Reflective Questioning is a strategy for critiquing your organization and your role within that organization to effect change. One example of a reflective question is: What systems are in place to allow for inquiry and feedback within your organization? Reflective questions (1- 7) that you will need to respond to for the purpose of this discussion are listed at the bottom of this page.
Senge states “that people are agents, able to act upon the structures and systems of which they are a part. All the disciplines are, in this way, concerned with a shift of mind from seeing parts to seeing wholes, from seeing people as helpless reactors to seeing them as active participants in shaping their reality, from reacting to the present to creating the future” (Senge 1990: 69)
Setting the Stage
In order to effect change in schools, it is important to understand the impact of the decisions and actions of the teaching staff on student success or failure. Teachers’ actions within a classroom or learning environment, whether in public or private schools, can enable or disenfranchise the students in their care. Often we do not look closely at the overall conditions of learning for students in our schools and teach different things to different students without recognizing what is happening. ( Senge, et al, 2012).
As Cambron-McCabe states in Chapter VIII in your text, “Teaching is not simply a set of technical skills for imparting knowledge to waiting students. It involves caring for children and being responsible for their development in a complex democratic society. .. The idea of Moral Responsibility is not raised in most educational preparation programs nor is it discussed when one enters the teaching field. Rather, when educators talk about responsibilities, they tend to focus on professional accountability-developing students’ knowledge and understanding of subject matter, equipping students with high-level skills to succeed in the workplace, designing rigorous curriculum, and challenging students to meet high standards. Focusing attention solely on these technical aspects of teaching (the “means”) ignores the overarching moral principles that must guide the work of teachers and administrators. People in democratic societies have a right to be guided by moral principles such as justice, fairness of treatment, liberty, honesty, equity in the distribution of resources, and respect for differences.” (Senge,et al, 2012, p. 330) Therefore, it is important that we as educators critique our school organizations and ourselves often to align with the needs of the school population we serve and reflect upon the potential impact of change that may or may not be warranted. Bringing such critique to school organizations enables us to understand the consequences of defining the curriculum in terms of specific performance objectives.
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Objective
The objective of this discussion is for you to reflect on how you impact or can impact the success of your learning organization through feedback loops.
Instructions
After reading and digesting the material presented in your textbook titled: Schooling as an Ethical Endeavor (pp. 329 – 340), reflect on your current or previous workplace and your current role within the organization.
Apply what you have read and learned from this section ( pp. 329-340) in your text referencing to support change.
Respond to the guiding questions listed below (also found on pages 334-339) in the Senge. et. al. (2012) textbook with an authentic discussion pertaining to your current workplace. Reflective Question 1: Do I work to alter the learning condition of my school? If so how and why. If not, why not and how can I begin?
Reflective Question 2: Do I inquire about the “ends” of schooling or just the “means”? (definitions of “means” and “ends” are in your reading) If so, how and why. If not, why not and how can I begin?
Reflective Question 3: Do I engage in continuous inquiry? If so, how and why. If not, why not and how can I begin?
Reflective Question 4: To what extent am I empowered to participate authentically in pedagogical matters of fundamental importance, such as what schools are for and how teaching and learning can be aligned with the school’s vision?
Reflective Question 5: To what extent does the organizational culture support me as an inquirer into what I do and how I might do it better?
Reflective Question 6: To what extent do I engage competently in discourse and action to improve the conditions, activities, and outcomes of schooling?
Reflective Question 7: To what extent do I care about myself and others in the same way I care (or ought to care) about students?