Anonymous wrote:I am also a teacher. For every one of you there's 10 other teachers who don't take any initiatives. This is my 3rd year teaching high school. I actually like trying to problem solve remote learning with screencastify, zoom, podcast, etc. My colleagues, on the other hand, just complain complain and complain. I get it that it is tough. I hate slos, ffts, iep meetings, paper work but there are many teachers that shouldn't be teachers. I have no sympathy for them. I'm typing on a phone before anyone wants to attack my spelling.

NP. Is there a profession where this isn't true?

I am also a teacher. For every one of you there's 10 other teachers who don't take any initiatives. This is my 3rd year teaching high school. I actually like trying to problem solve remote learning with screencastify, zoom, podcast, etc. My colleagues, on the other hand, just complain complain and complain. I get it that it is tough. I hate slos, ffts, iep meetings, paper work but there are many teachers that shouldn't be teachers. I have no sympathy for them. I'm typing on a phone before anyone wants to attack my spelling.

Teacher here. These posts makes me sick. Disgusted. You are not more important than we are. You do not work harder than we do. You are not the only people in the world with children or other people that rely on you. We are in a once in a lifetime global health crisis and you want to criticize and put down teachers??!! Shame! Shame! Shame!

You want to know my schedule. Here it is:

8-9 meeting; 9:15-10 Lesson, 10-11 Lesson, 11:15-12:00 Lesson, 12-12:30 (meeting while I eat my lunch); 12:30-1 Lesson, 1-2 Lesson; 2-3 Lesson; 3:15-4:00 Lesson; 4:15-4:45 Lesson; And....(2x a week I do a lesson 4:45-5:15.)

Then, I walk my dog, exercise and eat dinner till 7:30-8 then make lesson plans and videos till 12-2am in the morning because when would I possibly have time to plan???

Then I get up at 7 something and do it all over again. Ive given myself Saturdays off, but plan all day Sunday from around 9am-till 10-11:30pm.

Ive sent my students materials, books, and rewards by mail out of my own pocket. Ive donated money to our school’s fund to pay our low income parents’ rent. I gave away a computer to a family that needed one.

And then there’s the constant barrage of emails. Oh the Emails! Emails from parents telling me everything they are stressed out about and everything Im doing wrong while I play the part of their unpaid therapist and talk them down off the ledge. And what do I get in return? $32 hour for 8hrs a day/40hrs a week for 196 days a year when I easily work 13-15 hrs a day rt now plus 12+ hrs on the weekend for a total of 77+ hrs a week. And, let me tell you, not one parent has asked me how I am doing? Or if my family is Ok? I was sick btw. And both my elderly parents were sick. And oh, my husband is quarantined in Florida while Im here in DC. I haven't seen him in over a month. But you wouldn’t know that because I’m everyone’s teacher, social worker, therapist, ADHD coach, Personal assistant, Technology instructor, Office depot supplier, babysitter, second-class citizen punching bag.

Last but not least, and Im so tired of having to say this: Teachers are 10 month salaried employees. We are not 12 month employees. We get paid for 10 months of 8 hour days. We work many, many, many, more hours than 8 hours a day including late nights and weekends for 8 hrs of pay.

We do NOT receive any payment for the summer weeks off for which we don't work (makes sense).

If you gave you’re hairdresser or your housekeeper or your Nanny or your grub hub delivery guy a big tip, feel free to send over a $25 gift card or better yet a bottle of wine to your teacher. Because unbeknownst to you they are probably sacrificing their own happiness and well being for their students, you’re children, right, now. But if you can’t spare a twenty maybe just try How are you? Or Thank You. Or My child misses you.

Ungrateful, ungrateful, privileged, entitled narcissists. Thank goodness I do this work because it is my passion and my calling. I do it for my students, and certainly not any of you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The issue is that mcps had tied the hands of the good teachers (use their lessons so we have consistency across classes/schools, only meet at these times, barely any new assignments, etc) and with those same measures are propping up the lousy teachers.

Not a teacher, but please do not blame them. Place the blame and anger where it belongs: central office, Dr. Smith, and the Board of Education.

A good place to address concerns is Maria Navarro, Chief Academic Officer.

Maria_V_Navarro at mcpsmd.org

yep, all 4 of them. Wouldn't last a single day in another country's education system or in a good private school. And certainly not in the private sector (unless it's Discovery where you leave MCPS and then sell online science videos back to your MCPS and Ex-MCPS cronies)

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe our taxes are paying for this.

Why?

Because public servant teacher's unions say so. Why else pay 6-9% of your teacher paycheck to the Union Gods?
That plus they keep telling us our benies are "rock solid and never will be touched because they put in a clause to their own benefits saying they can't be changed."

