By working with actual policy, this course has made us look at the process by analyzing what goes into changing current policy.  We learned that in order to change policy we  must take into consideration:  self-interest of those who will be affected as well as the decision makers; politics; the culture of the organization which is deciding on the change as well as money and resources to implement the change. 

            Policy and politics once again show their connection as we saw in the Foundations of Education Leadership.  Developing the policy according to what is most effective for the beneficiaries, does not guarantee that the policy will be adopted.  The politics of putting in place what the  parties involved will accept, can change the original document to a mere skeleton of its former self or else change it so completely that it is not recognizable.  Before taking this class I read Cuban and Tyacke's Tinkering toward Utopia which referred to making reforms in the education system like changing grammar.  That analogy helped me understand the difficulty of changing something that has been in place for such a long time.  I still will not accept 'ain't'!

           An interesting part of the class was the inclusion of the original author of the compensation plan.  She was on hand to answer our questions about it but most importantly to point out how some of our ideas would not work. We saw how ideas which sounded good on paper would not work in practice because of the politics of policy. 

           Our visitor  also helped us to see how important it is to narrow the focus of policy.  We need to break down the parts of what we are working on, define their parameters and deal with one part at a time.  In the class we kept getting stumped at how to deal with ineffective teachers.  The author of the plan made us look at the plan to find where it said that we had to deal with them in that policy.  We realized that it was not a part of what we were working on. 

           We still are not finished with the class or with our professional compensation package.  When we are finished, it will reflect a lot of contemplation on the process, the context of the policy change and the politics which will influence whether it can or will be adopted.  This has been an eye-opening course.

            As far as papers and products for this course, all that we have done has been done as a group.  Our papers have been taken apart for valuable, viable suggestions and added to the master compensation plan.  Our interviews will be used for ideas as well as for marketing 'blurbs' for packaging and selling the plan.  I will include my unedited contributions to the process. (Concerns and questions) (Interview)

           So far, so good!