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If I didn't break it and I can't fix it, how do you think I'm responsible for it's condition???
You admit I can't fix it but yet blame me for it's condition. That makes no sense whatsoever. You are blaming the soldier for losing the war. All the soldier can do is the best they can with what they have and if that is not good enough, it's not good enough.
I can't find anywhere in this thread where I blamed you for anything, and neither can you. All I've said, multiple times, and I'll repeat it once again for your benefit, is that teachers are not unassailable. If the shoe fits, wear it. If it doesn't, then don't. But you know damn well there are crappy teachers out there, just as incompetent governments (to use your mostest favoritest analogy) can very well draft an army brimming with crappy soldiers. The fact that someone else made a poor decision about putting and keeping them in that position doesn't make them any less crappy at what they do. It's simply not possible for a systemically flawed system to have one miraculous stratum of heroes sandwiched between layers of incompetence.
I am only one person. I don't have "all the answers." Maybe if there were think tanks, some really smart, creative people COULD come up with innovative ideas.
In the meantime, here is an exercise: Get relaxed (soaking in a tub or whatever) and daydream about the kind of educational experience that would have been PERFECT for you.
I have just begun to think about this and my ideas for myself are not fleshed out . . . but they involve group circles (intimate learning moments), lots of experiences in nature, field trips, private reading time (cozied up somewhere), group art projects, group singing experiences, gardening, study of architecture, debates, lots of play (because play is necessary to learning, not just frivolous) - all in a beautiful atmosphere . . . the buildings would be made of natural "green" materials (no asbestos!), the ceilings would be high, with gridwork exposed. There would be plenty of windows and skylights . . . no florescent lighting . . . interiors be creatively painted and would have lots of reading nooks and learning centers, outside gardens, murals (no prison looking cells and cell-blocks). Wind chimes, weather vanes, sun dials . . .
The "teachers" would be very intelligent, KIND mentors . . .skilled at facilitating.
Psychology would be taught, as would sociology. And life skills would be taught, as well (fighting fair, personal finances, etc.)
Literature would be abundant, as would the arts (plays, music, fine art, etc.)
Math and science would also be taught, but those who do not have a natural affinity for those subjects would only be required to learn basics . . .
That's just off the top of my head. That is what would suit me, so if it is not your cup of tea, think about what would suit you.
Surrounded by bubbles....
....a more rigorous program....more time spent on each subject....time to go in depth.....time to do hands on activities...time to research interesting things....which requires....a longer school year
These are the same things I want as a teacher. Seriously, why are we stuck on an agrarian calendar? We've left the farm people.
Of course, tuition (low according to them) is $7000 per year for the first child. There are now many schools on the sudbury model. All are private though. None are free. The video below is part of the movie that was made about Sudbury schools.
I can't find anywhere in this thread where I blamed you for anything, and neither can you. All I've said, multiple times, and I'll repeat it once again for your benefit, is that teachers are not unassailable. If the shoe fits, wear it. If it doesn't, then don't. But you know damn well there are crappy teachers out there, just as incompetent governments (to use your mostest favoritest analogy) can very well draft an army brimming with crappy soldiers. The fact that someone else made a poor decision about putting and keeping them in that position doesn't make them any less crappy at what they do. It's simply not possible for a systemically flawed system to have one miraculous stratum of heroes sandwiched between layers of incompetence.
You are all up in arms that teachers are not accepting blame for the current state of education, are you not?
The shoe doesn't fit. The only control I have and that is granted by my administration is in my own classroom.
Have teachers, as a group, refused to teach? Have they made the decisions that have made education what it is today? Did they write the test they are required to teach to?
You're blaming the employees for the failure of the company. The power to change education to make it what it is today and what it could be tomorrow rests with the public, the government and the administration. Teachers can lobby for change, en masse, which they do through unions, but we can't make the change unless our administration and/or the public wants that change. We are the grunt workers. Our task is to educate to the best of our ability under whatever conditions the powers that be decide we will.
