One of the biggest and most serious issues we in the public school system face is apathy. The fact of the matter is that parents who are proactive enough to, take the time and trouble to, find a Charter school and enroll their children are the parents whose children do well in public school. Every time I read about a charter or private school the most distinguishing feature is it has parents who care. One of the biggest problems we in the public school system face is absent parents. I have had children in my class who have been with me for almost 2 years and when the parents write it is addressed to “To Whom it May Concern”. Most normal parents would be horrified to think that their child has a teacher whose name they do not know. This is an ongoing problem for the classroom teacher, many of our children are totally disinterested in school and their parents do little to encourage them.
I was reading an article recently that said that the greatest predictor of student achievement was parental involvement. If I were to tell you that you could improve your child’s chances of success in school by investing 10 minutes a night, 6 nights a week, reading to your child, what would you do? If you are reading this blog, chances are that your answer would be that you would most certainly invest 60 minutes a week in your child’s future. Alas, too many of the parents we deal with either cannot or will not do even this small amount to help their child.
One of the requirements of private or charter schools is that parents participate in the life of the school. This accomplishes two things, it creates an opportunity for parents to see their children during the school day and perhaps more importantly allows the children to see their parents at school. Mom and Dad at school have an enormous effect on all children’s behavior. Now if this were done in public school, the public schools would share in the benefit of parental involvement.
Another issue is uniforms, most private school students wear uniforms. Why do you think this is an almost universally accepted norm for most private schools? Well research shows that children behave better when in uniform. Children who wear uniforms also get better grades. When this was attempted in my district the superintendent of schools thundered that all children in the district would be in uniform the next school year. Unless, of course, they opted out and decided not to wear a uniform. The next thing was each school could pick uniforms based on that schools “colors”. So the uniforms were, (Dare I say it?) no longer uniform. Now, when you are dealing with a mobile population that might change schools 3 times a year this is not going to sit well with them. It didn’t, and if I may paraphrase the community response: “In order to continue to express his individuality, my child will not conform his dress to any standard unless motivated by his peers or what he may see on television.” The idea of uniforms lasted about one half of one school year and then it quietly faded away to be replaced with the next “Hey! Have we got a swell idea for you!” taxpayer money spending waste of time.
So once again the very change that may have helped the neediest students was driven into the ground by spineless bureaucrats.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Tenure
Without getting too technical, tenure is the protection given a teacher after serving a satisfactory probationary period. The probationary period can last 3 to 5 years, depending on where you are as it varies from state to state and district to district within each state. While you are on probation you are totally unprotected, you can be dismissed at any time for any or no reason. Once you have tenure the school district has to prove cause before you can be terminated. Please understand what I just said, the district has to prove cause before you can be fired. Once you have been terminated your career is over, as no one will hire a teacher who has been fired for cause.
I was fortunate to have a really great principal for my beginning teacher year and probationary period. During this time I worked with a thirty year veteran teacher who told me, “Peters, I’ve worked with 8 principals, 2 of them have been pretty good.” Talk about “The Peter Principal” and rising to your level of incompetence this concept is alive and well in education. Most principals are hard working individuals dedicated to their schools and the children in them. But, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and there are far too many who are willing to misuse their power. Tenure protects us and forces the administration to present evidence that we have not measured up to some clearly defined standard.
Unfortunately we hear about incompetent teachers who cannot be fired because of tenure and are harming the children’s education. This is, I believe, the exception rather than the rule. Every profession has incompetents but, with the exception of the police, hardly anyone is as susceptible to false allegations as public school teachers. The “cannot be fired” is just not true, tenure requires cause, it must be proved that you have done something wrong, not just an allegation. I recently read an article about New York City schools having a room where teachers who could no longer be trusted in the classroom but could not be fired were kept. The article was particularly angered by the fact that these teachers were being paid their regular salary to sit around and do nothing. What can I possibly say about a system that creates management that can think of nothing to do with an invaluable resource such as these teachers. Perhaps instead of attacking the teachers, who do the work and their Unions that protect them, we should turn our attention to the stupidity that exists in the school systems bureaucracy.
Without getting too technical, tenure is the protection given a teacher after serving a satisfactory probationary period. The probationary period can last 3 to 5 years, depending on where you are as it varies from state to state and district to district within each state. While you are on probation you are totally unprotected, you can be dismissed at any time for any or no reason. Once you have tenure the school district has to prove cause before you can be terminated. Please understand what I just said, the district has to prove cause before you can be fired. Once you have been terminated your career is over, as no one will hire a teacher who has been fired for cause.