That sounds like someone my clever 4 yo would say: Hey Mom, I got down my Halloween candy in April and I wrote a law that no one can take them away from me ever.

Too bad tax payers won't put up with 50%, 80%, 100%, 120% of their taxes going to public union benefits that public unions crafted themselves in exchange for votes!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know most parents here are pretty motivated toward education, but you have to understand that most kids don’t give a crap about online learning. The kids that don’t do homework at home during regular school are doing nothing at all. There will be a lot of failed classes next quarter even with pass/fail. I predict at least 25% of MS and HS kids will fail all their classes next quarter and that is a conservative estimate.

No because if they do that it will increase this thing called the achievement gap. It’s not going to happen.

Grades are not how you measure the achievement gap.

Anonymous wrote:I know most parents here are pretty motivated toward education, but you have to understand that most kids don’t give a crap about online learning. The kids that don’t do homework at home during regular school are doing nothing at all. There will be a lot of failed classes next quarter even with pass/fail. I predict at least 25% of MS and HS kids will fail all their classes next quarter and that is a conservative estimate.

No because if they do that it will increase this thing called the achievement gap. It’s not going to happen.

I know most parents here are pretty motivated toward education, but you have to understand that most kids don’t give a crap about online learning. The kids that don’t do homework at home during regular school are doing nothing at all. There will be a lot of failed classes next quarter even with pass/fail. I predict at least 25% of MS and HS kids will fail all their classes next quarter and that is a conservative estimate.

Anonymous wrote:We all know where this is going. MCPS will not be able to grade anything after 3rd Q. It will be pass fail and if you think anyone will be failed in remote learning, you’re crazy. Teachers will do what they can but let’s be honest, school is over and MCPS is trying to put a bandaid on a fatal wound with distance learning. So are all public schools.

Agree. They just aren’t letting us in on it because they want the kids to try and learn remotely.

Anonymous wrote:We all know where this is going. MCPS will not be able to grade anything after 3rd Q. It will be pass fail and if you think anyone will be failed in remote learning, you’re crazy. Teachers will do what they can but let’s be honest, school is over and MCPS is trying to put a bandaid on a fatal wound with distance learning. So are all public schools.

This is the truth and crucial to understand. A friend pays $47K for each of her sons at the top private in another state. The first couple days, the distance learning seemed good. Then, the cracks appeared.

We all know where this is going. MCPS will not be able to grade anything after 3rd Q. It will be pass fail and if you think anyone will be failed in remote learning, you’re crazy. Teachers will do what they can but let’s be honest, school is over and MCPS is trying to put a bandaid on a fatal wound with distance learning. So are all public schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe our taxes are paying for this.

Well, I can't believe someone is complaining about our taxes paying for the teachers when: there are people dying all around, with the lockdown just in the third week, and the whole model of teaching changing drastically, where the teachers are still trying to figure out how to go about their work.

Unless you are in NYC, there are not "people dying all around." In Maryland, we've had 53 deaths in state of 6 million. Please don't use this as your argument.

Oh, that's a relief - only 53 deaths in MD. Let's stop this lockdown BS and send kids back to school then.

Sheesh ...

Do you have any "critical thinking" skills? The response is that using "people are dying all around" is not an intelligent way to deflect criticism. Yes, I probably would support ending the lockdown, but that was no where in the post. The point is to stop being hysterical, and respond to the problems that we ARE actually facing, like poor education.

Got it:

1. The "problems that we ARE actually facing" right now is poor education; not COVID-19.
2. Folks complaining about taxes going to pay teachers *within three weeks of the shutdown* are not hysterical, but those pointing out there are more serious issues at hand are hysterical.
3. You have such strong "critical thinking" skills that you are open to ending the lockdown.

You are a real peach ...

Anonymous wrote:The issue is that mcps had tied the hands of the good teachers (use their lessons so we have consistency across classes/schools, only meet at these times, barely any new assignments, etc) and with those same measures are propping up the lousy teachers.

Not a teacher, but please do not blame them. Place the blame and anger where it belongs: central office, Dr. Smith, and the Board of Education.

A good place to address concerns is Maria Navarro, Chief Academic Officer.

Maria_V_Navarro at mcpsmd.org

The issue is that mcps had tied the hands of the good teachers (use their lessons so we have consistency across classes/schools, only meet at these times, barely any new assignments, etc) and with those same measures are propping up the lousy teachers.

Not a teacher, but please do not blame them. Place the blame and anger where it belongs: central office, Dr. Smith, and the Board of Education.

DCUM is often just such a weird weird slice of the population.