Everyone has different views on education. As I sit in class hearing the opinions of my peers, it has made me curious as to how my own thoughts on education were formed. One of my influences has been my dad, so I decided to give him a call and ask him a few questions. My dad not only has the perspective of a parent but he also is a superintendent for my school district back home in Seattle. Throughout my years in school, as well as the few weeks in this course, I have heard many people reference stereotypes or generalizations about superintendents. While I called my dad, I asked him about these stereotypes and I got a lot of insight on just how difficult his job really is.
` The first question I asked my dad was in reference to what our text Road to Rome stated when they compared a superintendent to a CEO of a business or company. Surprisingly, it wasn’t the first time my dad had heard this “absurd” comparison. Similarly to a CEO, my dad is constantly making decisions that he feels are best for his district. However, there is a distinct difference that makes John Welch ten times better than a CEO. The difference is that he does everything in his power to have a personal relationship with as many students, staff, and administration that he can. He spends more time that most superintendents going into schools and meeting the students he is serving. Due to this, even when problems are arising, my family is still greeted with smiles and hugs when we run into other families in the community.
I also decided to question my dad on standardized tests because during our class discussion, many people accused superintendents of making poor decisions in relation to these tests. When asked about the topic, my dad shared an interesting story with me. One day he was in his office when a lady, about 40 years old, called him on his personal line. My dad, confused as to how she got his office phone number, answered politely because he knew the woman’s son from visiting his high school the past week. Over the next 30 minutes, the mother continued to yell at him because her son performed poorly on the math state test and was now at risk of not graduating. She blamed my father for requiring the exam and threatened to come into his office. The woman did not allow my dad to explain to her how standardized tests are created, she simply hung up when she got tired of yelling. My dad told me that he, along with every other superintendent in the country, has absolutely no power in the decisions surrounding standardized state exams. His direct quote was, “I hate standardized tests, I believe we should just be happy that our kids are learning”. The authority lies in the government, and until my dad is a member of the National Board of Education, no one should blame him or other superintendents for the issues we have with standardized tests. We all naturally form stereotypes about certain kinds of people, but before you make ones about educators, remember my dad and how hard he works to create the best schools he can.
By: Ava Welch