Perspectives - What are your thoughts on recent

What are your thoughts on recent education reforms?

The Bangor Daily News published a series of in-depth articles regarding education in Maine with the purpose of examining our public schools and “what is holding back teachers, principals, parents and communities from helping students realize their full potential, and aims to hold up promising efforts that other places might learn from.” To gather data for the story, MEA shared a survey from the Bangor Daily News with members; those results helped shape the content of the articles.

One of the articles in the series that struck a chord with educators centered around an article titled “How Maine hurt education by trying to reform it.” Maine Educator asked members their thoughts on recent reforms in our schools, gathered some of the comments about the issue, and shared educators’ perspectives with fellow MEA members below.

“I have never seen an initiative actually survive and keep going,” said Joyce Blakney, a math teacher at Waterville Senior High School who has taught in Maine since 1991. “I’d like to see an initiative start at the kindergarten level, work its way up to 12th grade, and then everybody stops and says, ‘Did it work?’”-As published in the Bangor Daily News article on

education reform

As a teacher, the pendulum swing of initiatives seems like an enormous waste of professional time and financial resources.-

Kate

There is no be all end all in education. Some things work for some kids and some things don’t. As educators, we should know what is best for our students. After 31 years of teaching I’ve seen so many changes come and go and come back again. Names are different but they are the same things we have tried before. Someone is trying to make money from it. Just let teachers do what they do best, teach children. We got this!

-Danita Facebook Comments Continued:

Too much time for testing, not enough time for teaching.

-Lindy

I don't think it's the new initiatives that hurt, it's that whenever the political tides change or public opinion shifts, the legislature backs off of its mandates. The state of Maine gets so much right in the way of education reform and freedom of local districts to choose what's best for our kids. We are a leader in some pretty incredible educational movements. The latitude we have as teachers is pretty remarkable in comparison to a lot of other states. But I do wish that we stuck with some of the laws passed for long enough to actually measure their efficacy. -Sarah

I taught high school math for 31 years and recently retired. I do not miss all of the planning/re-planning that occurred during the last 15 years. I think it definitely hurt education in Maine. -Jennie

Any legislator that i vote for would have to prove they have spent a week in a classroom before I would say they know what they are talking about. Very few decisions about education involve educators, the front-line workers. Even administrators avoid classrooms. How many superintendents go into their schools in their district? Most of them look at schools as a business, and a business model does not work in schools, where a consensus model works better. Schools are not about products and profits. The point of education is not to get a job. Learn how to learn, and let the company train you for their job. -David

To read the complete list of the Bangor Daily News articles in the education series, log on to Maine Educator Online.