RR3 in lieu of ethnography: Reinventing Schools That Keep Teachers in Teaching

By: Deborah Meier

This article discusses how Meier was able to incorporate learning for not only the students, but also the teachers, the parents and the community members. Meier believes that teachers can't just teach, so they created a program where everyone was involved in the learning process. "It was simply that we structured school life to ignite their curiosity and conversations. Human beings, if treated as such, don't burn out the way appliances do. But they do need some time off, especially from the labor-intensity of teaching." They made the school a place for the entire community, not just the teachers and students. "The school became a place where adults—including parents—gathered for shared meals and talk, where parent-teacher conferences were family-school conferences, something between celebrations of learning and brainstorming future plans." The school was a home for all. I think that this article was very interesting. I really believe that community is the key to social justice. It's vital that people in the community be involved in the school and that the school also be involved in the community. The school should mirror the world around it, not be an island of difference in the middle. I look forward to working with the community I teach in, not only for the benefit of students, but for my own cultural growth and the friendships that come from that growth.