To Chart the Future of Education Policy, We Need to Actively Listen to Teachers and Students
By Roberto Rodríguez
As the son of first and second generation immigrants, I’ve seen the amazing opportunities that education can unleash for multiple generations. I’ve been the beneficiary of that opportunity, but I’ve also seen others, for whom the system doesn’t deliver, get left behind.
If we’re to see large-scale progress that translates into opportunity for all students — in a way that transcends the neighborhood in which a child grows up, the language they speak, or the resources that their family earns — we must make big commitments to change the system. These commitments include high and common standards across the states; aligned assessments to track progress; an accountability system that provides for the progress of all learners and for turning around low-performing schools; and, importantly, a real commitment to success and excellence in how we teach our students.
Much has been accomplished in education over the past three decades. We have the highest graduation rate on record; fewer dropout factories; measurable gains in reading and math on the NAEP; and lower dropout rates. But we’re not there yet. If we’re to achieve equity for all our learners, we must find ways for these policies to exponentially grow into new directions — and lasting change — for students. To do this, I believe that we must make two shifts in how we approach policy:
First, policy is not static. It is organic and it must grow, evolve, and respond to the changing needs of the times.
Second, in order for policy to be effective and responsive to students, it has to directly include their voice and perspective, and the voice and perspective of the educators most closely connected with them each day.
By committing to these shifts, we will be able to build a stronger bridge between policy and instructional practice and become even more responsive to the needs of students. We will be able to create policies that are more comprehensive and more closely connected with the realities of students, enabling changes that impact in real ways the conditions in the classroom. And we will ensure that the results and impact are shared and felt by students and teachers in a more real and inclusive way.
As we shift our approach, there are several critical areas that stand out for me in the current landscape and that Teach Plus teacher leaders are addressing across the communities in which we work:
- Advancing more restorative practices that better address the social and emotional needs of students.
- Elevating the importance of rigorous curriculum and cultural competence in our classrooms.
- Personalizing and individualizing the learning experience for students.
- Supporting and retaining a new generation of diverse teachers in our system.
These directions in our work are rooted in countless examples of Teach Plus teacher leaders who use their voice to shape policy and practice in their schools, and who actively listen to their students when it comes to advocacy and policymaking.
These are teachers like Teach Plus Indiana alumna Idalmi Acosta, whose 8th grade classroom in Indianapolis is covered with positive images that reflect and affirm her students — their language, their culture, and their identify. Ninety-one percent of students at Idalmi’s school are students of color. For them, her classroom is a space where they matter and are celebrated. The cultural competence that is modeled in Idalmi’s classroom, and the efforts she makes to connect to the social and emotional needs of her kids, is an important part of where we need to go.
Teach Plus Texas alumna Shontoria Walker reminds us daily of our responsibility to address policies in our schools that directly impact, and support or hinder, the achievement of our young boys and men of color. She leads by her powerful example in her classroom.
Teach Plus Colorado alumna Carla Cariño, who teaches civics and AP government in Denver, speaks up, and stands up, to defend DACA and the immigrant and undocumented students in her classroom and community. Carla models our democratic values and civic responsibilities not only for her students, but for all of us.
Teacher leaders like Idalmi, Shontoria, and Carla see their students. They hear their students. And they listen — especially when their students feel frustrated, confused, or like they don’t matter.
As we shift our approach to policy, we must make a renewed commitment to actively listen and to build trust. When we do this, we’ll be able to reflect the lived experiences of our teachers and their students. We’ll begin to construct a shared vision for change among those teachers, students, parents, and policymakers. And we’ll tap into the wisdom and different perspectives that open new possibilities, new knowledge, and new ideas to advance equity in our system and create opportunities for all students.
Roberto J. Rodríguez is President and CEO of Teach Plus. This post is adapted from his talk at PIE Network 2018 Summit.