Let's talk about something that is happening in my state to science education. Class sizes are increasing. Unfortunately, the safe maximum for a lab class is 24 students. This is the number that studies have found that one teacher can, safely, monitor during a lab. As a teacher, my only response to class sizes that exceed the safety standards has to be to stop doing labs that could, possibly, result in someone getting hurt (once I am operating a class outside of safe operating recommendations, I become personally liable for any injuries because the decision to do the lab was, solely, mine). That means less hands on learning takes place. As a teacher, I hate this but they don't give me a choice. It's not our fault that they are backing us into a corner that results in us having to stop doing hands on learning yet I'm sure, people like you, will blame us for not teaching as well as we did when class sizes were small enough for it to be considered safe to do labs. I KNOW this decision will negatively impact my ability to teach but I don't get a choice. I voiced my concerns and they simply said that there are teachers in the building with 35 students so I should consider myself lucky I don't have that many. All I can do is the best I can with what I'm given. THAT is my task. If I had the power, things, certainly would be different. Unfortunately, I don't.
That said, teachers likely are a great source of ideas to improve education because we're the ones doing the job. The problem is getting anyone to listen to us. We have a paradox. On the one hand, administrators, the government and parents don't want to listen to us but on the other, they want to blame us for what ails education. You can't have it both ways.
No, I don't believe teachers broke this system. Nor do I believe they have the power to affect much in the way of positive change. Our contribution is finding ways to teach even though the powers that be keep making it more difficult and some teachers are very good at it.
What ails our education system goes far beyond what teachers control. Sorry, but I'm only accountable for what I actually control. Don't get me wrong. I have my failures and my responsibilites. If I fail, it's because I didn't teach a standard or explain it in a way students understood. It is my responsibility to fix it this time and figure out how to do it better next time when that happens. I do the job that is put before me but have to count on leadership to steer the ship because I don't have the power to steer. Just like any other worker in any other establishment.
I can warn the administration there are ice bergs a head but it's their choice whether or not to listen and their choice as to what course of action to take. My task is to read the latest book on the latest trend they think is going to be a panacea, and try it. If it works, great, I have something new in my bag of tricks. If it doesn't, we go on to the next potential panacea. Just like in business. Funny how no matter where you work, it's the same.
The problem with blaming teachers is everywhere I look I see teachers trying their best in spite of the system. I see teachers hanging around after school tutoring students....spending money out of their own pockets to improve their classrooms/teaching...seeking information on how to overcome certain situations from those with more experience....
And I didn't call us heros. Unlike the soldier carrying out orders, my life isn't on the line. We're the worker bees. Our task is take what is given and do the best we can with it. Hopefully, it's good enough.
I WISH I had the power to be to blame for education. If I had that kind of power, I could change it and I would.
Last edited by Ivorytickler; 02-28-2011 at 04:01 AM..
People are pretty creative . . . the scores of SAHM's COULD home school, en masse . . . or the older kids could self-home school . . . there could be creative solutions IF people were open-minded and wanted it bad enough . . . the problem is that no one wants to buck the status quo because it is going to take some work and struggle to put a viable model in place . . .
My children would be pretty poorly educated if they had gotten all of their education from me. I would be fine in history and English but I have low interest and ability in Science and Math. They passed my technology knowledge before high school. The reason most of the teachers I know went into teaching is because they had a passion for their subject and wanted to pass that knowledge on. While my kids have had some bad teachers, the majority of them really did care about their subjects and their students.
The problem is much higher up then the teachers and even the administrators. There are people in the federal government that mandate policy, which triggers the education department in the state government to put their spin on those policies and that all trickles down to the districts. By the time all of these rules get to the teachers, there are so many fingers in the pie that it's hard to know who really to blame. Teachers certainly don't set the state academic standards and those are what they have to teach to.
I feel I am doing my part by serving on school committees that are committed to improving what we can with what we've got. You wouldn't believe all the research and discussion that goes into making even slight changes at a school, but things do change when all parties work together.
