Horse Story (an analogy)

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Dr. Wendy Ghiora . Posting #129 . January 15, 2015

 

I find this analogy applicable to several common practices employed by school districts throughout our country.  Perhaps, as you read this, you will know exactly what this analogy is so eloquently referring to.

 

Common advice from knowledgeable horse trainers includes the adage, "If the horse you're riding dies, get off."

 

Seems simple enough doesn't it? Yet in education we don't always follow that advice. Instead, we often choose from an array of other alternatives which include:

1.Buying a stronger whip

2.Trying a new bit or bridle

3.Switching riders

 

4.Moving the horse to a new location

5.Riding the horse for longer periods of time

6.Saying things like, "This is the way we've always ridden this horse

7.Appointing a committee to study the horse

 

8.Arranging to visit other sites where they ride dead horses more efficiently

9.Increasing the standards for riding dead horses

10.Creating a test for measuring our riding ability

11.Comparing how we're riding now with how we did ten or twenty years ago

12.Complaining about the state of horse these days

13.Coming up with new styles of riding

 

14.Blaming the horse's parents. The problem is often in the breeding.

 

15.Tightening the cinch

 

Will we ever learn?