Monday, July 16, 2012

Overarching Goals

One of my overarching goals here is to develop my teacher practice and philosophy of teaching. I hope that by reflecting publicly on the choices I make as a teacher, I will continue to improve my work as a teacher. These choices are ones I make in and out of my classroom and school.

Second, I want to hold myself accountable for developing my voice as a teacher. I have begun to understand that part of being a professional is being able to voice my stance on education issues, with support for that stance. I believe writing is a powerful tool in the task of clarifying what I think about particular issues and supporting any arguments I might make. I hope that comments and feedback from whoever reads this blog, agrees with my sentiments, questions my ideas, and/or challenges my stance will allow me to further develop my teacher voice and understanding of education issues.

Third, I want to lend my voice, my meager experience, and humble expertise to the fray. I have been reading that teachers should be speaking publicly about "education reform" to shed light on the impact of all the changes happening, and those being proposed, on real classrooms and real students. Sometimes it seems that teachers are being left out of the public dialogue, when in reality they have ideas and opinions they share all the time with those around them. I know I do, and it's time I expand the circle of ears (or eyes- ay minds!) I reach. I hope someone learns something from my words.

Are these three really separate goals? Probably not. Are these the whole of what I hope to accomplish? I'm not sure. Like I tell my students: writers revise, revise, and revise. So don't be surprised if I do.

-Eliza