Teacher: It's a feeling of us vs. them

Odessa American ^ | 1/22/12 | Cayler Ballinger

[Nachum]

Cleaning out years of projects and student art from her classroom was an emotional process for Teri Cowan, but she felt it was her only choice. Cowan worked for the Ector County Independent School District for 23 years, 13 of those years teaching Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate sophomore English at Odessa High School. She was teacher of the year for the 2010-11 school year at the high school and secondary teacher of the year for ECISD for the 1995-96 school year. As well as volunteering as the National Honor Society, prom and class council sponsors. Tuesday, Jan. 17, was

[CMAC51]

It’s still a union in all but name

On what do you base your assertion. They have no collective bargaining, no direct input on administrative decisions, participation is voluntaryand their only leverage is in the political arena. In your world how do they qualify as a union in all but the name?

[CMAC51]

See post #1 and join the group.

[CMAC51]

My apology for the typo.

Please see post #100.

[CMAC51]

Please feel free to impart your wealth of knowledge and wisdom in response to post #101.

[Scotswife]

something about new software and having to enter student data and lessons into it.

She came off as whiny - but the whole software thing does sound like a waste of time.

The problems with our schools have nothing to do with whether or not kid’s info is accessible on the computer.
I think “progressive” educators love to brag about how tech-savvy they’ve become....but in the end it’s a crock.

[Scotswife]

in our state - it’s the state ed. lovelies who are handing down the orders and expecting everyone to hop to it.
Their grasp of....reality...is limited.

[verga]

Unfortunately for you this is still a free country and when you make ignorant comments I will feel free to refute them. Also unfortunately for you, your refusal to debate says much more about YOU and the weakness of your position.

Now I asked you why you don't rail against the Police and Fire Departments which are also members of public unions.

Why you don't rail against the police who enforce the laws of the "leftist" government?

Please respond I am sure many people want o know how you can maintain such a hypocritical stance.

[verga]

Lancy I agree with your points, which is why I teach in a rural district. and I have tried to have rational conversations with the Ron Paul fringe elements on these threads. I have tried to explain to them that in the cities that there is a certain percentage that come from single parent homes that simply can't home school, or in may two parent homes that both parents need to work just to keep a roof over their head. Sadly they simply won't engage in rational discussion. I am all in favor of charter schools, home schools, and vouchers, I feel that competition will only improve ALL schools.

[verga]

Your ignorance was in blaming a non-existent union.

CMAC51, you will find that the three FReepers I co-pinged NEVER ever let the facts get in their way.

Thank you for helping to put them in their place.

[netmilsmom]

CMAC51 spelled “ignorance” wrong.

At a certain point (probably before you call someone a Nazi), you stop digging your grave.

[metmom]

You already demonstrated your ingnorance, do you really want to advance to stupidity?

You showed her real good.......

***sigh***

[metmom]

ping

[raybbr]

Lots of testimonials at the site for this teacher. Too bad you won’t see them...

[netmilsmom]

Well, on this thread I’m ingnorant and a nazi.

Sometimes, ya just can’t make this stuff up.

[Moonman62]

pics on Sodahead

[wintertime]

I had surgery recently. If the directors of the hospital had insisted that the surgeon and anesthesiologists do surgery in rooms that were unworkable, with computers with “glitches”,and poorly trained operating room administrators and technicians, my surgeon and the anesthesiologist would have refused to cooperate. If the administrators had insisted on surgical or anesthesiology methods that were ineffective or harmful, my surgeon and anesthesiologist would have canceled the surgery. And....They would have moved their medical and surgical practices to another hospital.

Why? Answer: They are professionals.

So?....Yes, teachers ( who claim to be professionals) **are** responsible for cooperating with unworkable systems and teaching methods that they **know** are ineffective and even hurtful to children.

As for you bigoted remarks about immigrants, my experience is completely different. My husband and I were asked to work with the Spanish speaking congregation of our denomination in our county. ( We are fluent in Spanish). Immigrant parents care deeply about education.

The parents in our congregation are appalled that their children are not learning to read. How could they? The government schools are using whole word methods. These kids, being very bright, quickly learn the 300 or so sight words in these programs but soon hit a wall in the third grade. The new-new-”discovery” math has even the Anglo parents befuddled.

The Spanish speaking parents beg that their children repeat the year so they can learn English before moving on, but the government school thugs ( teachers cooperating) insist that they not only attempt to learn English ( in “bilingual” classes) but the next year's new work as well. Not only is this ghettoizing of children into bilingual classes and staying on grade level ineffective, it is hurtful! The teachers know it, too but everyday they**willingly** cooperate with and implement this educational malpractice.

