Excellent essay (email) on teaching

[Anonymous]

Of course we work for the paycheck, just like any other person in any other profession, including doctors and nurses.
But I agree with the the person who says we are like serfs with education.
What is happening in teaching is very sad. We work overtime without pay to implement the curriculum, to teach, do all the extra paperwork, to reach every child, keep a pleasant classroom atmosphere, and then things change overnight as we get harrassed for anything and everything by the new administrator who probaby wants to assign someone specific to our spot.
So we find another school in the same county which is a "better fit". We adjust to the new environment, we're well liked by all, until the principal changes again and all the wonderful lesson plans and activities that made us an awesome teacher have to be tossed away. Then the new boss insinuates that if we don't want to be put on PAR, we need to go find a position elsewhere, and that we should not take it personally. Yes, it's not us, because our principal is after our spot, to be filled by someone specific.
So the quest for a new job starts again.
Amid all this, we try to keep in mind that we are here for the students. We try our best to forget all the insults, and concentrate on teaching.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:State capitols are basically memorization. We had to memorize them in 4th grade as well as the shape of the state. Unless the teacher sent nothing home, your DD should've studied them herself. She doesn't need to be motivated to do it. She just has to do it. Isn't that the majority of what we do as adults in our lives? My boss' job isn't to motivate me to do my job. The paycheck does. So, figure out your DD's paycheck and go from there. Stop expecting her teacher to motivate her. My older brother was super lazy but very capable in school so my mom paid him for his grades. He earned $10 for a A, $5 for a B and nothing for a C. He liked having his own money so it worked out fairly well for him.

I don't work for a paycheck, if I did I would have chosen a different, boring and cut throat job. THat model dies not work for most.

You can actually teach the capitols, but lazy teachers just send the information home and hope most of the kids can teach themselves. That is NOT teaching.

I agree.

especially w/in the Curriculum 2.0 framework

Of course, you teach skills related to map reading. But you also find some of the interesting facts about each capital. After all, why is X a capital over Y? What makes it THAT special. So you use maps to show location and graphic organizers to help students store information.

There are lazy teachers, yes. But there are lazy lawyers, lazy doctors, lazy maintenance workers, lazy neighbors who fail to maintain their lawns, etc. Sadly, we're held to a different standard.

And of course, EVERYONE is an expert at teaching b/c everyone's been to school. I can guarantee that the majority of you would be eaten up alive if you stepped into my shoes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:State capitols are basically memorization. We had to memorize them in 4th grade as well as the shape of the state. Unless the teacher sent nothing home, your DD should've studied them herself. She doesn't need to be motivated to do it. She just has to do it. Isn't that the majority of what we do as adults in our lives? My boss' job isn't to motivate me to do my job. The paycheck does. So, figure out your DD's paycheck and go from there. Stop expecting her teacher to motivate her. My older brother was super lazy but very capable in school so my mom paid him for his grades. He earned $10 for a A, $5 for a B and nothing for a C. He liked having his own money so it worked out fairly well for him.

I don't work for a paycheck, if I did I would have chosen a different, boring and cut throat job. THat model dies not work for most.

You can actually teach the capitols, but lazy teachers just send the information home and hope most of the kids can teach themselves. That is NOT teaching.

I agree.

especially w/in the Curriculum 2.0 framework

Of course, you teach skills related to map reading. But you also find some of the interesting facts about each capital. After all, why is X a capital over Y? What makes it THAT special. So you use maps to show location and graphic organizers to help students store information.

There are lazy teachers, yes. But there are lazy lawyers, lazy doctors, lazy maintenance workers, lazy neighbors who fail to maintain their lawns, etc. Sadly, we're held to a different standard.

And of course, EVERYONE is an expert at teaching b/c everyone's been to school. I can guarantee that the majority of you would be eaten up alive if you stepped into my shoes.

I agree.

[Anonymous]

People complain about No Child Left Behind, and about he new Common Core PARCC tests coming down the pike, and about the heavy emphasis on high stakes standardized testing.

"Don't we trust the teachers??"

But one reason the tests are actually good (though they could be better) is that they remove pressure from above (the principal) to inflate the grades to make parents happy.

Teachers can assign fluff project after fluff project to be sure the kids receive a passing grade, so parents are happy and so the principal is happy.

But if the kids actually learn the material, the won't pass the final exam, MSA or PARRC test.

Of course this may result in kids passing the class, but not passing the exam. Which may lead to parents claiming that the MES or PARCC tests are meaningless and not worthwhile, since "my child got a B in the class! There must be something wrong with the test! Down with all tests!"

It may very well be the case, however, that there is nothing wrong with the test, and that the teachers have been pressured to pass most of their students, despite knowing full well that the child hasn't mastered the curriculum.

This is one reason I would encourage parents not to be so quick to disparage the use of standardized, grade level content exams, so called "high stakes" exams.

In fact it might be good to make them even MORE high-stakes. You don't pass the final, you don't pass the course.

Evaluate teachers on how accurately they communicate with parents of failing kids that their children are in danger of failing.

[Anonymous]

People complain about No Child Left Behind, and about the new Common Core PARCC tests coming down the pike, and about the heavy emphasis on high stakes standardized testing.

