One of the big questions I think our administrators (district and state) are missing is
"how do we utilize and network the talents of our faculty and staff to develop professionally and to develop communities?"
This may seem a bit silly, but my inspiration was an episode of "Deadliest Warrior." They had pitted the GSG9 against the SWAT team. One of the differences between these groups that resonated with me was related to specialization. The GSG9 had a minimum bar of performance their soldiers were required to learn and then they could specialize. The SWAT team members were equally trained and if one member had been killed, then any teammate could take that person's place. Now this seems a bit of an exaggeration compared to our experiences as teachers, but I find this to be a pretty big question. Should a school systematically train different teachers and staff in different specializations? Specializations could be in the topics of technology or literacy or mentoring teachers. Or should the schools train teachers equally to be prepared for the untimely exit of teachers?
I like the idea of specialization better. There is so much to master and learn about in this profession. Seems that we should share the intellectual workload. But the SWAT team did win that episode.
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