Fundamentally, our Spanish parents are shocked when they learn that their children are not being taught by the same highly effective “mud-hut” methods of instruction ( and discipline) that they enjoyed in their home countries.

Fundamentally, after having worked with Anglo and Spanish speaking cub scouts for more than 3 years, I have concluded the following:

The **only** children in this county who are getting an education are being homeschooled or “afterschooled” by parents, friends, of the family, church tutors, or privately paid tutors. Those who are not homeschooled or afterschooled will be functionally illiterate and innumerate.

Finally, personally, I don't know how teachers could willingly agree to force a child to think and reason godlessly. Many children are in the government schools by compulsion ( by law)! Our nation's schools are ( by law) godlessly secular humanist. Simply to cooperate in the classroom, read the texts, and complete assignments the child must think and reason godlessly. How could it be otherwise? Why would any teacher cooperate with forcing a child to do that?

[TADSLOS]

I concur with this teacher’s comments. My career as a Texas teacher ends with this school year. I’ve had it with know-nothing school boards, underqualified-but-overpaid superintendents, idiot principals and their unrealistic, CYA demands on teachers. I’ve had it with the federal government’s nose in the tent.

Teachers (at least in Texas) are being driven out by demands made on them. You’d have to be out of your mind to go into teaching. I told my daughter in-law not even to consider the field of education.

My wife will also be retiring in disgust as a special ed teacher here in Texas at the end of this school year. Your post is spot on. The amount of CYA BS bureaucracy that helps drive No Child Left Behind/ESL/TEKS- STAAR ad nausea makes it damned near impossible for teachers to actually teach excellence anymore. Texas public schools are little more than minimum security prisons for kids to attend and receive their primary indoctrination before attending advanced indoctrination in universities.

[metmom]

Well, on this thread I’m ingnorant and a nazi.

Well, you can't help it and either can I.

After all, we ARE products of the public education system.

For all they disparage homeschoolers, what the educrats fail to realize is that virtually all homsechool parents to about this point in time DID the homeschooling and were not the homeschooled.

Virtually all of us were products of the public education system and any deficiencies we display can be rightly laid at the feet of their public education system which they so vehemently defend.

And that's why we decided to homsehool. At least our eyes have been opened to what's really going on and we're trying to spare our children the same fate.

My poor ingnorant homeschooled daughter just pulled a 4.0 for her spring semester in grad school.

My youngest is so far ahead in her sophomore year, that she looks to be able to start grad level courses well before she graduates with her UNDERGRAD degree. And that was after switching colleges after her first year and having to catch up in her area of major.

Sure, what failures homeschoolers are..... /s

[CMAC51]

As for you bigoted remarks about immigrants, my experience is completely different. My husband and I were asked to work with the Spanish speaking congregation of our denomination in our county. ( We are fluent in Spanish). Immigrant parents care deeply about education.

The parents in our congregation are appalled that their children are not learning to read. How could they? The government schools are using whole word methods. These kids, being very bright, quickly learn the 300 or so sight words in these programs but soon hit a wall in the third grade. The new-new-”discovery” math has even the Anglo parents befuddled.

The Spanish speaking parents beg that their children repeat the year so they can learn English before moving on, but the government school thugs ( teachers cooperating) insist that they not only attempt to learn English ( in “bilingual” classes) but the next year's new work as well. Not only is this ghettoizing of children into bilingual classes and staying on grade level ineffective, it is hurtful! The teachers know it, too but everyday they**willingly** cooperate with and implement this educational malpractice.

Fundamentally, our Spanish parents are shocked when they learn that their children are not being taught by the same highly effective “mud-hut” methods of instruction ( and discipline) that they enjoyed in their home countries.

I have no idea of your location so I do not know what type of Hispanic community you are dealing with. In Texas, there are definately Hispanic families very focused on their education. However, they are not the norm. Too many believe education for girls is a waste of time. Too many will not participate in conferences or even respond to notes or inquiries. It is not bigotry, it is basic fact. My wife is a Reading Specialist and is therefore involved in the remedial conferences and review. So she is completey aware of who is constructively involved and who is actually creating an impediment to improvement. It is the Hispanic community that insists on English as a Second Language programs

Phonics is the basis for reading education in Texas. It has been since the recommendations of the Perot commission were adopted.

Why? Answer: They are professionals.

How ridiculously niave. Surgeons and anathesiologist are at the top of the food chain. They have economic clout. Talk to the nurses and emergency care pesonell and see what they deal with. They are professionals yet they deal with understaffing, questionable equipment and glitchy computer systems. Better yet, talk to the ER staff of a county hospital and see what they have to work through. Your example is meaningless since you ignore econimics in the situation.

[CMAC51]

Typos are a capital crime now?