I was fortunate to have a really great principal for my beginning teacher year and probationary period. During this time I worked with a thirty year veteran teacher who told me, “Peters, I’ve worked with 8 principals, 2 of them have been pretty good.” Talk about “The Peter Principal” and rising to your level of incompetence this concept is alive and well in education. Most principals are hard working individuals dedicated to their schools and the children in them. But, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and there are far too many who are willing to misuse their power. Tenure protects us and forces the administration to present evidence that we have not measured up to some clearly defined standard.
Unfortunately we hear about incompetent teachers who cannot be fired because of tenure and are harming the children’s education. This is, I believe, the exception rather than the rule. Every profession has incompetents but, with the exception of the police, hardly anyone is as susceptible to false allegations as public school teachers. The “cannot be fired” is just not true, tenure requires cause, it must be proved that you have done something wrong, not just an allegation. I recently read an article about New York City schools having a room where teachers who could no longer be trusted in the classroom but could not be fired were kept. The article was particularly angered by the fact that these teachers were being paid their regular salary to sit around and do nothing. What can I possibly say about a system that creates management that can think of nothing to do with an invaluable resource such as these teachers. Perhaps instead of attacking the teachers, who do the work and their Unions that protect them, we should turn our attention to the stupidity that exists in the school systems bureaucracy.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Educational Spending
For some strange reason when people are promoted out of the classroom to become bureaucrats they change. I have never been sure if this is for good or ill. They become enamored of change and innovation for its own sake. This school year we received a new curriculum for Early Childhood language arts. It is very nice, with great books and lessons. We all got together for two days of training on the new curriculum, that means that substitutes had to be paid to take our classes. When I get back to school with the new curriculum, 12 (one for each month) shrink wrapped packages pre hole punched to fit in 3 ring binders, I’m looking for a place to put them.
I go to the bookkeeper who is the keeper of all school supplies, she says “Peters you are the 4th. person to ask me for a dozen 3 ring binders, I don’t have any”. I go back to my new classroom, having just moved over from the 5th. grade, part of what is there is mine, part is what is left from the departing teacher. I spot a set of 3 ring binders on the top of a cabinet, jackpot!
I figure I can throw what is in them away and put in the new curriculum. Imagine my surprise when I look inside and find the first iteration of my new curriculum, complete with like new books. Yes the entire 12 volume set, hardly used, sitting on the shelf gathering dust. Our classrooms are littered with the remnants of curriculum past; some not out of the box, all expensive. This waste is replicated in every classroom in the school system. When I hear people talk about how expensive education is and I think of the enormous amount of waste, I, and many of my colleagues just shake our heads.
They bought us a reading program a while back; Kindergarten through 3rd grade. The first year it was the sacred cow, nothing was allowed to move during reading time. The second year almost the same but along about the third or fourth things started to loosen up. Soon it was business as usual, you no longer had to schedule your reading time first thing in the morning, they made announcements during the reading block, people would walk into your room and interrupt you during reading. So the reading series, like so many, many, other things slowly faded into the background and finally disappeared. Many of us still have the teacher books on our shelves and for some children who are struggling with reading it works pretty well.
It is a sorry state indeed, that classroom teachers go begging for things they need or buy it out of their own pocket, while the bureaucrats are profligate with the taxpayer’s money.
For some strange reason when people are promoted out of the classroom to become bureaucrats they change. I have never been sure if this is for good or ill. They become enamored of change and innovation for its own sake. This school year we received a new curriculum for Early Childhood language arts. It is very nice, with great books and lessons. We all got together for two days of training on the new curriculum, that means that substitutes had to be paid to take our classes. When I get back to school with the new curriculum, 12 (one for each month) shrink wrapped packages pre hole punched to fit in 3 ring binders, I’m looking for a place to put them.
I go to the bookkeeper who is the keeper of all school supplies, she says “Peters you are the 4th. person to ask me for a dozen 3 ring binders, I don’t have any”. I go back to my new classroom, having just moved over from the 5th. grade, part of what is there is mine, part is what is left from the departing teacher. I spot a set of 3 ring binders on the top of a cabinet, jackpot!
I figure I can throw what is in them away and put in the new curriculum. Imagine my surprise when I look inside and find the first iteration of my new curriculum, complete with like new books. Yes the entire 12 volume set, hardly used, sitting on the shelf gathering dust. Our classrooms are littered with the remnants of curriculum past; some not out of the box, all expensive. This waste is replicated in every classroom in the school system. When I hear people talk about how expensive education is and I think of the enormous amount of waste, I, and many of my colleagues just shake our heads.
