I really wish I had more time. More time for sleep, for me, for doing nothing, and for writing. Writing . . . huh? That’s right – I wish I had more time to write. I have about 5 articles waiting to be written for this blog. They may not be groundbreaking or very interesting, but they still weigh on my mind (that’s not even counting the 3-5 that I’ll probably just delete because I forgot what I wanted to say). Unfortunately, I don’t foresee these being written any time soon because I have more important things to write.
I’m very excited about a new project that Favorite and I have in the works. However, it requires A LOT of writing on my part and I don’t even have time to do that! More on our project later.
It’s funny that I find myself fantasizing about being at work (my old job before baby) for no other reason than the fact that I had time during my breaks to do stupid things like check my favorite sites and find new ones. And had I had this blog back then, I would have added content like crazy! I would also have the time to write for our project. Sad, isn’t it? That I had more time for these activities when I was responsible for providing instruction to over 70 students – yet I have next to no time when “all” I have to do is care for 1 baby.
I just wanted to express my wish for a longer day. Maybe 27 hours would be perfect. Or maybe (knowing me) once I had 27, I’d be asking for 29. Whatever . . . I need more time!
I wish this post could be about some funny or slightly entertaining misadventure that I’ve recently experienced . . .but no – it’s about the cardinal sin of blog neglect. I won’t waste your time with excuses (like baby, being sick, traveling to FL, and having close to ZERO time to myself), but suffice it to say that I hope to be adding some much needed content soon.
Thanks to Dan for a well-placed kick in me arse!
If you’re in education, then chances are you’ve read Stuart’s book. If not, you may want to pick it up, as it is an easy read that lends interesting insight into the beginnings of public education in the mountains. A tale about a time when the prospect of providing a well-rounded education to the public seemed like a good idea, narrated by a unique individual who was ahead of his time.
“I will live if my teaching is inspirational, good, and stands firm for good values and character training. Tell me how can good teaching ever die? Good teaching is forever and the teacher is immortal.”
This profound belief in the goodness of the teacher and in the crucial role he/she plays in cultivating youths’ minds is the connecting theme that can be found in every page of Jesse Stuart’s story of his days as a mountain school teacher. His passion for relaying knowledge to his pupils, furthering his own education, fighting for the educational rights of the average citizen, and in being a leader of reform towards a better way of schooling seems boundless. I can’t help but wonder why there aren’t more people like him around today that stand up to demand change for our schools.
But is change what is needed? Is it enough?
Although Stuart wrote about experiences that took place over seventy years ago, many of the problems and issues that he faced in schools then, still exist today. Problems with poverty, parental involvement (or lack thereof), differences in cultural backgrounds, low literacy rates, low teacher salaries, educational and political bureaucracy, discipline problems, absences and tardies, ineffective teachers and administrators, and allocation of funds . . . were all there then. You’d think that in seventy plus years, states – at least cities – most definitely schools – would have figured out an effective method for providing education to all. Many do get an education, yet most certainly not all. Same as then.
So will simple change be the answer to these problems? And exactly what or who should change? Should it be the teachers, students, parents, administrators, counselors, community members, and/or legislators that change? And in what way(s)? Who will supervise the changes? What could possibly be altered in the existing system that wouldn’t offend anyone, please everyone, and still achieve the goal of educating all?
These question could go on and on – have been for seventy years. What will another possible seventy years of questioning accomplish?
Maybe public education isn’t the answer . . .
