Kafkaesque Public Schools: Conflicting Agents

Kafkaesque: complicated, confusing, and threatening

Word story:

From the name of the Czech-German writer Franz Kafka. For the characters in Kafka’s novels, the world seems mysterious and unfriendly, and it becomes very difficult to achieve things.

--- Macmillan Online Dictionary http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/Kafkaesque

Politically speaking, the diverse and conflicted groups stationed in public schools also command the attention of anyone who wants to understand the conflicts which frustrate student learning. School boards, which implement funding and policy, do not know what goes on in schools much of the time. They propose and support initiatives designed to gather support from voters throughout the school year. What a host of biennially elected members of the community have to do with spending, curriculum, and instruction is simply beyond me, or any other taxpayer.

Teachers' unions support teachers' unions, not teachers, not schools, not students. These political calculations cause untold friction in schools. Teachers are supposed to teach, but the political activism which motivates and galvanizes union reps has created a hostile, adversarial relationship in schools, an ongoing battle which pits staff against the best interests of the students, the primary reason why schools exist, presumably.

Administrators in some districts have their own unions, too. They tend to negotiate on the coattails of the teachers' unions, scooping up pay and benefits increases that have been awarded to teachers during their contractual disputes. How many faculty meetings did I attend where teacher complains and conflicts dominated the rhetoric of the convocation? Teachers' unions push leadership to interrupt and stall leadership, in some cases absolutely humiliating administrators who are just trying to get through the agenda of a meeting before it's too late.

Teachers are supposed to have the best interests of the teachers, which should turn be the best interest of the students. That is not the case, though, since unions spend more time arguing about the amount of time that teachers are expected to serve in their classrooms. The myriad clauses and subsections of the union contracts in many districts prohibit administrators from forcing teachers to take on other tasks, like yard duty. Every minute is accounted for, certainly. Yet the contracts fail to protect the most vulnerable of teachers -- the first and second year starting groups, many of whom are just trying to survive. Yet they can be canned for any reason, even the cut of their hair, they way they dress, or if students and parents lodge enough complaints, whether they are true or not.

Parents are a vocal group, as well, one which is more interested in placating than educating their kids. Many parents are immigrants, and they get most of their information from their children, who are adequately able to communicate in the parents' language as well as English. The problems which can unfold from this unhappy arrangement include unjust and unsupportable allegations, the majority of which can damage a teacher's reputation and prevent the teacher from getting tenure.

Administrators are supposed to assist teachers, but they have to keep parents and district officials happy, as well. The interests of these diverse groups is simply too much for one set of leaders to appease.

Schools are supposed to be about educating kids. In reality, they have become public sector purses for many employees who are looking for job-for-life security, hefty benefits and a generous pension. The "dead wood" of unhappy teachers who stay in the classroom for years stems from these public sector hand outs, which are bleeding school districts dry, taking away much-needed revenue from classroom instruction and benefiting only the working professionals.

If the true goal of educating was to prepare students of the future and the real world, then schools are certainly failing. Standardized tests have become the standard for evaluating student learning, yet the learning which they evaluate has nothing to do with preparing for the workforce  or maintaining a worthy quality of life. In fact, education has grown to focus almost exclusively on these tests, which in some cases have been watered down, or have been subject to massive cheating and collusion, in order to ensure that the school receives a stellar score.