In response to this: The truth as I see it: 1. The average teacher salary is about 54,000 (Digest of Education Statistics, 2009 - Introduction) as of 2009 2. Students go to school 180 days, teachers work many days when students aren't there 3. Paid health benefits have been cut, retirement is most likely next (over all we do receive very good benefits in this area IMO) 4. Unions have improved our working conditions greatly (duty-free 30 minute lunches, not required to clean the classes, paid planning time, compensation for extra duties, due process) many of these are not unreasonable 5. Again many teachers leave for the private sector (see above) and don't return to this job. Why?
1. Need specifics regarding the $54000. Reasonable salary for a individual where I live but miserable in a higher cost of living area. This number is useless as cost of living changes the number and as a teacher you should know this prior to posting.
2. The actual response would be how many days does a teacher work? A teacher manages his/her classroom. I am a manager and paid a salary whether I work 30 to 60hours per week and that is as with the remainder of this country at 52weeks less vacation and holidays. A salary indicates a considerable level of responsiblity compared to a hourly wage person. A manager who complains of having too much work would be replaced.
3. It is a deep recession. We all do well in good times and have to sacrifice in difficult times as now. A guaranteed pension is a positive compared to 401K, similar market dependent investments or SS.
4. Unions are needed for tradespersons when management is poor. I agree that united representation is needed by any type of workforce but they also need to self-police and ruthlessly end their own abuses which inevitably occur. Also, a person should be given the option to opt-out of the union if they elect to do so.(No one would if the Union were seen as professional or a positive) The real world is hard in that lesser performers are terminated.
5. Let them leave as there are a pool of people willing to do the work. Free labor at its best. A person is not conscripted into teaching. An unhappy yet capable employee has a deleterious effect on the workplace compared to a motivated fresh intake.
I think all public positions should have a good living salary based on responsibilty with opportunity for merit based bonuses. The collective purchasing power of a larger organization should lead to improved health care benefits but these should not be free. A secure pension based on years and performance as well. There should also be considerable standards for continued employment and all lesser performing employees should be terminated.
Having written the above I also believe there needs to be a changes in the education system so that teachers are provided with an environment where they are able to teach. That is parents need to be made responsible for the conduct of their children. Corporal punishment needs to be instituted. Disruptive children need to be segregated from those who wish to learn and are able to conform to classroom discipline.
My children would be pretty poorly educated if they had gotten all of their education from me. I would be fine in history and English but I have low interest and ability in Science and Math. They passed my technology knowledge before high school. The reason most of the teachers I know went into teaching is because they had a passion for their subject and wanted to pass that knowledge on. While my kids have had some bad teachers, the majority of them really did care about their subjects and their students.
The problem is much higher up then the teachers and even the administrators. There are people in the federal government that mandate policy, which triggers the education department in the state government to put their spin on those policies and that all trickles down to the districts. By the time all of these rules get to the teachers, there are so many fingers in the pie that it's hard to know who really to blame. Teachers certainly don't set the state academic standards and those are what they have to teach to.
I feel I am doing my part by serving on school committees that are committed to improving what we can with what we've got. You wouldn't believe all the research and discussion that goes into making even slight changes at a school, but things do change when all parties work together.
My children would be poorly educated too. I can handle math and science but I'm a lost cause at English, history, social studies, geography...I'm lousy at many more subjects than I'm good at. I'm glad my kids have teachers who know their material better than me.
You are correct that we do not set the standards. We just teach to them. If you're tenured, you can get away with teaching other things you feel are important as long as you're covering the standards. If you're not, you toe the line or find a place in the unemployment line.
I'm being told to cut material I think is important because it's not in the power standards. I think I should be teaching and testing more than the power standards but I'm not in position to buck the system. I'll state my case but if the powers that be don't agree, I will do it the way they want it done. I do not teach in a vaccuum. I'm not an expert on all things teaching. Sometimes, I just have to do it the bosses way.
Every job has valid complaints. Teachers don't have any more or less of those than anyone else.
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