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đŸȘ” The Threshold

Reformers should ignore entrenched resisters and court hesitant but recruitable teachers.

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tagsja-picks, seed, craft_and_method, trade, singleton, xref, category/craft-and-method
aliases@sobel_place-based_2004, loc. 93

2 min read

Reformers should ignore entrenched resisters and court hesitant but recruitable teachers.

Evidence

In the beginning, it will be easy to attract the early adopters, the handful of teachers who share your beliefs and want to move in the same direction. On the other end of the spectrum are the sticks-inthe-mud. Their lives are too full, they don’t see the relevance to what they’re doing, or they are just a couple of years away from retirement. Don’t worry about them. Your challenge is to get to that broad middle group of teachers who are recruitable but hesitant, and for lots of good reasons. One of the big tricks is: Just show up. More often than not, it’s the chance conversation in the hallway or the visit to the teaching intern that leads toa blossoming of interest in the program among new teachers. And your presence shows that you are committed to the project and willing to work hard to involve others. — David Sobel, Place-Based Education, 93

Categorization

  • SEED: ‘Don’t worry about the sticks-in-the-mud, just show up’ is a quotable change-management tactic usable across any initiative.
  • XREF: connects to: Sustained school reform requires long-term partnerships and written commitments, not one-shot programs. — David Sobel, Place-Based Education: Connecting
, 4; Personal presence, not presentations, recruits hesitant teachers to new programs. — David Sobel, Place-Based Education: Connecting
, 93; Revolutionary educators must become partners rather than wait passively for liberation. — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 215 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

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