The Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association is urging its members to champion authentic learning, especially in an age where education is feeling different. | Pixabay
The Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association is urging its members to champion authentic learning, especially in an age where education is feeling different, according to a blog post from the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association (TEPSA).
Dr. Nathan D. Lang-Raad said in the blog post that educators are stuck in their own version of monochromatic monotony like Dorothy from "The Wizard of Oz" because the education system has been in reform for many years.
"It’s true that school reform has been in the making for years and many of us are pursuing the change we want to see by working long hours (and many many Zoom sessions) to help our students succeed," Lang-Raad said in the blog post. "We’ve made great strides, and there are indeed pockets of magic and creativity in classrooms across the nation."
Because teachers are forced to adhere to a system they didn't get to create, they are forced to tell students what they will learn, how they will learn it and have them copy notes from lectures, the blog post states.
"True learning begins when students feel like they’re a part of something personally meaningful in the classroom, when they’re in a space that inspires them to follow their curiosity, to embrace wonder and discovery," Lang-Raad wrote. "We have come to a crossroads. Our world demands that education cannot stay in 'Kansas' any longer. There’s a cyclone of change looming darkly on the horizon."
Lang-Raad writes that as education stands right now, with teachers trying to teach amid the pandemic, they're currently in the middle of the cyclone.
Lang-Raad says to serve students, teachers must give them the freedom to express their own creativity, inspire them to care and wonder more, coach and support them and create a community in the classroom that embraces differences.
"We have an opportunity to let go of the monochromatic monotony of compliance that’s hindered education, and embrace the vibrant colors of possibility, adventure, and wonder that can be a part of true learning," Lang-Raad wrote.
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