Before my group began the Wimba session, I thought about issues that I face as an elementary principal. One area that is always of great concern is student achievement. Why are some students so successful while others seem to struggle? On the surface when they come into Pre-kindergarten, they seem to be very similar. Almost everyone can count and sing the alphabet song. So what is the problem?
When we began to discuss issues on Wimba, conversations seemed to come back to differing performance, especially critical thinking. The secondary people talked about graduation and college readiness. The conversation moved to 21st Century learning and the lack of access to resources. Then that train of thought was refined to the digital divide. We discussed marginalized groups, such as low income, rural communities, and parents who were unsuccessful in school. We talked about examples of inequities, such as the lack of broad band in rural areas, lack of equipment for poorer students, and lack of community resources (libraries).
The conversations helped me to refine my issue–the lack of resources at home impacting school readiness. Students are not all the same, but they need to be ready to compete in today’s world. As an educator it is my charge to help them bridge that gap. This gives me a place to start my advocacy for readiness.
