Under pressure

Um ba ba be
Um ba ba be
De day da
Ee day da - that's o.k.
It's the terror of knowing
What this world is about

I'm always writing and talking and thinking about how schools are under pressure. Our education system is pressured from multiple policy levels, many different groups and individuals, and even from within its own schools and classrooms and employees. There's pressure to thrive on a small and uncertain stream of funding. There's pressure to prepare young people to make the world a better place in 50 years. There's pressure from community groups and parents to meet very specific needs. There's pressure from teachers to make schools better workplaces. And, of course, there's pressure from the kiddos to extend recess or provide a cupcake a day :>

Sometimes pressure is a good thing- a kick in the tail, an imposed deadline, a reminder that good enough is not good enough. Other times, pressure is a bad thing- surfacing conflict, leading organizations to pursue conflicting agendas, spreading efforts too thin, scaring people away. Many pressures seem tied to money and resources but the effects are personal and emotional. People interact differently when they're under pressure.