In his great blogpost, “The Search for Thirsty Teachers” on his site The Clever Sheep, Rodd Lucier points to the fact that, “Educators who are active participants in their own learning, tend to be the most engaging teachers I know.”
I remember that one of the most disillusioning realizations I had in my first years of teaching was how few of my colleagues were engaged in any sort of ongoing study, whether organized or informal, in their topic of study or anything beyond popular culture.
As I began to give talks and inservices, I ran into the well-established reality that teachers make the worst students; sometimes disrespectful, often inattentive, and sometimes openly contemptuous of the idea that they could (or needed to) learn anything.
In some ways, educational technology has helped to break through this with many. I see a greater willingness to learn and an ability to admit ignorance. There is even excitement as teachers grow in their abilities and recognize potential uses for the tools.
I hope that this is part of the definition of a great teacher, the ability to continue growing and learning with enthusiasm. My school (and most schools I know) uses the term “life-long learner” as a desired outcome for students. The definition of this term must be lived out in the teachers they encounter very day.
Can we envision a future where the teacher coming home from work is greeted by a spouse who asks without irony, “What did you learn in school today?”
Teachers really do make the worst students don’t they?! I suspect that if professional learning was a regular, productive part of each teachers week, that they’d eventually look forward to discussing a wide range of classroom practices and resources.
The other sad side, is that it has become relatively rare for teachers to select their own topic(s) for PD. If release is paid for by your school board, odds are, the sessions will be prescribed.