"Don't we trust the teachers??"

But one reason the tests are actually good (though they could be better) is that they remove pressure from above (the principal) to inflate the grades to make parents happy.

Teachers can assign fluff project after fluff project to be sure the kids receive a passing grade, so parents are happy and so the principal is happy.

But if the kids don't actually learn the material, they won't pass the final exam, MSA or PARRC test.

Of course this may result in kids passing the class, but not passing the exam. Which may lead to parents claiming that the MSA or PARCC tests are meaningless and not worthwhile, since "my child got a B in the class! There must be something wrong with the test! Down with all tests!"

It may very well be the case, however, that there is nothing wrong with the test, and that the teachers have been pressured to pass most of their students, despite knowing full well that the child hasn't mastered the curriculum.

This is one reason I would encourage parents not to be so quick to disparage the use of standardized, grade level content exams, so called "high stakes" exams.

In fact it might be good to make them even MORE high-stakes. You don't pass the final, you don't pass the course.

Evaluate teachers on how accurately they communicate with parents of failing kids that their children are in danger of failing.

[Anonymous]

Very well written! So sad to see what is happening to public education, especially in DC.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't say it's excellent. It's ok.
.

[Anonymous]

Made me sick and feel like crying. I have a basis of comparison which is living in a different country recently where teachers had complete autonomy. I found it frustrating then that there was less consistency in terms of curriculum across teachers and across grades, but boy was I wrong. Teachers enjoyed what they were teaching, they were invested because they chose what they wanted to teach, kids were happy (also recess twice daily and tons of field trips), there was no homework till 4th grade, standardized testing in 4th grade only and not to evaluate teachers.

You could SEE that the kids were much less stressed and happier there compared to here. Same with teachers and principal. Much more relaxed. And kids learned. And learned to care about each other. Learning was much more genuine and more was learned, though less was pushed. Our family has suffered a tremendous loss with respect to education coming here. I grew up in the States and it is so sad what has happened and no wonder we now fall so far behind the rest of the world. And MCPS is supposed to be one of the best systems in the country. I don't get it.

[Anonymous]

what country PP?

[Anonymous]

I'm a high school teacher. I read that letter the other day and then emailed it to my whole department because the author articulated so well the many things we find disheartening.

[Anonymous]

Made me sick and feel like crying. I have a basis of comparison which is living in a different country recently where teachers had complete autonomy. I found it frustrating then that there was less consistency in terms of curriculum across teachers and across grades, but boy was I wrong. Teachers enjoyed what they were teaching, they were invested because they chose what they wanted to teach, kids were happy (also recess twice daily and tons of field trips), there was no homework till 4th grade, standardized testing in 4th grade only and not to evaluate teachers.

You could SEE that the kids were much less stressed and happier there compared to here. Same with teachers and principal. Much more relaxed. And kids learned. And learned to care about each other. Learning was much more genuine and more was learned, though less was pushed. Our family has suffered a tremendous loss with respect to education coming here. I grew up in the States and it is so sad what has happened and no wonder we now fall so far behind the rest of the world. And MCPS is supposed to be one of the best systems in the country. I don't get it.

not the pp--but this used to be the US

[Anonymous]

Oh, come on. Teacher always claim they work so hard but I see them being very inefficient, having low personal and professional standards and think they are immune to accountability or standards. Grow up and behave like professionals!

[Anonymous]

I thought it was pretty sad. Teaching methodology is so confusing today that the kids aren't learning, but they are given standardized tests in which they are unprepared. Teachers, students, and parents are frustrated about it all.

Whatever happened to the joy of learning. I can't even remember, if ever at all, the last te my kids came home excited to tell us something they had learned in school that day.

It's sad.

[Anonymous]

"teachers" is a very broad category of people - there are some that do the bare minimum, complain, and ruin it for the rest of us

then there are some that work 18 hour days, devote themselves to their students and making sure they are doing everything they can for them, spend every penny they have on resources, field trips, and books - all they get rewarded with is being called "babysitters" or phrases like, "if you can't do, teach"

we need determined, intelligent, and caring people teaching our kids yet all we are doing is making them run for the hills because nothing they do can ever be good enough

if you want to keep those teachers, post about the good things you are seeing in classrooms, spread the word, TELL THAT TEACHER, and don't insult them by putting them in the same category as all of the others

[Anonymous]

"teachers" is a very broad category of people - there are some that do the bare minimum, complain, and ruin it for the rest of us

then there are some that work 18 hour days, devote themselves to their students and making sure they are doing everything they can for them, spend every penny they have on resources, field trips, and books - all they get rewarded with is being called "babysitters" or phrases like, "if you can't do, teach"

we need determined, intelligent, and caring people teaching our kids yet all we are doing is making them run for the hills because nothing they do can ever be good enough

if you want to keep those teachers, post about the good things you are seeing in classrooms, spread the word, TELL THAT TEACHER, and don't insult them by putting them in the same category as all of the others

\++++It's been years since I taught, but I couldn't agree more. FWIW, the teachers I worked with who complained the most about the pay were the ones that worked the least.......just sayin...