I have been a teacher for over 20 years. I have never seen the morale so low. There are any things you should be aware of. First of all, let me just tell you that we love teaching kids. That's why we became teachers. However, this is changing quickly. Instead of focusing on teaching your child our focus has been changed to focusing on those students who are in the middle range academically.
Your school committee has hired a superintendent who has come in and announced that she wants a 40% increase in test scores, so I'm sorry but if your child is in the above average or low average range he or she will not get any extra attention. This is not my idea, but I am being evaluated on those scores so I must do what I am told. I also need you to know that the elementary schools do not have a curriculum in place that aligns with the common core, which is what we now have to teach. So, while I have spent about six hundred dollars on curriculum materials this year alone, I can not continue to fund my classroom curriculum. I also need you to know that because I need to have rigorous lesson plans with mastery objectives using blooms taxonomy verbs, I can not be creative in my lesson planning. While I want to do fun things with my children, coloring is not considered rigorous enough, so I will not be allowing that in my classroom anymore.
Don't be surprised when your child hates school and doesn't want to come in anymore. I am walking on eggshells in fear that I may lose my job because the administration might come in watch my lesson for five minutes and give me an unsatisfactory on my observation. I am telling you this because you need to know that your child's teacher used to love teaching kids. But now we are paper pushing, data analyzing, robots, praying to last in this profession until retirement. The school committee won't listen to us, neither will the mayor or the superintendent.
You are our only hope. If you truly care about your child's education please stand up for your teachers. We want to love teaching again. Thanks for listening.
Sincerely,
A tired and frustrated teacher of the NBPS
19 comments:
You might as well add parents to the list of people who don't give a damn about teachers. They are not going to support you - most of them think you do nothing all day long and get the summer off with pay. Good luck - your superintendant, school committee, and mayor are enjoying every minute of the ridiculous demands they are making on teachers. Those of you who only have a couple of years to go before you can retire...take my advice - retire now and get out of a profession where you will never get any respect.
What a damn shame. This school system is failing our kids and we are letting it happen by bowing down to these so called officials. School is not supposed to be like boot camp. Seems to me if they keep up with all of this nonsense the drop out rate will increase.
This may be written by one teacher, but believe me, it speaks for many, including me. For sixteen years, I have served the children of NB, and I have never felt so discouraged and sad about work. We are being told that test scores trump caring, rapport, sound management, enrichment projects. Data analysis, MCAS practice--basically teaching the test to students is devouring our day and our spirits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uETWrT5fE5o
^ Watch this Teacher, parent, truth teller...
The blogger who wrote that parents basically careless about our schools is pretty close to being on target. It is my guess that well over 90 percent of the parents that have children in our schools do not even get the Standard Times. Do you think they are frequent vistors to Southcoast.com? How are they getting their information about the on goings at any school. Do you think it is through evening dinner conversation? Folks, the only people that the superintendent has power over is the people who work under her. She is going to plunge her agenda down your throats. For me it will not make the grade. I am predicting that MCAS scores will be the worst they will ever be even with teachers working harder than ever. The stress level is off the charts for anyone who is wondering. I'm not kidding. Student behavior is at a level that is so poor, it is the worst I have ever seen, and given the number of behavior problems the numbers make it difficult to control and handle at a teacher or administrator level. School is no longer about rounding out a child's education. Unfortunately it is about Math and ELA and if the superintendent says it is not then I'm not understanding her message or she is giving mixed messages.
Stop blaming parents. I agree they shouldn't hinder the learning process, but we should be able to send our kids away to boarding school with little direct involvement and still expect a good education as a result of our investment. It is not our job to give a damn about teachers; we elect officials to keep an eye on the school system.
Yes, "retire now." Most of my teachers retired at 55; something most parents can only dream about doing.
^Obvisiously, comparing students whose parents can afford to send them to private schools, to children who attend public schools, many of whom live in poverty, shows the ignorance of the writer.
as a single parent struggling to put food on the table I feel that the writer of two posts back has no understanding what of poverty is
The comparison focused on parental involvement (the lack thereof, specifically) and how it shouldn't be significant to the learning process. It had nothing to do with the economic means.
That writer does know very well what poverty is. The post offered no indication one way or another where his or her understanding of poverty is so there was no reason to comment on that aspect.
^ I guess it is true, ignorance is bliss.
To the post relating to (it's not our job to care about teachers.) I disagree, it is everyone's responsibility to care about the job that is being done by teachers. If a teacher is not approaching his or her responsibilities and preparedness in and for the classroom with a positive student's outcome then you or any parent should be outraged and discuss it with the teacher or administrator. My dream was to retire years ago, but that wasn't in the cards. When I do retire, whenever that is, it will be more then likely because of the pressures of the job and not because I want out. I enjoy teaching and I think the city is getting excellent value for their money. Everything that is being required from the state and the school and district is overwhelming. Student behavior is interfering with the learning process, and is perpetuated year over year. Teacher disrespect by students is demoralizing. Kindness is often viewed by our students as weakness and teachers take the brunt of that faulty thinking. We are told to teach a rigorous curriculum, and believe me, teachers are trying very hard to do that. Parents, rigor may not look like an A, B, or a C so please don't assume your child's teacher is the problem. In all fairness, most teachers I believe choose this profession because they want to help students succeed. I choose to teach in New Bedford because I believe some of the greatest talent in the area comes from the children of New Bedford and I am committed to give them my best everyday. If students would give half the effort I give them, and if this were the case in all classes for all teachers, the results would be spectacular. Please encourage student efficacy. It needs to be in every discussion regarding the education of our students.
