Going back to my post from the other day, let's get back to teachers.
Right now a number of states are facing desperate measures to reduce their deficits. And naturally what gets cut? Education. We are messing around with our future leaders and employees, that can't be a good thing. Also what message does this send to the students?
Some states want to pay based on how the students do on standardized test. Self fulfilling prophecy? Good district, good grades and raises/bonuses for teachers. Bad district, bad grades nothing or get fired? Purely based on if the kids do well? You can't make kids do well. Some just can not take test and this system really is a bad idea and what teacher would approve of this measure?
Teachers unions should have been advocating for years for better pay and more advanced agendas on their curriculum. If you think something is above the kids, then it will always be above them. Push the envelope a bit please. Kids today are smarter than we were and really need to move faster sometimes.
In truth education in general has problems that no simple answer exists. Home schooling your kids is not easy and not for everyone. Individual learning is frowned upon because it does not allow for social interactions and group efforts in learning and social norms. I have news for you, your kids are more into social media than you are and want to use it. As a parent this is a problem for some people, either because of their own expectations or because they want their kids to grow up "healthy and normal".
What if your kids could get an individual education, via an authority of some sort, but could learn at their own pace and within a boundary of guidelines for homework, projects, tests? Would you do it? Should schools offer it? This may have been called enrichment, gifted or some other name through the years but now it seems to have hit a wall. What if your kids school will not help the kids who are that smart to move forward quicker? Doesn't this encourage the dumbing down of all classes to the lowest level in the classroom?
Great teachers are able to inspire you, challenge you, raise you to a new level. But for every teacher that does this, there are anywhere from 2-10 that do not. They may be good teachers, but just not great. Nothing bad here, in all professions some people rise to a different level, it does not mean the others are bad.
Should great teachers get paid better, or tenured or whatever benefits them? Yes, but how do you figure out who is that great? Often times it will not be obvious until years later or at least 1-2 semesters.
What about good teachers? How do you define their pay? I know some teachers that had bad years due to family/personal issues or some other things that caused problems. In some cases those problems did not become obvious until 1-3 years later and the ones with the problem are the kids who missed out and now may be behind in their grades.
I have written how I was surprised at my kids school lack of initiative when it comes to computer studies. Yes they are learning to type, which is great, and do some things which are important when first using a computer. But the problem is as they get older the curriculum is out of touch with reality. You have elementary school kids with iPhones and iPads, they are doing things the school thinks it needs to teach them in 5 years. Clearly the issue of education is not a teachers fault entirely.
So in 20 odd years while teachers salaries have barely moved by 25-50%, tuition at private schools has gone up 3-400% if not more. If the teachers are not getting that money, so we can entice more people to be teachers so they can live on their salary, where does the money go? Insurance and security costs are obviously much higher than years ago. We used to get buses to school, for a small fee, and lunch as part of our tuition, that's gone too.
When did school become a bloated corporation. How many administrators exist now at schools? When I was in school we had 2 principals, primary and assistant, some office staff like a secretary, finance person, development and maybe a few others. How many different levels of bureaucracy exist now in schools? How much of it is needed?
Ever see the States educational leaders taking pay cuts, and how many do so in private institutions? Few do. It's always the teachers getting less benefits and money. Teachers salaries are not enough for a family to live on and what do we do to encourage new people to enter the field if they don't see it as viable?
I believe there is no shortage of great teachers in the world, but perhaps at your school, so what do you suggest? How do you make teaching matter again? How do you encourage great teachers to join your low paying school? What can you as a parent, business person do to help the school or the kids?
Get involved, if they will let you, to enhance the education system. Encourage students to do more, try more, learn more and have more fun.
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Keith, this is a giant can of worms with no simple answers. In my opinion: attack from both ends
ReplyDelete1. Kids have no respect for teachers or education. Parents' fault. In my school principal walked around with a stick. You misbehaved, you got smacked. We respected teachers. Today, in America, he'd be doing time.
2. Consequences are OK. You do badly, you fail, you get held behind. Some of my friends would get smacked at home for getting an F. Everyone's afraid of hurting kids' feelings. Also parents' fault. Turning kids into whiny little b!#&%3s
3. The insane bureaucracy is due to the sue-happy American parents.
4. Get rid of teachers' unions. That way you can fire bad tenured teachers. Too many of them don't care anymore and teach the same way they did 20 years ago.
5. Open the doors for new teachers who actually care.
6. Attack items 1 and 2 to avoid turning young teachers into disillusioned and scared ones.
I could go on, but this is supposed to be a comment and not a post, right?
Alex, Yeah we are all too soft on our kids. But not sure the old way is better.
ReplyDeleteAgree about the older teachers and the unions, the only ones that do well are the union leaders.
Post about it then :-)
Keith-
ReplyDeleteFirst off I have to take huuuuge exception with you lame statement.
"As a parent this is a problem for some people, either because of their own expectations or because they want their kids to grow up "healthy and normal".
How do you know anything about home schooling?? Did you home school your kids? I doubt it and you anyone who hasn't should SHUT YOUR UP if you have never done this! I get tired of this basic LIE!
Know a guy named Tim Tebow not bad for a Homeschooler. My kids were all home schooled until the last 3 years. My daughter was accepted to UVA ahead of the Cum Laude at her school. She wasn't in the running because she hadn't spent long enough at the school. She graduated with a 4.0 + I can't remember exactly. My oldest son will be a senior this fall and is the Captain of the football team. My middle son is a 3 sport STAR / STARTER not just on the team. My youngest son is the same and all are honor roll students. The only reason that lame excuse is thrown out there is that the libtards that run the Public excuse of a school system want them to learn all the BS they think they should learn instead of Reading, Writing and arithmetic. BTW my kids are are all well adjusted and as normal as any kid you'll see. You would never know or be able to tell they were home schooled except maybe as an adult they would address you more properly tan most kids. Or maybe that is from living with a 20 year Marine.
How do I know all this? My wife is a teacher at the private school all my kids attend. She doesn't get paid health care or pensions or paid days off or sick days like all those whiners in Wiscosin. She hasn't had a raise since being there. If I were governor I would have fired everyone one of them. Want to know why she doesn't get any of those benefits? First we don't have unions (nor do we need them)second is we are like 10 kids from going under. BUT everyone one of our kids that graduates has to be accepted to a college or they don't get a degree. Period!
My wife puts in tireless hours preparing late into the night and grading as much too! (and never complains about it) Why? Oh you'll like this. The job, doing the job right and making sure these kids get the best education she can give them. See if she doesn't do good the parents complains and if enough she is gone. No unions to whine for them and keep the dirt bags from being fired. Nope only the best stay. BTW she worked on the space station before we had kids and could be knocking down 100k easily but we both chose that she be home with the kids and to put out some decent human beings. It's called being involved in your kids life. Well I've ranted on enough. Maybe you should consider what you post before you post it
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Tom, Thanks for leaving the comment. Sorry to get you riled up, expected more comments like Alex's actually than yours.
ReplyDeleteI didn't say I felt that way, but that is what I found when asking some people here about home schooling. You are correct it is not that way.
I do know people that Home School and very well too. No, we don't home school our kids. But I do spend my time teaching them the things school never will, or not until much later.
Electronics, mechanics, speaking/presenting, physics(for their ages), geography(they don't get that till much later in school here).
I think many teachers have the view your wife has, especially in private schools. The problem really is in public schools and the way the teachers are treated because the view is rarely on the goals or the students, but on the bottom line.