Reading Response 5: Creating Democratic Schools

The title of this article drew me in.  It made me wonder what the author had to say about creating a Democratic school.  Is the solution in how teachers interact with each other? How they interact with their students?  How students interact with each other?

How do we create the change needed in our schools?  This article suggests that to help create change in schools we need to have small schools where teachers work together collaboratively to solve problems and design instruction.  The article claims that when teachers work together, have genuine discussions, and can see how their opinion matters it will help to create a school that encourages and engages students.  The teachers are able to have discussions about how the school should operate and anyone is allowed to join in the discussion.  If we can create schools like this, the article claims, we can begin to make the changes necessary to create well-educated, well-rounded students.

This article made me think about how important it will be in our first years teaching to interact with other teachers and work collaboratively.  While we have been doing our CP we have had teachers to work with.  Some have been very supportive, and others not so much, but we have known that whether it is at our school site or at CSUSM, there are people to help us.  I think that it is important to remember this as we go out and get jobs.  Other people around us are great resources and by working with them, whether we are at a big school or a small school, we will help create an environment that encourages change.