#Ask The Teachers

I first became a part of Tulsa Public Schools in 1967 when I was a proud kindergartner at MacArthur and I’m convinced I had the most inspiring teachers in the world there and at Whitney and Hale. I grew up in a time when teachers were like gods; even my parents were afraid of them. Society held teachers on a pedestal. The teacher was always right and you’d better not get in trouble at school because you’d be in twice as much trouble at home. The boundaries of each elementary school were a small town and it was pointless to try to hide anything from your parents because they’d hear it anyway at the beauty shop or Sipes Food Barn or the Rotary Club. That was a long time ago and everything in the world has changed. Sometime in the 35 years since I graduated from high school, teachers fell off the pedestal. An entire profession began to be blamed for, not only every individual teacher who wasn’t up to snuff, but for all of the ills of society. Teacher-bashing became a national sport. And how did teachers respond? We took it. We internalized the things they said about us and accepted it because really, really smart, and really, really rich people said it and we were just poor schmucks making $30,000 a year so the smart and rich guys must be right. But they’re wrong. Teachers are working harder and longer than they ever have and are constantly held up to public scrutiny and being told what to do by “experts” with less experience in the classroom than they have. Everyone is looking for a way to “fix the problem” and no one is asking the true experts. If everyone on an airplane got sick and I had to land the plane, I wouldn’t call a heart surgeon to ask how to do it. I’d ask a pilot. If all of the water pipes in my home burst, I wouldn’t ask an accountant for help; I’d ask a plumber. If we want to know why certain things are happening in the public schools, we don’t ask the guy who invented the Slinky; we ask a teacher. How do kids learn best? Ask the teachers. What’s the best way to teach a child how to read? Ask the teachers. Why is there a teacher shortage? Ask the teachers. When the whole country is trying to figure out what’s best for kids, ask the people who know the names of those kids. Ask the people who know their favorites and their fears. Ask the people who stockpile packaged cheese crackers in their filing cabinets and pool their resources to make sure a student can buy a graduation gown or have a Christmas or a Thanksgiving dinner. Ask the people who already live paycheck to paycheck but can’t stand for their students to do without. Ask the teachers. Ask the teachers who are proven and committed; not just the shiny and new. Ask the teachers who laugh with them and cry with them and mourn them and celebrate with them and wear them home like a bruise. And when you’ve finally asked the teachers, let them answer. Listen. /// Just listen. And then don’t kill the messenger. When a teacher has the courage to rise and speak truth to power, to say, “No, Mr. Emperor, you’re not wearing nice new clothes.” Don’t get angry. Sit down and talk about how you’re going to solve the problem together. Collaboration doesn’t mean you telling me what you’re going to do whether I like it or not. Relationship-building doesn’t mean hurling directives at people. Climate and culture are everything. Our educators’ working conditions are our students’ learning conditions. Trust and respect have to be more than words that get applause lines in a speech. They have to grow out of a dialogue between those who know and love the students and those who have the power and means to make decisions for and about those students. Ask the teachers. Listen with your whole being. Then let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work together with a shared purpose: a great PUBLIC school for every student. Put teachers back on that pedestal and people will be fighting to get up there. How do I know that’s true? Ask the teachers.