Tuesday, October 27, 2020

DOING THE RIGHT THING THE WRONG WAY – Dad Gone Wild

DOING THE RIGHT THING THE WRONG WAY – Dad Gone Wild
DOING THE RIGHT THING THE WRONG WAY




“The American political system has lost the ability for large-scale compromise, and it has lost the ability to accept some pain now for much gain later on.”
― Fareed Zakaria, The Post-American World

Last Friday, the Metro Nashville Public School Board held an emergency work session in order to revisit the district’s re-entry plan. Notice I refer to it as a re-entry plan and not a resumption of school plan? That’s intentional, and we’ll talk more about that in a bit.

After Fall Break, MNPS began phasing students back into schools starting with the youngest. Parents were given the option to send their kids virtual or in-person. The numbers were pretty evenly split with a slight nod to in-person.

Fifth and sixth graders were slated to return this week. But, as COVID-19 cases continue to climb and questions mount over the ability to keep teachers and students safe, it was time to re-visit the plan going forth.

Unfortunately, instead of taking charge and providing needed leadership, the board and Director Adrienne Battle once again demonstrated their ability to get it wrong even when they were getting it right. The ultimate decision to pause the re-entry plan is ultimately the right one, but the process to arrive at that conclusion could have been conducted better.

Over the last several years, from the school level to the district level, there has been an increased focus on starting every meeting with a listing of norms and expectations. This board meeting could CONTINUE READING: DOING THE RIGHT THING THE WRONG WAY – Dad Gone Wild