Automation

I hate "self check-out." I've always felt very strongly about this - because I know that for all of the people who choose to go through those lines, giant corporations are saving money and hiring less workers, contributing to the joblessness that plagues our country. This line of thinking translates pretty seamlessly into the world of education. A restaurant I really like posts the "Harper's Index" from Harper's Magazine above their urinal in the bathroom, and it's almost always interesting. One of the pieces of data that was posted this time around was about a surprisingly large number of schools offering students online courses. Alone, I wouldn't have taken all that much notice of this particular blip of information, but earlier in the day I was at a workshop held at my school. In the workshop we were reviewing the ways that my particular school would like its teachers teaching its students. In one particular reading I was provided, the strategy of "direct instruction" was broken down into specific details. Reading the article made me reflect on my own practice, as I often do when presented with educational materials. There are many times when I feel like the manner in which modern teachers are expected to teach is very hands-off, almost to the degree that my job could be replaced pretty easily by a computer program. Granted, I don't feel this way all that frequently, but the implications bother me. Are teaching strategies pushed on teachers that make is dispensable/disposable? Will a teacherbot be teaching US History 10 years from now and I'll be forced to work at a grocery chain trying to fight off the competition of "self check-out" devices? I sure hope not. I just hope that teachers out their are employing the strategies that work best for them - and that they aren't just doing what they're told for the sake of following directions. The vast majority of teachers are teachers because we love children. We interact with them better than most, and are able to help inspire them to be successful and to contribute to this country's story. We're overworked and underpaid, and in my particular position, I feel increasingly closed in by a cookie-cutter set of strategies that may not ALWAYS work for me or for the students I work with. Destroy the machines.