Posted on 09/02/2002 4:54:59 AM PDT by JohnHuang2
My mom was forced to resign from her teaching job at an elementary school (5th grade) for not passing all of the students (the majority of them were lazy idiots whose parents told them not to listen to white teachers and the students made sure my mom knew this).
Failed parenting equals failed education equals failure to learn the basic tools of life equals failed responsibility of an entire new generation equals failed society.
Any country in which children are not properly raised has doomed itself to self-destruct.
We need to do something to stop all these ~stupid, corrupt parents~ from interfering with the way our good public schools are trying to raise their kids!
Can you believe that some parents would let their children go all the way through their adolescence without even knowing about the intimacy of fisting?
When I think about the hell these underpaid, overworked, heroic public school teachers and officials go through to get the message out and help shape the minds of the next generation, my heart wells up with admiration!
All teachers make this choice and the best ones, the teachers who believe in discipline and rigorous instruction, either leave or go stark raving mad. "Good" teaching comes with a price, these days: rarely lawsuits, but most commonly threats, intimidation, harrassment, rudeness, insults, rumors, ruined reputations, emotional abuse, pressure from administrators to cave in, etc. Is it any wonder that 'good' teachers are leaving in droves? Is it any surprise that math and science teachers are on the endangered species list? Is it any surprise the damage the 'low-standards-just-to-stay-sane crowd has inflicted?
I have a 'real' job, now although I tutor chemistry on the side. I get to charge 7-8 times per hour what I made in the classroom and get a fraction of the grief- it's quite a delightful hobby. I recommend it to all frustrated teachers. A couple I know tutor full time and are making a killing- they just bought a vacation home.
The best thing for the school system is total collapse. Replace it with a total capitalistic free-for-all. Parents should be able to choose from all manner of curricula and regimen. But more importantly, capitalistic educators need to be able to choose who they'll take on as students- like I do as a private tutor. That will increase standards as the kids/families who give a darn will compete for the best teachers.
(/RANT) Sorry for taking up so much bandwidth.
I'm glad to hear that you've taken your God given talents and put them to good use. Good luck. I hope you see a lot of students, receive great satifaction from your tutoring, and make a lot of money. It sounds like you deserve it.
~sigh~
My post was sarcastic... ~that~ was pointing out one example of public school intrusiveness, the mass. sex ed debacle of (i think) last year.
I know a few who are downright subversive- sneaky to the point that the CIA could recruit them. On the surface they go along with whatever the admin's whims are for that week, but in the trenches they are employing good old-fashioned best practice and try really hard not to get caught.
I know a first grade teacher who deals with the migrant population in southern AZ. The school is whole language but she owns (purchased with her own monies) several copies of 'Hooked On Phonics' that she loans out to families. Subversive! Insubordinate, actually. But she keeps her head down and gets excellent results. Ironically she was promoted to 'reading specialist' and travels from classroom to classroom helping the low readers. If the educrats only knew!
That could work both ways, like my daughter's english teacher last year(the school ran her off after one year). I went to confer with her during open house, and was more than a little taken aback by all of the subliminal ~vagina~ art(georgia o'keefe and many more) grouped on one wall. She had an uncovered tattoo on her ankle(contrary to school dress code) and a figurine of a fawn with the words "please dont kill me" on it front and center of her desk( we are rural here, I don't hunt, but most folks around here do). She showed me her grade book, and the ~lowest~ grade average was a 97(givaway grades). Anyway, I never said anything to the administration, but apparently I didn't have to. Her aunt had pulled some strings to get her the job in our choice, violence-free school, but the lady just had to be a ~liberal warrior~...
Having said all that, I liked the woman -- and even let my daughter babysit her kid -- but I can't say I disagree with her dismissal.
I am curious, you said some things in an earlier post about free-market education. It occurs to me that most of the ~problem~ kids really don't want to be there in the first place -- what do you think about a public education system that is freely available to citizens, but not compulsory. Obviously, only students who get something out of it would be allowed to stay, I don't advocate a public baby-sitting industry. Do you think it would help? BTW: I am glad things are going better for you than they were.
Miz -- what is your take on all of this?
The compulsory issue is key. Whenever something becomes mandatory it loses value. Things we choose for ourselves, especially things that not everyone has, have value. Medical training: valuable. High school algebra: worthless.
Kids know this. Never, ever underestimate the ability of teens to see through pretense (they are also experts at manipulating adults). Most of the 'problem' kids and their 'problem' parents rightly see the contrived nature of homework, projects, cute reports, and even grades. They want to cut to the chase: is this useful or not? Large numbers of kids see no need for things like algebra and chemistry and they won't until they actually need to use them. So why force these kids to sit in a classroom where they don't want to be? Why not get them out into the world- work opportunites, internships, apprenticeships, mentorships- so they can see how all these pieces fall into place. When they decide they need algebra, when they choose chemistry for themselves they will excell because it finally has value.
This is, of course, heresy because each of us sat in rows of seats in learning institutions and we all turned out ok. We all have great accomplishments and consider ourselves educated. But I dare say that you turned out ok in spite of the system, not because of it. Each and every single one of your accomplishments came from your desire to do it and not from mandatory. Think about where you could be now if you had the opportunity during the school day to persue your intellectual interests instead of sitting in a "useless" class.
So I say scrap the whole system. Put the money and the responsibility squarely in the parents' hands. Put every educational option dreamed up in human history on the table and let the market rule. Again, I haven't fleshed out all the details (I'll let you know when I do)- I just know the whole 'system' is broken beyond repair, that kids are capable of far more than is currently expected of them, and that something has to give.
...and not from mandatory schooling.
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