Some schools are mega size schools, bigger than some villages. Having had the experience of serving both in small and big schools, I can testify that managing a small school is relatively easier than navigating the terrain of a big school.
What is more, managing community high expectations of a school is another daunting challenge. Nobody expects a school to faulter in its mission of offering its best self to students. So, school systems that maintain a high culture of performance are those that constantly remind themselves of their very purpose of existence. When confronted with many challenges and perpetually competing interests, it is possible for a school to go adrift and lose its essence. Elizabeth A. City and Rachel E. Curtis have observed that, “Schools and school systems are noisy places, crises, big and small, come one after another. Local, state, and national politics with all the interests they represent add to the din.” A school that understands its purpose and mission would always listen to all voices but above all pay most attention to the voices of its students.
A school is fundmentally a student-centered institution. There should be no mistake about the purpose of a school. A school should position itself as a beacon of hope for all children, including students with special education needs. A learning institution should be a safe and secure heaven for our children who are at their most vulnerable and sensitive stages of existence.
No school or any structure created to support schools should have any confusion about the purpose of a school. Remaining faithful and true to the purpose for which a school was created means devotion of total and unrelenting attention to increasing, without ceasing, the rigour of classroom instruction.
The interests of teaching and learning should always reign supreme and not be subordinated to those of other actors within the boundaries of a school and beyond. Making the learner the primary focus is a very potent panacea to the problem of underachievement presently afflicting far too many schools.
However, keeping schools fixated on the ball (students) and making the surrounding environment conducive for students to learn is the biggest challenge many schools are facing. There are so many competing interests seeking attention.
Many school systems have unfortunately succumbed to powerful distractions. Managing competing interests and knowing what matters most is very important. School principals have been hired and deployed essentially to keep a school focused on the purpose. A culture of underachievement could easily creep in and entrench itself in an environment where students’ interests are not paramount. Anything short of giving the best to the cause of students is deemed a disservice. School principals are charged with the enormous responsibility of skillfully and diplomatically managing competition interests. Office politics and turf wars should not stand in the way of a school. When settling squabbles and skirmishes over power, the interests of students should assume centre stage.
Placing the interests of students ahead is not intended to create an impression that the interests of other members of a school community and those of external actors should be trampled upon and not given due respect and attention. Far from it, efforts should be made to embrace all without necessarily compromising the learning needs of students.
All must bring the best selves to the school. Teaching is primarily a human enterprise. It must thrive even in adverse circumstances because of the appetite people have for success.
