I Will Not Be Bullied

I stepped into this education reform debate as an innocent. I am a parent whose children have suffered. I have suffered. I have volunteered in public and private schools. I have a say. I am a voter. I am a tax payer. I have a say.

My last few weeks in the e-discussion about education have been interesting. I am shocked at how severely people are attached to their positions. I am dismayed by the agendas at work. I am frustrated by the lack of rallying around a common goal. Our kids deserve better.

I have found myself in Twitter and Facebook discussions and more likely than not, I am attacked, ridiculed, and dismissed. And I've not set forth some radical agenda! I love teachers. I love kids. I love public schools. But apparently the fact that I have questions about funding, questions about our goals, questions about "traditional" classrooms makes me somehow an enemy.

Everything, it seems, in America, has become politicized. It's like saying if you are pro-choice you have to be a Democrat. There are two sets of agendas and if you are for one thing, you are against another. The line in the sand has been drawn.

In education reform, as in politics, I will not be bullied. I am an independent. Not with a capital I. I am an independent thinker. Classify me as you will, but I am here to listen to everyone, respond to everyone, formulate my own opinions and hopefully make progress. I will not ascribe to one agenda if it means that I must relegate everyone else to being ignorant, an idiot, or evil (ala Kathryn Shulz). I want to hear what everyone has to say and find a way to move forward, because what's important isn't who's right. What important is what is right for our kids. For EVERY kid--poor, rich, black, white, latino, native american--it doesn't matter. I want what's right for every American kid. Period.

So keep talking. And I'll talk, too. And you can bully me all you want. And I will remain calm and always strive for understanding and common ground, because I have one concern--let's move forward.