Still thinking about that, I opened up a news site and my eyes were greeted with multiple stories about a leaked document stating that the Ford Government hasn't been completely truthful regarding the motivation to alter the present Ontario Education System ... the highly acclaimed, world recognized Ontario Educational System. Reading multiple articles, the thrust appears to center around converting the present system with actual humans facilitating learning, to a self-driven, on-line, "saleable" type of system ... modelled after the one in Alabama ... the state ranked 46 of 50 in education. Ford Nation can bleat its horn all it wishes about how this is tackling the bottom line and getting the Ontario house in order, but if it involves completely dismantling the system to save some money, then I am deeply saddened. Here's one of the articles Replacing teachers with computers?
Then I stumbled across an interview with the former head of EQAO, the government think tank that brought us the Literacy and Mathematics standardized tests, that reveals the impetus was skewed from what it was created to be. Read the article here EQAO focus has changed
When did we lose our way?
The education system, for as long as there has been one, is about the welfare of the next generation, the ones that will be in charge and making decisions when the present generation has stepped aside in retirement. Ask yourself, "Do I wish to feel satisfied that I have made the world a better place by assisting in the 'passing of the torch' to the next generation?" since they will be the ones that have the power to significantly alter your future life, just like I am for the generation that came before me. The elders of ancient times passed on their wisdom and knowledge around a campfire, a shared meal, a snuggle in a comfy place, by building trust-filled relationships where the goal was to ensure that acquiring skills was more important than managing data, persistence and resilience more important than natural ability. Education is a person to person, relationship thing ... a "let me show you" experience. I admit that I don't know as much as some, but how is that possible if the delivery vehicle is self-guided through some sort of technology lens?
I am on my way out of the system NOT because I have had enough but because I feel it is the right time. I have given as much as I could to ensure that the transference to my students was as bullet-proof as possible, feeling that they would be okay without me looking over their shoulder, guiding them to choose the best path. How do you do that without a living, breathing, and (most importantly) competent person facilitating that learning? Not everyone can be a teacher just like not everyone can be a doctor, a dentist, a mechanic, a lawyer, or a chef. We choose our paths in life based on revelations garnered through experience ... human experience ... and, admitting my profound bias, I feel that teaching is a vocation with the core being a sincere love of kids. It's ALWAYS been about the kids and if someone doesn't agree with that, then get out of teaching.
I was having a conversation about education with a nurse the other day. I have a student in one of my classes who requires a medical professional be close by because her health is fragile. The conversation involved perceptions of the Ontario system as compared to the nurse's personal experience growing up in a completely different part of the world. My thoughts were shared, her thoughts were shared, and we agreed that there were pluses and minuses to both systems. One thought stuck with me ... it was perceived that the Ontario system places higher stock in the whole child and not just the student. The explanation given to my puzzled look was that her experience was more "Sage on the stage", an "I'll tell you what you need to know" approach, and she felt that the efforts of the teachers here to build a foundation of partnership and cooperative problem solving was a better choice. Again, kind of tough to do with a computer rather than a person.
Here's an unpopular opinion ... education costs a lot of money ... and should.
If what I have stated above is true, we are honour bound to incur the cost of doing the best job that we can. Education is not something that should fall under the scalpel to find savings if those same savings will make education quality suffer. Do I think that there are ways to save money in the system? Absolutely! There are many ways to trim the bureaucracy that have been identified during our lunchroom bantering that will never see the light of a boardroom because they are logical and would enhance the classroom learning environment. Joe Public always cites the high wages of teachers as the problem, and while I can agree that teacher salaries are a major component of its cost, education is a people business so of course the cost of teachers is a major portion of the budget. There are a multitude of ways to save money that wouldn't affect the classroom ... the place where the relationships are built .... the place where the magic happens. The cost saving measures that Ford Nation is ramming through may save millions in the future but they are (not will ... it's already started) making significant negative changes to the classroom RIGHT NOW. Each year that these measures are in place, those negative changes will grow exponentially, and going back to what was recognized as World Class will be harder and harder. As a tax payer, a parent, and a caring citizen, I am willing to bear the cost of a great education system because I truly believe that all of those kids are worth it.
It's always about the kids.
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