I am struggling to understand why a person with no obvious empathy for struggling families, demoralized teachers, or desire to alter his/her opinions...reads this blog??? The reformers want public school teachers to retire early. They want cheap labor. They have no respect for the career teacher. They do not care that research proves it takes many years to be an effective teacher.
To the person whose job isn't to give a damn about teachers. MY GOD TELLS ME THAT MY JOB ON THIS EARTH AS A HUMAN BEING IS TO "GIVE A DAMN". But I guess your conscience tells you otherwise. I would love to have retired at 55, which would have been several years ago, but not all of us started teaching right out of college. Some of us may have worked in other fields, and actually gone into teaching because we cared, GAVE A DAMN. And yes, I was a teacher whose school year ran 12 months....whose work-day at the office was from 8-5 IN EDUCATION. And I would still be doing that if the private school I taught at hadn't closed. But, no, I went into public education. Who else in their right mind would put up with daily abuse from a bunch of rowdy teenagers and come back the next day for more? Oh, but maybe my job isn't to GIVE A DAMN about what happens to them when they leave my classroom...where they're headed after school, whether they're coming to school sick or hungry, or working too many hours to get their homework done....no that's someone else's job, but guess what! Teachers GIVE A DAMN and not just about what happens in their classrooms or in the walls of this building between 7:30 and 2:30. Whether it's our job or not. ENOUGH SAID.
Dear Educators,
This madness has gone on long enough. I felt right from the onset that people like Carrigo and Durkin were predictors and saw our district as vulnerable. They are opportunists. This is the message we keep perpetuating. And, we will continue to attract them. When I watch the mayor, I see a man who lacks the moral compass to authentically address the issues we are facing. When he is no longer the leader of this city, what will he be most remembered for? His lack of support for educators and their students? His disdain for unions? His lax mannerisms as Pia runs the show? I cannot even begin to tell you how difficult this experience has been. I chose to become an educator because of my passion for teaching just like many of you. Yet, when the Shit hit the fan, where were our administrators? These so-called mentors, role models, and leaders lead us right into hell. They were too comfortable, and it finally caught up with them too. I want our district to be what it once was, or what it can be. This is accomplished by treating colleagues with respect, acknowledging their value, inspiration, and meaningful leadership. We need to get rid of the bloodsuckers and slackers. The clock is ticking. We are running out of time. These people are not committed to our district and are driven by the almighty dollar. Live persons are meaningless to them. They are playing with our lives and those of our students. I wanted to be more than this. We all did.
Were the teachers who retired at 55 driven into this decision because the conditions in which they were teaching under were similar to ours? There are very few educators who can afford to send their children to boarding school as we don't make a hell of a lot of money. And, a portion of that money is recycled back into the classroom because we lack so many valuable resources. As for the parents, I can see why they would be afraid to step forward and take such a risk. When dollar signs and numbers (data) take precedence over everything else, you are doomed to fail. We can look at other districts to substantiate this. We can also look to other districts and see that what they have and we don't. This is a game in which nobody will win, and some day, karma will catch up with the dirty players. Within this turnaround district, the only thing you can count on is turmoil. She is not going to stop until everyone is touched in a negative way. How can the mayor and SC allow this? Don't they have any shame? If she successfully completes her 3 years with this type of brutal leadership, we won't even recognize the dust. This is not how people should be treated. It is inhumane and intolerable. I would never want to model myself after this superintendent as there are no admirable or redeeming qualities. But, for the media or other influential platforms, she downplays her past,and puts on a
good show. For now, it is survival of the fittest. Who will be left standing at the finish line? Not our veteran educators. And, surely not our fragile population. Who scores the final victory? Depends on how things play out. Get her out of here! Get them all out!
This type of instruction is the polar opposite to what research tells us about best practices. Think of what Durkin is demanding as compared to banking, or depositing information into students' minds. If there is no personal connection to lesson, and students sense what is meaningful and authentic, the information will not be retained in their long-term memory. It's like beating a dead horse. Students need to be active participants and their learning to new areas, and, as a so-called expert, Durkin should know this. Students will continue to zone out and become disengaged. This is not effective teaching, and it makes perfect sense why teachers are outraged. This goes against the grain! There are many other productive options that lead to overall student achievement. This is not one of them.
The students see their teachers stressed out and people parading through their classrooms with clipboards in their hands asking them the same stupid question over and over, "What are you doing?" Come on even they can see how ridiculous it is! The students' behaviors have never been so out of control as this year and we're going to raise the MCAS scores by 40%? Yeah, piece of cake!
Durkin is building her team of administrators who have no roots in this area. They are all outsiders who don't even live here. When they've totally destroyed our school system they will move on to other systems.
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