No field has been as consistently marked by criticism as education. Public pronouncements of declining achievement, violence in the classroom, low expectations, absence of explicit standards, and students' lack of readiness for the workplace reverberate like clanging cymbals in our minds and hearts. The pervasive attacks on public education—including threats to destroy it through privatization—have become a daily wolf at the door.
This barrage of criticism commands us to face our critics and create a journey for renewal. On this journey, we must make choices and effect change at every turn so that improvement is the result.
The easiest path to take on this journey is to lose hope, as familiar structures of the past erode and give way to the changing realities of the present. If we view the journey as groping our way through a labyrinth—a maze of frustrating complexity, fraught with barriers and treacherous turns—the spirit of the timid traveler will instantly be broken. However, if we chart a well-constructed journey of applying thoughtful solutions to problems, we will conquer the dragons of criticism, mistrust, and despair we encounter along the way.
The quest to improve education can be a meandering path or an intentional journey, rich in meaning and purpose. The passage taken is a matter of choice. To spark renewal, educators must first confront barriers that hinder clarity, seek wisdom beyond fear or ego, and pursue a clear vision despite dissension and the constant drum beating of the naysayers.
Turning Critics into Partners
A journey taken in isolation will bear few lasting results. The path must be traveled in company with parents, lawmakers, business leaders, and community members, like the pilgrims in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. To collaborate and share equally in both successes and failures is a hallmark of courage and dedication to improving educational performance.
If we invite the dragons of criticism and mistrust lurking along the path to join us as partners and colleagues, we will expand the treasury of resources available to meet the seemingly insurmountable challenges that educators face. By drawing greatness and support out of malcontents, a greater vision can be served and brought to fruition.
If we travel the winding road with our critics, we will make discoveries, achieve balance, and emerge wiser and more ready to act. We will conquer the dragons of despair by compelling them to become allies in advancing American education through gentle admonitions, rather than critics issuing ultimatums.
To navigate this perilous journey, all travelers must have an illuminated consciousness of the ultimate clients of educational renewal—students. Our map to guide us should be built on the spirit, strength, and commitment to serve young people, rather than to placate our most ardent critics. Travelers who attend to every discordant sound along the way will only be diverted from the goal of advancing, shaping, and coordinating educational renewal.