MY KID'S TEACHER

My Kid's Teacher | May 4, 2003 | Luis Gonzalez

[Luis Gonzalez]

Just before going to bed tonight, as I kissed my oldest boy good night, he perked up and reminded me of the note his teacher had sent home on Friday. I assured him that I would read it, and tucked him in.

I knew that the note was about the upcoming School Book Fair, he attended his first one last year, and it was a great experience for him. It was the first time he was trusted with money to spend all on his own.

He is a First grader with Third Grade reading skills, I was an avid reader as a kid, and every time I see him sitting with a book on his lap, I feel like I'm walking on air.

I went downstairs and looked for the note, I wanted to see what was expected of him, and how payment for the books would be handled.

I have copied the note word by word below, the note written, and sent home, by the person who is teaching my boy to read and write.

I have left the particulars out for obvious reasons.

I am sending the note to Tallahassee, and asking for this teacher's removal.

[FirstTomato]

The school is YOURS so it is YOUR responsiblity to make it better, not just use the excuse that you pay taxes. You have NEVER demonstrated any action by this teacher that demonstrated how she actually performs in the classroom.

Your attitude sucks because you don't want to take the responsbility to change the system from the top down. I am so SICK of you people attacking teachers when they are not the root cause of the problem with the public schools.

No one ever said the note was grammatically correct but your reaction is to attack before even considering other possibilities.

[tuna_battle_slight_return]

"No you don't, you've been making excuses for this teacher since you got on this thread. I guess the only person you don't want to take responsibility here, is the one being paid to teach grammar to little kids."

Right on.

[summer]

Luis, I am a teacher and I share your outrage, as I too hate incorrect information!

PS When you write to Tallahassee, please ask them to take a look at the following page on the state's web site:

CLICK HERE.

And, kindly inform them that since March 2003, the following info currently published on that page is incorrect:

"Thanks for your interest in the Bush/Brogan Administration.

....If you're interested in what Governor Bush or Lt. Governor Frank Brogan are doing to keep Floridians connected, call up the Governor's Webpage for information about the Bush/Brogan administration...."

Several weeks ago I emailed the myflorida.com people to inform them the new Lt. Gov of FL is Toni Jennings (a former teacher), and I politely asked them to delete "Brogan." But, they never corrected it. (They did, however, promptly send me a "thank you" auto-response.)

I also emailed Gov Bush about it, but I actually had a recent problem with my email, so I'm truly not sure if he received my email.

Yet, as a teacher who, like you, intensely dislikes incorrect information, I can assure you I find the above web page just as annoying as you find that note from your son's teacher!

[Axenolith]

Are you from DU???

[longtermmemmory]

troll thread.

[nopardons]

Pot, kettle, and I'm no " kettle ", dear. You need to remove that beam from your eye, before complaing about everyone else's mote.

I am no coward. Many people don't wish to post anything on their personal page. Many personal pages, your's included , are banal, inane, and the info can and does come back to haunt the poster. Others have been filled with lies, fraudulant claims, and / or juvenile codswallop. Since you choose to use your personal page as some middle school " SLAM BOOK ", be my guest. It's your perogative to do so, just as it is mine, to leave it blanak. ; ^ )

Your lack of reading skills keep getting you in trouble. Just WHERE did I " threaten " you ? Do, please, CCP it to your nest reply.

Your baseless accuzations, are the pathetic whinge of an arrogant person, who obviously has taken little to no responsibility, whatsoever, for her own posts. And, yes, dear, I have taken some of your posts up with a Mod.My next step will be with Jim. Now, you know. :-)

[Luis Gonzalez]

"The school is YOURS so it is YOUR responsiblity to make it better>"

And I am taking that responsibility seriously enough not to accept sub-standard work from an employee.

I worked to elect a Governor who is trying to break the hold of the teacher's union in my State.

I am not only working from the top down, but from the bottom up as well.

[summer]

PSS And, tell them to change "are" here in this sentence to "is" --

Governor Bush or Lt. Governor Frank Brogan are...

should read:

Governor Bush or Lt Governor Toni Jennings is...

[nopardons]

Oh yes, and if your REALLY want to see an obnoxious, cowardly liar, go find the nearest looking glass and have a look see. ; ^ )

[tuna_battle_slight_return]

"The school is YOURS so it is YOUR responsibility to make it better, not just use the excuse that you pay taxes. You have NEVER demonstrated any action by this teacher that demonstrated how she actually performs in the classroom."

Sorry -- the school is responsible for hiring qualified teachers -- not Ms. Gonzalez.

"Your attitude sucks because you don't want to take the responsibility to change the system from the top down. I am so SICK of you people attacking teachers when they are not the root cause of the problem with the public schools."

