Reflection

I greatly appreciated this course, because it was challenging to me. It challenged me in the new ways I was asked to think about the world, and in the amount and complexity of the readings. While I believe the entire scope of the course was essential to its effectiveness, several of the readings in particular left a deep impression on my thinking.

The reading and ensuing discussion that had the greatest impact on my thinking about the world of education was undoubtedly Anyon’s (2005) piece, “What Counts as Educational Policy?” Because I came to my work in education in a roundabout way, prior to this course I’ve never thought seriously, academically, about educational policy or its foundations. It was particularly effective for me to begin by developing an understanding of the political and moral foundations of public education in the United States, with Horace Mann and John Dewey, and also to start thinking about the purpose of public schooling today, reading Levinson & Holland (1996). The Anyon piece felt like even more of a breakthrough as a result of laying this groundwork. This article makes me want to be an activist and a leader, it makes me want to advocate for change in how we legislate for educational success. It makes me feel desperate for progressive leadership that understands that educational policy is not just about standards and testing. We need leadership who understand that poverty, and a societal system that perpetuates poverty and inequality, is the true problem.

Similarly, the Davidson (2011) introduction has been a touchstone reading that I keep coming back to. So much so that I purchased the book after we read an additional chapter later in the semester, and I added it to the professional collection of my school library after I finished reading it, so that I could easily pass it on to my colleagues. Davidson’s explanation of the way that our schools and institutions are still trying to recreate a form of society that has changed, drastically, as a result of technological advances was eye-opening. Her argument made me think about planning my teaching based on what our world is like, and what skills my students will actually need when they are adults. It made me rethink my basic assumptions about what, exactly, should be taught during my 30 minutes or so of instructional time with each class each week. The approval of classroom teachers and the continuity with what was taught before is no longer reason enough for me to continue teaching some lessons. For example, rather than learning about reference books because that is what librarians teach, I realized that my students need to spend significantly more time learning research skills that focus on the overwhelming reality of the internet---and other skills that will translate to their grown-up lives in our ever-changing world. I need to focus my teaching on practical, transferable skills that will serve students in the future.

Finally, I really appreciated the chance to read the actual text of Act 46. I thought that I had a pretty nuanced understanding of how the Act will affect my particular district. However, in discussion with my classmates it became clear to me that there are districts in the state for which this Act will have much farther-reaching effects that I do not yet understand. Delving deeply into this one example of educational policy, and discussing it with my classmates, helped me to see the complexity of legislating education---especially when most legislators are not educators.

These readings together help me conceptualize many of the challenges that our public schools face today. And the challenges are right at the intersection where all of our discussion in this course has take place---how is technology changing society? What does our society expect of our schools? How are our schools using, or misusing, technology? And what can we, as educators, do about these challenges? It is only in retrospect that I can so clearly see the scope of the course and the learning path that we have traveled these past few months. I greatly appreciate that I now have an informed voice, and references to support my opinions, when discussing the issues I mention above.

The work samples included below showcase a reflective essay on educational policy, and my final literature review, where I focused my research on inquiry learning and research models. This research has informed my teaching of the inquiry process, as I now use the Super 3 model for basic research instruction in the younger grades.