This week we’re considering rationales and strategies for reinvention. Today: external pressure – a less-desirable reason for reinvention.
Let’s face it, major change can happen against our best intentions. If the superintendent or department chair says reinvent something, you do so.
But it’s important to make sure these types of reinventions come from necessity and from only the right sources. Parents demanding change must be considered carefully, and the change should reflect your best judgements as the leader. Sometimes a well-intentioned parent will suggest a reinvention that might work while they are involved, but will create more work for you when they’ve “graduated.” The educator is the institutional memory of the organization, and any reinventions should reflect that.
There can be valid reasons for external pressure to instigate a reinvention, but it requires more careful assessment.