Educational Apps vs Teachers

                I am worried for the children of our schools.  We are facing hard times, and the decisions that legislators, local school boards, and administrators make in light of the current budget cuts will directly affect them.  I am certain that they are wrestling with what to do – and to what or whom.  I just hope that they use their sense of good judgment when they start trimming the proverbial “fat”.

                I am praying that they can remember a teacher who changed their lives by seeing something in them that they didn’t even see in themselves, by appreciating their passions, by recognizing their God-given talents and abilities, and by giving them opportunities to grow and bloom where they were planted.  That’s what real teachers do for kids.  Sadly, sometimes the folks in charge of education in this great state are convincing local leaders that education must be teacher proof.  It is as if they believe that a new program, such as a canned curriculum, or a cutting-edge piece of technology, like a SmartBoard, can somehow replace a good teacher, or worse, that these tools can magically turn a poor teacher into a good one.  In my 30 years in the business, I just haven’t found that to be the case.  That’s like saying that the “Ghost Finder” app on my iPhone makes me a ghost buster.  All I’ve really accomplished with that app is keeping my grandkids out of the rooms where I store my so-called collectibles.  And, even though my “highway rest stop” app is useful, if nature calls in the West Texas desert where there are hardly any rest stops, I can still take care of business without it. 

                This whole concept of removing the human element reminds me of a lady I once knew. She told me that she didn’t have to worry anymore about the finer points of driving because her husband had bought her a Cadillac that had so many bells and whistles that it could practically drive itself and that she could just put it on cruise and paint her toenails all the way to Houston.  Well, that’s sounds pretty cool, but do we really want her to do that?

                My point is that education is not about investing in the latest educational “app.”  In fact, there is a plethora of research that tells us that the most successful schools do the opposite.  They actually invest in their teachers, the most valuable asset in any school, because they know that kids succeed when they have teachers who understand their unique talents, challenges, and abilities.  Education is a living, breathing organism composed of human beings who have passions that must be fed, or the organism dies - one precious dream at a time.  Our leaders must take this into consideration when they make their decisions about where to start cutting and remember the teacher who made a difference in their lives or in the lives of their children or grandchildren.  I am praying that God will give them the wisdom to make the right decisions - and that they don’t forget to invite Him to the meeting.