I now go in to see the architectural plans for the new school that will be built next year, the one I will work in, perhaps for the remaining duration of my life. I've tried to be a responsible participant in the process of planning the new building by touring 2 other new schools, taking photos and notes, attending meetings after school about the proposed building. I've found that what one teacher wants another teacher despises. I wanted a built in desk, for instance, but another teacher told the architect, "Do not put built in desks in this school." The other problem with giving input is that I have no spatial-visual competency (a term I have just now invented) so when the architect points to the plans and says, "Would you like the computers here, or over here?" I have no idea how to answer. I can't even imagine how one spot might differ from the other. I respond with hemming and hawing and wondering aloud. And going off on some tangents. I feel a little sorry for the architect, but I guess it's just part and parcel of her career path. Off to school.
