Strong, Fast, and Fresh From the Fight

When a friend asked if I had heard about Nancie Atwell's recent award, I was already feeling deflated. I had heard about it, but the pride I felt in being a witness to her workshop has lost its sparkle. Those were glorious days, back then, not just in the week we spent observing Nancie, Glenn, and others in action at the Center for Teaching and Learning, but in the months that followed where my colleague, Tracey, and I were free to collaborate on sound writing instruction focused on individual progress. We had fun planning authentic writing assignments that blended genre study with technology. Kids wrote a bunch and smiled a whole lot, too. Oh, and reading mattered--our own version of a reading workshop was seamlessly integrated into our classes. 

Since then, each year has changed more and more. First, the shift centered around a common assessment tool that would interrupt instruction several times a year. Turmoil now also stems from initiative overload coming from both the county and school administration that undermine the creative process and overvalue data. My problem is that I never entirely gave up on what I always knew worked for kids, making my days a complex flow model aiming to satisfy everyone all the time. I'm compliant to a fault. Tough luck that the two least satisfied of the group are teachers and students.

"The yardsticks for measuring teacher achievement, especially in the U.S., I don't think are accurate or humane," she says. "I would like to be a model for the kind of teacher that is autonomous, creative and thoughtful."

Shouldn't I feel inspired by these words, for if her work is celebrated, it will have some effect on us? At the moment, the reality of her vision is further than a plane ride to Dubai, so I've either got to start channelling Atwell again or find a good travel agent. I need a hero right about now.