[summer]

gitmo, I did not think you were anti-teacher at all; don't worry about it! And, I really appreciated your entire post, especially this part:

But I do see issues in public and private schools in our area. And I find myself very impatient with school systems that refuse to deal with problem teachers. As far as the issues teachers face today: It is amazing what now falls into the teacher's lap. I was unaware until recently that a lot of children eat all 3 meals at the school. Teachers have to be pharmacologists, psychiatrists, therapists, racial ambassadors, and family counselors.

We were recently told that many of the students live in homes where there is no written material at all. No magazines, no books, no newspapers, no internet.

I had a student (and, in one school, most of the class I had was like this one) who kept destroying every supply I gave him/the class to use -- if I gave him a pencil, he would break it; a crayon, he would step on it; you name it, he would destroy it. Or, walk off with it, stealing it.

I talked to him about it, and found out the same thing I found out about other kids: he has no crayons, no pencils, nothing, he claims, at home. He does not have a mom, his dad works at night, etc. So, he is always angry that other kids have what he does not. And, he's always angry. Not a good way for a kid to grow up.

[gitmo]

That's one thing we have done for years. We try to supply our teachers with paper, pencil, kleenex, etc. We've found that we can often get a year's supply of paper and pencils for free through business connections. The teachers are always so appreciative. They usually end up spending their own (tiny) salaries on class supplies for the kids.