One generation…
I began my teaching career in 1964, in the same school from which I graduated. I left for several years to design and manufacture children’s clothes. I worked with Filmmakers in the School (does anyone remember Nixon and CETA dollars?) teaching teachers to use 8mm and 16mm hardware. I coached girls basketball and field hockey. Wrote a book. Designed quilts. My experience was varied, because I was always looking for the big picture, the way all things fit together. The way that art and music and movement contribute to a vibrant culture. And why issues of social justice trump everything else in a democracy.
I left the classroom in 1988 and began consulting with teachers, administrators, and school boards. I’ve worked everywhere from Australia, Kuala Lumpur and Nairobi… to the South Bronx. (People get more excited when I tell them about working in Canberra than about the progress I see in the Bronx.)
New York City teachers, in fact, most inner city teachers I’ve worked with are better trained than most. Piles of money are focused on professional development, lots of time is spent out of the classroom, thousands of students are subjected to the instructional strategy du jour. I think schools are more