Okay, Tuesday. Monday Night Prepared Me for a Different Wednesday. Now I'm Trying to Figure Out How to Make It Work

The majority of my courses are service-learning, which means I design them in collaboration with locals schools, their administrators, and teachers. It takes several months of planning, carpooling arrangement, and preparation. What we can't prepare for is the fact that public schools are facing incredible stress right now with threats, student anxiety, teacher/administrator tensions, test-down mandates, and the narrative that it's all falling apart. Well, this is for urban school districts where some see money-making strategies to de-publicize the districts to make money for the testing/curriculum/teacher-education avoiding school systems. It's alarming, especially for educators who prefer to go into urban schools to show how awesome they are.

Alas, poor leadership, the national trend of phone threats, teacher stress, and student anxiety have made this back-to-school season a little more turbulent than most. This has resulted in the need to do a 90-degree turn this week and stay on campus. I hate this, because the best education is experience. Working with the heterogeneity of America brings beauty...solutions...answers. I understand, but hate, that the schools have had to cancel our visit this week. Now it's back to the drawing board when I already felt there was not enough time to get everything done so I can head to Syracuse for a wedding.

This too shall pass. I hope. 

I was talking to a few teachers after the decision and all we could think was, "Why are we doing this? Why are we attacking schools and the teachers who have dedicated their lives to bringing up the next generation of U.S. adults? Why are we trashing those doing the good work and not going after the parental groups, well-funded organizations, and politicians fully intent on destroying the public good?" 

It makes no sense. The kids who need school, its safety, its structure, its teachers, and its curriculum the most are the very schools that they're targeting to tear apart.

I'm not sure how I'm going to readjust the teaching this week, but I have to think of something. What else am I going to do?