They bought us a reading program a while back; Kindergarten through 3rd grade. The first year it was the sacred cow, nothing was allowed to move during reading time. The second year almost the same but along about the third or fourth things started to loosen up. Soon it was business as usual, you no longer had to schedule your reading time first thing in the morning, they made announcements during the reading block, people would walk into your room and interrupt you during reading. So the reading series, like so many, many, other things slowly faded into the background and finally disappeared. Many of us still have the teacher books on our shelves and for some children who are struggling with reading it works pretty well.
It is a sorry state indeed, that classroom teachers go begging for things they need or buy it out of their own pocket, while the bureaucrats are profligate with the taxpayer’s money.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Introduction
“Peters, you should write a book to encourage people who are having a tough time so they can know that they can not only survive but thrive in the face of adversity!” So says my friend and colleague Marcia Campbell. In the last sixteen years that we have worked together Marcia and I have had discussion after discussion about what we could do for the children and teachers. So often the Interns and the young teachers feel that they are responsible for the meat grinder that exists in their classroom. We teachers exist in a vacuum, we have little interaction with teachers outside our school as a result we often feel that our problems are unique to our classroom.
The reality is that the problem of lower socio-economic minority inner city students is endemic in the United States. Students suffering retention, students dropping out of school. What makes me worthy to address these issues? Well, I was raised by dysfunctional parents who came from dysfunctional families themselves. I was retained in the fifth grade and dropped out of school in the ninth grade. I finally did get my General Equivalency Diploma (GED) when I was in my early twenties. That got me into trade school where I apprenticed as a carpenter. I spent the next twenty years working at my trade until a series of health issues forced me to seek other employment. One of the things that had prevented me from seeking a college education was the fact that with all I had missed in school I was only semi-literate. I read very well and had an excellent vocabulary but I could not write.
I really didn’t know much about higher education but I did know that writing was necessary and indeed essential to be successful in school. Suffice it to say that I did go to college and I did graduate 3 months shy of my 50th birthday with a degree in Education with a major in Special Education. I have worked as a Special Educator for the Duval County School system since the 1993-94 school year. When I speak on issues I have the empirical experience that comes with being the oldest sibling for over 50 years, a husband for over 45 years, a dad for over 40, a grandfather for over 16 years. In my professional life I have been a sawyer, a bench carpenter, a shop foreman, a Vocational Instructor, a general manager and a small business owner. Aristotle said that “the unexamined life is not worth living”, I would like to think that I have spent a goodly portion of my life examining my surroundings and I think that this is a good time for me to begin commenting on what I have learned.
“Peters, you should write a book to encourage people who are having a tough time so they can know that they can not only survive but thrive in the face of adversity!” So says my friend and colleague Marcia Campbell. In the last sixteen years that we have worked together Marcia and I have had discussion after discussion about what we could do for the children and teachers. So often the Interns and the young teachers feel that they are responsible for the meat grinder that exists in their classroom. We teachers exist in a vacuum, we have little interaction with teachers outside our school as a result we often feel that our problems are unique to our classroom.
The reality is that the problem of lower socio-economic minority inner city students is endemic in the United States. Students suffering retention, students dropping out of school. What makes me worthy to address these issues? Well, I was raised by dysfunctional parents who came from dysfunctional families themselves. I was retained in the fifth grade and dropped out of school in the ninth grade. I finally did get my General Equivalency Diploma (GED) when I was in my early twenties. That got me into trade school where I apprenticed as a carpenter. I spent the next twenty years working at my trade until a series of health issues forced me to seek other employment. One of the things that had prevented me from seeking a college education was the fact that with all I had missed in school I was only semi-literate. I read very well and had an excellent vocabulary but I could not write.
I really didn’t know much about higher education but I did know that writing was necessary and indeed essential to be successful in school. Suffice it to say that I did go to college and I did graduate 3 months shy of my 50th birthday with a degree in Education with a major in Special Education. I have worked as a Special Educator for the Duval County School system since the 1993-94 school year. When I speak on issues I have the empirical experience that comes with being the oldest sibling for over 50 years, a husband for over 45 years, a dad for over 40, a grandfather for over 16 years. In my professional life I have been a sawyer, a bench carpenter, a shop foreman, a Vocational Instructor, a general manager and a small business owner. Aristotle said that “the unexamined life is not worth living”, I would like to think that I have spent a goodly portion of my life examining my surroundings and I think that this is a good time for me to begin commenting on what I have learned.
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