Teachers as Soldiers?

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Like many educators, I recently had that back-to-school inservice day where the district gathers in the high school auditorium to listen to the superintendent and other district leaders talk about the upcoming year. While sitting in the stiff wooden auditorium chairs I heard that familiar metaphor where teachers are compared to “soldiers in the trenches.” As soon as I heard it, it got me thinking: Am I really a soldier in a trench? Is war really the right metaphor to describe what I do?

soldiers in trench

My first thought was that I certainly hope my classroom is not a warzone? I don’t want to spend my days battling anyone or anything (and I certainly don’t want it to be a war). The last thing I want is for my students to think school is a battle; that doesn’t seem like a good way to instill the idea of lifelong learning. I want everyone (children and adults) in my room to want to be there, and I want everyone to leave each day thinking they have gained something.

And school’s these days don’t operate in the top-down fashion that comes to mind when I think of trench warfare. We (should) live in an educational world of collaboration. Administrators (officers?) make decisions collaboratively and trust teachers to make decisions and plan their days (missions?).

And I do more than just teach content (fight? That’s what teaching is in this metaphor, right?). I’m not just a soldier.

  • I lead.
  • I follow.
  • I collaborate.
  • I gather and evaluate intelligence.
  • I plan and make last-minute changes.
  • I counsel others.
  • I bandage wounds.
    the list goes on…

I do it all. We all do.

Teachers are not soldiers in the trenches, and we are not at war. If schools are something we can compare to warzones, then something profound needs to change about our schools. Immediately.

We need a new metaphor. Artists? Designers? Magicians? Miracle workers?

But if we must stay with the military metaphor, we’re not soldiers in the trenches, we’re so much more. We do so much more. We’re more like military jack-of-all-trades… secret agents. James Bond, maybe? If we’re going to stick with the military metaphor, I’d rather be compared to James Bond than to a soldier in the trenches. How about you?

photo credit: drakegoodman via photo pin cc