TEACHING: THEN AND NOW

Teaching in the 1970s to the mid-1990s: Then

When I joined the teaching ranks in the mid-seventies, it was a heady time. Teachers exercised much autonomy over classroom program, were indispensable to district committees and task forces for curriculum and professional development, and were called upon for professional judgement by the Board and the public. The teacher’s union functioned in a symbiotic role, partner with the administration, to add a diversity of attitude and experience, operating with a synergistic unity. The opportunities for individual initiative and meaningful contribution were many, and the interweaving of efforts and responsibilities seemed to reinforce our teaching and the impact we had on the education of students.

 
Teaching in the mid-1990s to present: Now

By the mid-1990s, however, with the passage of ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act), and then with the inception of NCLB (No Child Left Behind), school districts were compelled to look at mandates and regulations being propagated by the federal government, causing districts to more closely control their efforts and to enforce conformity. Committees and groups not essential to meeting the requirements of NCLB were pruned from the district administrative structure or reined in severely. Teacher committees and advisory groups, once vital to the selection of curricula and evaluation of program, were disbanded. As nationally enunciated standards became the sluices for federal funds, school districts turned their efforts and resources to meeting AYP (Annual Yearly Progress), establishing high-stakes testing protocols, and evaluating the performance of teachers.  All this causing rigorously restrictive educational offerings while narrowing district leadership structures, constricting the function and roles of both teachers and administrators, and concentrating most growth and power at the top.

Teaching from here…

There is hope for the future. With the recent ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) of 2016, authority has been returned to the States and the federal government is no longer controlling funding for local districts. To be sure, there will be a period of sorting and sifting as states decide how to proceed. But there is a sense that the pendulum is swinging back…