Okay, since I haven’t written anything in a while I figured
I would give it a whirl. On the phone yesterday, a friend said I hadn’t written
a blog in months and I told her that sometimes I don’t feel like I have much to
say(or write) unless I am annoyed. I guess that isn’t the healthiest but it
seems to work.
So today, here I am… Slightly annoyed and writing.
An interaction yesterday gave me some perspective to think
deeply about my job. What are we doing? Why are we doing in? How do people
still not see the value of agriculture education? Where did I go wrong? These
thoughts made me think back to a less than positive interaction at the beginning
of the school year where a staff member questioned my understanding of my
students, their backgrounds and my compassion towards them.
If you didn’t know, our school district has been hammered
for the past year for lack of equity. I am a firm believer that this comes from
how our district has handled issues between the charter school and the
elementary school. That’s my personal assessment. But it has now cast a shadow
over every decision made, every email sent, even most conversations and
trainings.
But yesterday’s questioning asked for conclusions and
perceptions of equity and the cookie cutter mentality within our agriculture
classes and FFA on every level.
If anyone were to look at our class rosters, they would know
they are equitable in every sense of the word. If anyone looked at our
gradebooks, they would see equity. If they looked at FFA meeting sign in
sheets, again it would be equitable. If they saw completed Agriscience projects,
they would see equity.
However, while our classroom and program are equitable, I am
not sure that people understand the real question of equity at the higher
levels of involvement. At state conference this past year we had Lupita Cortez
Alcalá, Chief Deputy Superintendent of the Department of Ed. speak to the
membership. One thing I remember specifically from her speech, was how she
addressed that in most cultures it’s not the norm to send a child off for the
weekend or week to stay with kids, teachers, and chaperones. When she talked
about this, I really thought about how I have been so lucky to have students
whose parents trusted that I always would take care of their child on a trip. But
I also recognized that this idea would take an entire culture shift to close
the gap at leadership conferences and any activity that requires travel. I have
even been reading a book recently that addresses gender equity—and probably not
the kid you think… It refers to boys and how they learn, why they do or do not
get involved in education, test scores, classroom cultures, etc. There are
issues everywhere and everyone handles it differently.
While I know there are always gaps to close in regards to
student involvement (I would literally take 95% of all my kids to a conference
if I could), I can’t help but think how can we make adults understand.
How do we ensure administration understand? How do we make
communities get it? How do we get away from the stereotypes that adults perceive
to be true? How can we agree to disagree without making others feel inferior
(cuz that’s definitely how I felt)? While I can agree there are always improvements to be made, I think we are well on our way to ensure that agriculture education and FFA are ahead of the rest on campus.
How can we create an education system that appreciates all types
of programs as long as they provide opportunities to kids? How do we encourage
all programs to step up their game instead of criticizing programs that go
above and beyond because its different?
Following yesterday, I still know and maintain that FFA and
agriculture education makes a positive difference for kids. We work hardest on
campus to involve ALL kids and provide opportunities they would not otherwise
have.
“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a
book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from
the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.” Jiddu
Krishnamurti
Apparently, we just have to continue to educate others. It
feels like a never-ending battle when you feel passionate about something that
works and people still don’t understand. If you've never seen Bre Holbert's retiring address from the 2018 National Convention, I think she sums it up perfectly. (Video)
