Advocating for Educational Policies

Being an advocate for educational policy is part of the job when it comes to the teaching profession. Not only is my job based on current policy, but I feel as if part of my job is to also be an advocate for myself as to whether or not certain policies are working, or even fair. Most policy makers unfortunately have not spent much time in a classroom, so as a classroom teacher, I have to be vigilant about getting involved with the education policy and making my voice be heard.

                Educational policy is not as simple as it seems. Educational policy is not just length of school days, teacher contract hours, or even budgets for resources in the classroom. As author of Bad Teacher: How Blaming Teachers Distorts the Bigger Picture, Kevin Kumashiro, puts it, 

“Educational reform cross-sects many other pressing national issues, which means that people concerned about war, or prisons, or welfare, or healthcare, or the environment, or the economy, or human and civil rights, and so on, should all see a link to educational reform,” (2012, p. 84).

         
 As a dedicated educator, I have recognized serious needs for policy changes in regards to many of these national issues. At the top of my list of policies to work towards to improve teaching and learning, is healthcare, including mental health care. Many of the students in my classroom lack access to nearby, affordable, high-quality dental and health care, including mental healthcare. Students come to school with injuries, sicknesses, or emotional and psychological concerns that make classroom learning impossible. As a classroom teacher, there is nothing I can physically do for a child who has sores in her mouth, has been bit by a German Shepherd on his head, or who is suffering from depression. Better access to healthcare would greatly improve teaching and learning in the classroom.