How do we change a culture of resistance? That’s a question that has been on my mind. A group of us were trying to wrap our minds around on Voxer the other day and it’s really bothered me that I don’t know the answer.
This week I got to meet with a majority of the tech reps at the schools in my district. We were writing tech plans for their schools. Often I would give suggestions about ways to increase tech use and ‘they won’t do that, no one cares about using tech’ would be the answer. Made me think about the conversation we were having on Voxer. It all goes back to this resistance.
Why is there resistance? Is it because they believe they know everything? I spoke at a faculty meeting last week and the teachers I spoke too literally turned their backs to me and talked the whole time. I taught 8th grade boys and this was a first to me. I think they thought what I had to say was pointless. But if that was the case that explains a lot. I hear often that there is no need to change because it works, kids make good grades, they learn to read, and pass standardized tests. If that is the ultimate goal of education then they are correct. If that is the goal of the school, then they are the best of the best. But is that what school is ultimately for? Or is school to give students skills they need for today and for the rest of their lives? Maybe this is the beginning of the problem. We don’t all have common goals or we have short term goals that focus on now.
Another reason I’m seeing for resistance is the fear of the unknown. When I talk BYOD I hear that as underlying theme. No one comes out and says ‘I’m afraid’ but heard from multiple teachers about not knowing what students are doing on phones/tablets. Or school policies of locking up phones during tests. Umm that is the biggest example of fear. Fear usually comes from a bad experience or loss of control or the unknown. I think letting students take out phones after years of telling them to put them away would cause all three of those problems. Especially without conversations and training. The conversations have to take place first. They need to know the benefits and pedagogy. Same with any technology.
I also wonder if the lack of pressure to change is also a reason. If using technology or other changes are optional, would less take that step? I think those that are driven would but what about the others? So do we need administrators to push change for it to happen or will leaders inside the classroom do that? Can students and parents lead the way for change?
I have no idea the answers to this or what steps to take next. My coworker and I have a plan, but I worry if we are on the right track. Can just a few people make a difference? I like to believe so. I would love to hear from you on this. What do you think causes resistance to change?
Fear of change, fear of the unknown or simply fear of the amount of cognitive dissonance and hard work that change requires? While I am definitely not an advocate of technology being the the ‘one true way’ I do believe that teachers need to constantly improve their practice. That requires them to work, learn and think. Until teachers no longer get a pass because they refuse to improve their practice we won’t see much change. 🙁
I also deliver PD to teachers for the last year. I am by no means an expert and am learning new things all the time about effective PD. I have made some observations regarding implementation of new ideas. It seems to me that districts that have participation from principles and other school leaders in the PD session are implementing more of the new. Districts in which PD is delivered to teachers and the administration is absent during the delivery seem very stagnant. Teachers appear to fall into a one of three categories. 1) Those that take it and run (or at least a portion) 2) Those that think it is good but are not confident enough to go it alone or 3) Those that are unwilling to make change.
My observations are that more of the teachers that work in schools where principals are heavily involved with PD and learning along with the teachers have a higher percentage of 1’s and 2’s while those with un-involved principals have a higher percentage of 2’s and 3’s. The big difference seems to be that the 2’s in the first setting make more changes than those in the prior.
Wow-I have no idea if that makes any kind of sense. But it did help me think through it.
I’m not saying that your points are not worthy, because they do make sense. In my opinion, though, you’re putting a lot of emphasis on fear and not enough on stress, on being overwhelmed, and on being overworked. I feel like teachers are forever behind the times. Technology changes so fast that, for some of the older crowd, as soon as they get comfortable using a piece of technology, or a program, or an app, it is old news. Let’s put a little more emphasis on the fact that teachers have too many things in their day: a new Common Core, continued standardized testing, IEP meetings, core curriculum training, meetings about this and meetings about that. Oh wait, we still need time to actually teach! When does the school district expect fit in technology training, if the school is even providing it? It’s funny that the myth about teachers’ work days being 6.5 hours a day, five days a week, with holidays and summers off still exists, because, with so much for us to keep up on, we probably top the cake in professions that take their work home with them. Now let’s add technology that the students know so much about because they’re on it constantly. We feel like we aren’t teaching them anything they don’t already know. We feel like no matter what we do to monitor proper use, they’re always ten steps ahead of us on breaking through the barriers we set. Not to mention, how bad will we look if we’re using the technology incorrectly? Talk about losing respect from students who you can only hope have any for you in the first place. We’re supposed to be experts (in everything). We’re trying. We really are! And so some of the problem may be fear, but I think most of it is that our cups already runneth over.