If...an angry ode to classroom teachers everywhere

Just the other day I got rather brassed off. At the beginning of the week a whole swathe of paperwork was thrust upon staff (mainly PT's) for completion toute de suite. One demand was for reaction to STACS data for a meeting the following day...less than 24 hours notice. Unfortunately I am not a PT, if I was I would quite simply have said I don't have time, many PT's however, to their credit and desire to help out SMT acquiesed and did the work.

This happens way way too often in our profession, for indeed we are a profession. People above us make too many demands on our time which have no direct impact, relevance or influence on what goes on in a classroom.

Thus, in a grumpy mood and with one word banging around in my head I penned this ode to classroom teachers everywhere. (Hommage due to Rudyard Kipling):

If...
If you can still deliver exciting lessons
When all above you are demanding that boxes be ticked...


If you can still develop your professional practice
Whilst edicts from on high don't allow for development time

If you maintain that the achievements of your students
Mean more that results in league tables
And that statistical number crunching
Serves no other use than to give a purpose in life to high office mandarins

If you can still dream that one day
Your profession will  be considered a profession
And that the judgements you make about your students
Will be accepted in good faith

If you still consider the classroom to be a place of  achievement and progression
Where great changes can occur
Without the need to fill in a form which says so

If you can be creative, and encourage creativity
whilst subverting stifling bureaucracy

Then, dear colleague
YOU MUST BE A CLASSROOM TEACHER.

Thanks to Lynne for reminding me that I did this for National poetry Day as well.

file cabinets by redjar
Bureaucracy by Chrysaora

nationalpoetryday08

Powered by ScribeFire.

Comments

[Adam]

I forgot to add that it was actually on seeing the poster for National Poetry Day that I decide to write didn't realise the theme was work. Serendipity.

It seems to be normal practice that STACS are studied in advance, not at our place though.

[Lynne]

Very good! To be fair we always get STACS in advance to study in prep for meeting which is usually a week or two later as well as notes from previous year's meeting so you can talk about how things have improved/changed etc, but we do still get forms/emails with return dates a day or two later.
Think there must be potential for a line in there about filtering - or is that a whole new poem. You're very timely though - theme for tomorrow's National Day of Poetry is work!