A Comeuppance?
By Dr. Ryan Donlan
Assistant Professor
Department of Educational Leadership
Bayh College of Education
Indiana State University
As our
first summer session nears its end, I want to thank my graduate students in School and Community: Collaborating for
Effective Schools, EDLR 656 at Indiana State University for their
thoughtful critique of my Ed. Leadershop articles over the past few weeks.
Today,
I present a question inspired by an intriguing 2 minute, 17 second video on YouTube
that we stumbled upon a few weeks ago, entitled Brat, a Tania Simeons
(2008) short film from the Vancouver Film School.
Here
it is … please give it a watch.
Following
our viewing of Brat, I asked students,
“If we were to interpret this video our
own way, could it represent the current state of education in America, and if
so, who or what is represented by the characters?”
We
had an engaging discussion. Do you see
any parallels?
If I
were to describe what I see, here is what comes to mind:
Like
many this summer, I am excited at the prospect of moving into the next school year
knowing that school leaders have more authority to direct their staffs and the well-being
of schools. I am thankful for the many
tools created to assist in quality instructional supervision and
evaluation. And no matter the challenges
we face today, this summer’s group of graduate educators offers us hope, as
they are emblematic of the quality of leadership necessary to meet tomorrow’s
demand for children’s opportunity.
Yet
I am also a realist, and I understand that with all that is positive, some negativity
exists – such as the loss of much local control in education. Great educators are also receiving
unwarranted criticism for the service they provide, and in many cases,
centralized school reform is a one-size-fits-all prescription ill-suited for
the pains that confront us.
May
I pose that the Brat in this film actually represents those who have brought
these prescriptions upon us?
“We, ourselves.”
I concede,
of course, that a certain amount of responsibility falls upon parents’
abrogating their responsibilities, as well as society’s running amuck. That has
always been the case and always will be.
Yet,
a group within our own ranks has worked in plain sight for so many years, shooting
us all in the foot, and for that … shame on them. The folks in our communities, in our
businesses, and in our legislatures are tired of their antics.
For
our not policing ourselves … shame on
us.
Thus,
the “We, ourselves.”
Who
have we neglected to police? Who have
made the reputation of American education such that it is now fashionable for politicians
to campaign (and WIN) on “fixing schools,” when better things are happening
than ever before?
The
bad apples, of course.
Those
refusing to collaborate or engage in professional learning communities; those
unwilling to hold themselves accountable for the academic growth of each child;
those ambivalent toward the plight of families, and those with the soft bigotry
of low expectations … looking failure in the eye and ignoring the wonderful
child inside.
Adding
to these are those who are “anti-everything-administration,” as well as those
who are “anti-everything-union,” those who feel that schools are on the planet
for the employment of adults rather than the education of children (my point
last week), and those who attend graduate-level coursework or professional
development and act as they would never allow their students – disinterested,
overindulged, and effortless.
To
extend my interpretation of the film, the toy represents those rebuking the bad
apples, as they feel that enough is enough!
They will no longer stand for public employees acting unprofessionally, refusing
to embrace the demands of 21st century or the needs of families,
business, and communities while “on the dime.”
Unfortunately,
the rebuke delivered has brought unintentional, collateral damage to the rest
of us … the good folks.
“We, ourselves.”
As this
summer season passes, have we felt, fully, our comeuppance?
References
Simeons, T.
(Creator). (2008). Brat [Vancouver
Film School Short Film]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watc?v=eYR5CnOIK_E&NR=1&feature=endscreen
________________________________________________________________________
Dr. Ryan Donlan obviously needs to turn that frown upside
down. If you would like to offer him a
few “happy thoughts” or rather … drive him further into this dark grey cloud,
please call him at (812) 237-8624 or write him at ryan.donlan@indstate.edu.
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