Pedagogy - Week 9

I am very apathetic this year. I think most teachers are also. With budget cuts, furlough days, and more students in each class, it's hard not to be. Every teacher I have talked to has said something to the effect of, "If they would just let me teach.." Teaching is becoming a problem in schools. Actual teaching time is becoming regimented and isolated. At my school, the general impression of administration is that they want everyone on the same page, teaching and testing over the exact same material, fitting every child into a nice neat little box. The problem is that most children do not fit into this idealized box. It's becoming a very frustrating environment to work in, and I can't help but think, if the teachers are feeling this way then how are the students feeling? The general mood seems to be trickling down slowly. Administration is frustrated so the teachers are frustrated and then the students, sensing the frustration, react similarly. All I want to do is teach. I want to be able to decide to teach poetry before short stories and novels without getting emails and being asked to substantiate my reasoning. I am a Highly Qualified English teacher with a B.A. in English and a minor in Professional Writing. I've passed every test the state asked me to take. I have a Master's certification in Special Education. Why are my decisions being questioned? Why am I being scrutinized? Why can't I just be left alone to teach my students? I am teaching the curriculum. I just changed the order around. I hate having to conform. I hate being forced into a box, and I really hate that I am being asked to confine my student's education to a little box as well.