I have been thinking this year about a major problem and have been unsure how to approach it. As a new administrator, you are on the receiving end of a whole new side of teaching and what I've noticed more and more is the state of teachers. Specifically, where their states of mind are. Obviously there is a huge range, varied as teachers are varied in their lives and experiences. But I think I've finally figured out my question:

How do we train teachers to hate learning?

In all manner of circumstances I have encountered this year, a continual roadblock has been a teacher's desire to learn. Whether they needed to learn more about a student, or a method, or about what was going on, or the law, this issue has continuously reared its ugly head. But realistically, this is clearly a learned trait. I've known far too many new teachers to ever assume anyone got into this profession with a true disgust of learning. Yet time and time again, I've met teachers who have spent a long time in the profession with just this stated feeling. "I just don't get _______ tech", "He/She just needs to be respectful", "They don't have to like me, they just need to learn", "I don't know what happened, ask the students." The list could continue.

From my own experience as a teacher, I know that it starts with professional development. Or as was once coined by a department head I used to have as a "professional waste of my f***ing time." That and staff meetings. It's something I've definitely focused on improving as an admin, but what sits in my head is how can we actively build a culture of learning, starting with admin and teachers...

Just thoughts in my head right now.