It is the duty of each generation to share memories of the "Good Old Days" with future generations. When we recall our past, we typically focus on the great memories we had and we skip over some of the less noteworthy experiences to create a romanticized image of a better time. We think that the current generations are missing out on many of the experiences we had and we think that the leaders of the future would better understand our values if their lives were more similar to what ours once were.
I see this in my own family. My mother never understood MTV. She never embraced music videos (yes, MTV used to air music videos), and the idea of watching music made no sense to her. Now, I share YouTube videos of some of the popular music videos of my generation with my children, and they think the concept is ridiculous. Not only are music videos an art form of the past, the concept of watching TV to wait for your favorite video to air seems ridiculous in our on-demand, live-streamed world.
It is the same way with education. My parents were appalled that we didn't diagram sentences when I was in middle school. I spent a great deal of time learning cursive writing when I was in elementary school, and that wasn't a point of emphasis when my children were going through the same grades. It is natural to want things the way we had them then because that is what we know, however, we forget that a great deal of time has passed since we were school-aged and what we learn, and how it's taught, naturally changes over time.
I had several knee surgeries in the 1990s. I suppose I might not have the arthritis I have now if the surgical techniques then were as sophisticated as they are now. I don't plan on hiring a lawyer who only knows the laws that were on the books when she or he graduated law school, and I am thrilled that I can send documents as PDFs electronically rather than struggle with the fax machines that were standard 20 or 30 years ago. Even industries such as agriculture and auto mechanics that were once entirely hands-on have been influenced substantially by technology, and the preparation needed to succeed in these industries is not what it once was.
As the leader of our school district, I often find myself in the middle of debates that transcend generations regarding what we should be teaching in our schools and how we should teach it. We can't erase what we know or the experiences we once had, yet we need to be realistic about what we are preparing students for and what skills we are guessing they might need in the future.
If we expect school to look the same in 2018 as it did in 1988 or 1968, why don't we expect the same consistency in other aspects of our life? I don't see many eight-track players or cassette decks in cars anymore, but we all enjoy the option of music while we are driving. Our options have increased, yet the technology used to deliver the product doesn't even resemble what it once did.
We need to keep this in mind when we decide what is necessary for our schools. Just because we sat in straight rows on wood-topped desks, it doesn't mean that we still need to sit in the same arrangement, or even in the same desks now. Textbooks might be replaced by digital resources accessed on a variety of devices, we may structure classrooms to allow for more effective collaboration, and we may even consider grouping students in a manner other than traditional grade levels.
While some things change, other key components of education still remain the same. Students need to attend school, just like adults need to complete their work. Students still need the support of their families, and teachers still need to work in partnership with both parties to maximize the effectiveness of the academic experience. In reality, the more things change, the more they truly stay the same.
Maybe the good old days were not really that good, and our uncertain futures may have some certainty after all. Education was the key to our country's rise to the most powerful and prosperous nation in the world, and it will be the key to maintaining that position. While things may look different at times, we have to trust that we have great people working hard to serve the best needs of our students.
Thank you to our community for supporting our schools and GO CHEESEMAKERS!!
- Rick Waski is the district administrator for the School District of Monroe. He can be reached at 608-328-7109 or rickwaski@monroe.k12.wi.us.
I see this in my own family. My mother never understood MTV. She never embraced music videos (yes, MTV used to air music videos), and the idea of watching music made no sense to her. Now, I share YouTube videos of some of the popular music videos of my generation with my children, and they think the concept is ridiculous. Not only are music videos an art form of the past, the concept of watching TV to wait for your favorite video to air seems ridiculous in our on-demand, live-streamed world.
It is the same way with education. My parents were appalled that we didn't diagram sentences when I was in middle school. I spent a great deal of time learning cursive writing when I was in elementary school, and that wasn't a point of emphasis when my children were going through the same grades. It is natural to want things the way we had them then because that is what we know, however, we forget that a great deal of time has passed since we were school-aged and what we learn, and how it's taught, naturally changes over time.
I had several knee surgeries in the 1990s. I suppose I might not have the arthritis I have now if the surgical techniques then were as sophisticated as they are now. I don't plan on hiring a lawyer who only knows the laws that were on the books when she or he graduated law school, and I am thrilled that I can send documents as PDFs electronically rather than struggle with the fax machines that were standard 20 or 30 years ago. Even industries such as agriculture and auto mechanics that were once entirely hands-on have been influenced substantially by technology, and the preparation needed to succeed in these industries is not what it once was.
As the leader of our school district, I often find myself in the middle of debates that transcend generations regarding what we should be teaching in our schools and how we should teach it. We can't erase what we know or the experiences we once had, yet we need to be realistic about what we are preparing students for and what skills we are guessing they might need in the future.
If we expect school to look the same in 2018 as it did in 1988 or 1968, why don't we expect the same consistency in other aspects of our life? I don't see many eight-track players or cassette decks in cars anymore, but we all enjoy the option of music while we are driving. Our options have increased, yet the technology used to deliver the product doesn't even resemble what it once did.
We need to keep this in mind when we decide what is necessary for our schools. Just because we sat in straight rows on wood-topped desks, it doesn't mean that we still need to sit in the same arrangement, or even in the same desks now. Textbooks might be replaced by digital resources accessed on a variety of devices, we may structure classrooms to allow for more effective collaboration, and we may even consider grouping students in a manner other than traditional grade levels.
While some things change, other key components of education still remain the same. Students need to attend school, just like adults need to complete their work. Students still need the support of their families, and teachers still need to work in partnership with both parties to maximize the effectiveness of the academic experience. In reality, the more things change, the more they truly stay the same.
Maybe the good old days were not really that good, and our uncertain futures may have some certainty after all. Education was the key to our country's rise to the most powerful and prosperous nation in the world, and it will be the key to maintaining that position. While things may look different at times, we have to trust that we have great people working hard to serve the best needs of our students.
Thank you to our community for supporting our schools and GO CHEESEMAKERS!!
- Rick Waski is the district administrator for the School District of Monroe. He can be reached at 608-328-7109 or rickwaski@monroe.k12.wi.us.
