"We don't complain; we investigage."

As you may know, I just returned from the conference for all the state Teachers of the Year (STOYs). The organizers centered content around how to be a voice for the educational community. John Quam, the organizer for the national teacher of the year program, started off by telling us we were not the best teachers: we represent the best teachers. This nicely encapsulated the role of the STOY.

One morning, I was listening to a podcast by Gil Fronsdale, who said, "In mindfulness practice, we don't complain; we investigate." And although Gil directed his comment toward meditators, it perfectly applied to my week. We spent the week thinking about problems in education, not complaining about them. We brainstormed solutions, not grievances. We discussed developing messages, not attacking them. It was exciting and energizing and somewhat overwhelming too.

And I so wish that I could have had my colleagues with me. My colleagues, especially those in the Language Arts Department, are folks who discuss these issues all the time. I wanted them there so that I could get their thoughts on the issues at hand - reauthorizing of ESEA, for example, or establishing a method of teacher accountability and evaluation. I realized very quickly how lucky I am to work with teachers who see themselves as professionals, which often means tackling larger issues as well as being many things, including lobbyist and PR rep.

Now that the Dallas conference is over, I can start planning my year. I will soon be blogging about my issues, but I am curious as to what issues you see as priority educational topics. Thoughts?