be feeling as they leave summer behind, and enter those big swinging doors.