Am I making a difference? Isn’t that the basic question we all ask ourselves, and seek to demonstrate to others? Ronald Reagan said: “Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.” We would argue teachers do not have that problem either.
Educators make a huge difference every day in students’ lives. This is the real measure of accountability. Policymakers have failed often in conveying to educators just how important their work is in our society. Teachers are quite often the most stable adults in a child's life. Teachers need our support and help. And policymakers and other stakeholders need to consider that unmeasured aspect.
If the teaching profession isn’t respected and valued by local and state leaders, it is not going to be valued by others. That is why groups like Professional Educators of Tennessee are important, when they advocate at the General Assembly for educators, they amplify the impact of teacher voices in our state.
Tennessee has seen a pendulum swing in public education in which accountability has become viewed as a negative. It is true that our objective must be that every student in Tennessee schools graduate from high school either prepared for college or a career with a living wage. However, we need to move away from the “test-and-punish" culture that is now flourishing.
Often times we have placed such a burden on our educators that their work is overshadowed by the task of assessing students, consuming too much instructional time and creating undue stress for educators and students. We must place trust in those educators on the frontlines, and they should be placed at the center of genuine transformation efforts of our public education. And we believe it is important to increase the scope of influence of Tennessee educators.
We also need to work with statewide stakeholders and policymakers more closely to examine pending and existing legislation. Too often policy is rushed through the legislative process and reinterpreted by those who make the rules. In addition, public education funding needs must move beyond political rhetoric and considered with both long-term and short-term objectives.
Accountability doesn’t have to be bad word. In fact, we should embrace accountability and transparency. After all, all public entities need oversight and management. Local Boards of Education should play the key role. We embrace a local control governance model giving communities crucial oversight over our public schools at the ballot box through their elected boards of education. That is accountability at the most basic level.
Schools must provide equal opportunity for all children to learn if they are to fulfill their dynamic role as the cornerstone of our democracy. Our future will be determined by the way we treat our schools and the manner in which they educate our future generations.
Jay Reedy and Cathy Kolb
Jay Reedy represents Houston, Humphreys, and the western part of Montgomery Counties for House District 74. Cathy Kolb is the state president for Professional Educators of Tennessee, a non-partisan teacher association headquartered in Brentwood, Tenn.