Come gather around people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone
And if your breath to you is worth saving
Then you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changing
Bob Dylan (1964)
When Bob Dylan penned these lyrics in 1964, America had entered the Space Race, and American politicians had begun their call for a heavier emphasis on the maths and sciences in American public schools; they were laying the first bricks in the long road of American school accountability. Massive computers that filled entire rooms spat out formulas for satellites and lunar modules. African-Americans were marching for civil rights. Television was still in black and white, and communication to the masses was done through television and radio stations. Parents learned about their child’s progress through hand-written report cards brought home three or four times each year, and when they wanted to speak to a teacher they called and left a message in the school’s front office or attended the one Open House held in the fall of each school year. Anyone could walk into any school any day through any door—which was almost always unlocked. American public school graduates often found jobs in the local community, and the American economy dominated the world. The young people had the same dreams as their parents: to become educated, to get a good job, and to live the same types of lives as those who had come before them. In summary, American schools looked and operated as they had done for many decades, some might say for the last century.
Those were simpler times for American school leaders. An administrator could take a job as a building principal or superintendent with the knowledge that the school and district would probably be operating in much the same way in the future as it was in the present — and perhaps for the rest of that administrator’s career. Even though technology was advancing and civil rights views were shifting in the 1950’s, 60’s, and 70’s, changes in school operations came at a slower pace that were much more manageable and predictable. This is not to say these were easy jobs; some of these leaders dealt with extreme pressures in their schools dealing with alcohol and drug issues, race relations, and anti-war protests. And they had the challenges of helping students, parents, and teachers navigate through the usual travails of youth and adolescence.
But that was before:
• the internet changed the world
• school reforms brought massive amounts of testing
• social media became a way for anyone to share a message
• the middle class moved to the suburbs leaving impoverished students in the urban schools
• parents could email a teacher or contact them through Twitter or Facebook pages
• Columbine and Sandy Hook changed how we view student safety
• the global economy transformed the work place and began to create a global society
• Millennials dominated the work force and Gen Z arrived with its own set of dreams
We live in a world that is now being disrupted on many fronts, and those disruptions are buffeting American schools. Technology is advancing, social mores continue to transform, and today’s educator leaders struggle with 21st century disruptions that were incomprehensible to their predecessors in the 20th century.
My mission is to help educators understand what is happening and why it is happening. The Age of Disruption will never stop. If we put the pieces of the disruption puzzle together, we can see the big picture.
And create a new path forward.