Again -- it's not -- and should not be -- Ms. Gonzalez's responsibility to CHANGE the system.

"No one ever said the note was grammatically correct but your reaction is to attack before even considering other possibilities."

We can argue over "other possibilities" all day. The CHANGE needs to begin (and end) with the school's "leadership".

If you believe in ACCOUNTABILITY, you'll look to the school -- not Ms. Gonzalez.

[FirstTomato]

Sorry, I'm not a teacher. I have worked in an area where I come directly in contact with many teachers.

And I know how hard they work and how they have to put up with conditions that no other professional people would be subjected to, and because they are government workers they have people dumping on them constantly.

If there is a problem then attack the problem from the top down, and in the meantime if things are so bad then remove your child from the system and homeschool. But simply getting rid of teachers isn't the solution.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"Sorry -- the school is responsible for hiring qualified teachers -- not Ms. Gonzalez."

Hey!

I'm a señor, not a señora!

[tuna_battle_slight_return]

"But simply getting rid of teachers isn't the solution."

Well, it is ONE solution. I would rather learn nothing than "learn" improperly.

[honeygrl]

"LOL. I mean no disrespect, of course, Honeygrl. I think this might piss off the "teach", though!"

I once had a teacher that wrote a note home *every* day to my mom for some silly reason or another to complain to my parents. I mean *every single day*. It was never anything major. Once it was "Tonya wasted tape today" and another time it was "Tonya wasted glue today" and frequently "Tonya talked in class today." My mom finally got tired of it and wrote the teacher a note that instructed her not to write a single note home about me ever again (in much less polite terms) and if she had a real problem with me to call her and let her know. She told her that if another note came home regarding the silly complaints again that she would come to the school and have a talk with the teacher and the principal and have me switched to another class. The teacher wrote notes like this home to all the parents of all the students and they were never positive. After the note from my mom the teacher never wrote a note home to my mom again and her problems with me seemed to disappear after that. I don't know if my mom's note made her realize what she was doing wrong or if she was just afraid of my mom but it fixed the problem. I just think it's better to confront the teacher about it before going over her head. If she'd get angry over having her mistakes pointed out, how angry do you think she would be if/when she finds out that the problem was taken over her head without her even realizing there was a problem?

[tuna_battle_slight_return]

"I'm a señor, not a señora!"

(blushing). My apologies...!

[LWalk18]

I just looked up Harvard-while they have a graduate school of education you cannot receive a bachelor's degree in education from Harvard. Some liberal arts schools have a certificate program in education, but most top liberal arts schools no longer offer bachelor's degree in education. I forgot about Columbia's Teacher's College, I apologize.

As far as taking other courses in their particular subject, in between fulfilling major requirements and core course requirements, they would not be able to take as many classes than if they could just focus on say, Math for four years plus a year at a graduate program.

[tuna_battle_slight_return]

Honeygrl = Tonya! Hello, Tonya. Nice to know someone's name around here! By the way, my parents did the same thing. I got notes all the time, for no apparent reason.

[FirstTomato]

Make the school board account for the shape of the school system. So often conservatives talk a good game, but when it comes to grass roots change, they step out of the picture.

The public school system is indeed the citizen's to change or not to change.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"...if things are so bad then remove your child from the system and homeschool. But simply getting rid of teachers isn't the solution."

Let me get this straighht.

I get taxes taken out of my paycheck every week to pay for a school system that's at best mediocre. Instead of demanding that my tax dollars get used correctly, and that better teachers get hired, I should continue to pay these taxes, and either myself or my wife should then quit our jobs and home school our kids.

All this, in order to protect someone who is not performing the job they are being paid to do to an acceptable level of efficiency.

And you have the balls to post that you want people to take responsibility?

I want that teacher to take responsibilty for her job!

[nopardons]

Do you know just how many " Ed " courses students take as opposed to their actual major ? I do. Do you realize that some of those "Ed " courses, such as "PRINCIPLES & PRACTICES " are actually vital and that using a Masters degree, for teaching that stuff would be absolutely ridiculous. Granted, the early "ED" classes are dreadful and pretty useless; however,there really weren't ( and I doubt that today is all that different, from when I was in school...if anything, there are fewer of those dreaded classes today )as many , as we had to take in our actual subject matter.

Many of the " little Ivies " still have Ed. majors, as do most, if not all, of the state universities.The old Normal schools, which then became teachers' colleges, ands then became STATE colleges, have retained their teachers programs. And whilst my friend's daughter got her Masters, at Harvard, in Ed., they must have only lately done away with the undergrad program.

As to your last paragraph, I know of NO undergrad program, in any college or university, where a student spends four years studying ONLY one topic, such as math. Pre-Med students don't, pre-law students don't, accounting students don't. Your entire position is completely flawed and irrational.