Harmony

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
Gandhi

Well, this explains my feeling of disharmony!!

What I think:

Our school system has everything backwards! Students are not meant to do Test prep, sitting in their sits quietly, reading for points, writing on a given prompt, etc.

Our parents need to be more accountable.

What I do:

Everything I just said was backwards! Why because that is what my boss tells me to do. But, I don't believe in what I'm doing!

Don't get me wrong -- I have been slowly trying to change things in my classroom little by little to resemble the classroom I want to have and not what administrators mandate. But that is a scary thing to do. Our school is in it's 4th year (I think) of not making adequate yearly progress (this is No Child Left Behind talk) and we are at the stage where we are having to make big changes and show lots of proof that we ARE teaching. I believe we are like a year away from the government coming in and getting rid of teachers who aren't "performing". This is a scary thing. I hate being controlled by fear, but I allow it to happen a LOT!

So, I guess these are my choices:

1. Start teaching the way I believe.

2. Get used to not being happy.

3. Leave the profession altogether.

4. Find a school that gels with my beliefs or allows me to teach the way I believe.

5. Create my own charter school and do it all "MY" way!!