This Tuesday I had the privilege of hear Dr. Randy Watson, the Kansas Commissioner of Education, speak at the Education Council's C2 event in the K-State Union Ballroom. While the coffee and chocolate were certainly perks (especially considering it was Fat Tuesday), I of course found Dr. Watson's lecture to be the highlight of the evening. In about an hour's time, he cast a vision for Kansas Education that is encouraging to both teachers and community members. With less emphasis on standardized testing and a greater focus on how we can practically equip our students for success, Dr. Watson challenged us to consider the great question behind our work as teachers (and everyone's work, really): WHY? Why are things the way they are, and is the status quo of Kansas education serving its intended purpose?
As a future Family and Consumer Sciences teacher, I appreciated that Dr. Watson is seeking to eliminate the mindset that a 4-year college is of greater value than a technical school. Unfortunately, sometimes in our desire to challenge students and encourage them to pursue higher education, we push 4-year programs so strongly that 2-year programs and technical schools are seen as "less-than" options. I'm ashamed to say that I know I have felt this way personally. Going to a university was a higher level of achievement in my mind than going to culinary school or a technical college. However, this is a poisonous mindset to have, discouraging students from pursuing jobs that they may actually enjoy more than those that a 4-year degree would get them. The other piece that stood out to me from Dr. Watson's talk was a renewed focus on the importance of service learning. While we are quick to acknowledge merits of personal achievement in sports or academics, we are not keen to acknowledge the merits of community service. If we want to raise generations of caring, community-minded individuals, we must educate students on what truly matters, helping them to value character over achievement. By implementing service learning opportunities into our curriculum and acknowledging student service, we can help to strengthen this value in Kansas schools. Overall, it was a pleasure to listen to Dr. Watson speak. I hope that his vision for Kansas education can help inspire vision for teachers across Kansas. Together, we can help prepare students for success.
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