Thread: Administrators

LOL

Wrong person responding here. I generally have good relationships with my admins, but not because I work hard to get along with them. I have the reputation in my district for being blunt, in your face, and out-spoken. So that my current admin has been known to say at staff meetings: "So, Kelley, tell us how you really feel."

Still, we have a good working relationship; because, despite my recalcitrance when it comes to top-down directives, they know that they can count on me to give my best to the kids. To put the kids first. And that when I am voicing dissent, it is always in defense of our primary mission: learning.

Thanks for responding. I guess being in the single digits of my teaching career still leaves me feeling a bit insecure about standing up for myself when I should. That might be pretty common- or not. I thought about it some the other day after a surprise observation where the look on the admin's face was "I don't like what I see" (which I don't know about either way- no feedback as of yet.) Then I had this (terrible for me) thought- maybe I do know what I'm doing after all, and just because she doesn't like it, doesn't make it wrong. Of course, because she can fall back on "because I said so" does make a difference.....

Here's some food for thought.

If your admin doesn't like what he/she sees because it doesn't fit the current model being shoved down our throats, it's because they are under fire to produce evidence that they are following directives.

Meanwhile, I spent the last 3 days at a conference. Speakers and presenters came from all over the nation; some of the best professional voices in the field, including psychologists, educators, and researchers. And guess what? Every last one of them debunked the current one-size-fits-all, my way or the highway garbage coming in the way of policy, procedure, program, and philosophy at this point in time. So you could easily disagree with your administrator and still be on the right track for what your students actually need.