So 50 percent of the teachers at the high school are getting the boot. It will be interesting to see the criteria that'll be used and who'll make the final decisions. I certainly hope there is a process that allows a teacher's voice to be heard who gets caught between the crosshairs. It is only fair and just. There are two sides to every story.
One burning question that I have is "who are the people that are going to fill these vacancies?" Where are they coming from? Are they coming from Acushnet, Fairhaven, Dartmouth, or Rochester? My experience is that our teachers leave for those districts, and "surprisingly" succeed, can you believe it. I don't think they'll be coming back.
Are the super teachers coming from Fall River or other under performing districts to trade one disaster for another? My guess in they will apply.
So are the super teachers coming from the superintendent stable of super teachers? If they are, I hope she has lots of them, and by the way don't you think they'll be gone before the superintendent leaves our wonderful city.
I've been in the system a long time and I have not seen a strain of super teachers banging down the doors to teach here.
I sure hope the superintendent knows what she is doing and that things can get worst before they get better. Change is constant for sure, but not all change is good, and there are many examples that prove this to be true.
7 comments:
The 50% turnover at NBHS is simply wrong. No other underperforming government agency in all of America undergoes such draconian measures for perceived failure. Teachers do take a large share of the blame in this city for student failures. Most of that blame is misguided. In New Bedford poverty, hunger and a lack of respect for just about everything by some of our residents trickles down to students in our schools. No teacher should ever have to hear the "f" word from a student and accept that no punishment will be given.
Some of you might not agree with me but all of these problems are not new but they failed to galvanize the union. Administration throwing teachers under the bus to protect their own skin, both PRAB and principals. That failed to bring the union together. The high school has been a sinking ship for some time and the union stood by quietly.
I applaud all of you who attended the school committee meeting and who intend to rally next month. My only disappointment is that this togetherness came too late for the high school. Please, going forward do not wait to speak up until its too late. Hold your principals accountable. Hold PRAB accountable. Demand the School Committee do their job. Be strong and stand up for yourselves. I support you. What I don't support is being silent until its too late.
We do try to speak up. Ever hear of retaliation? The job is hard enough to do on a daily basis without a principal riding your ass every day because you challenged them.
The leadership in the school department has left a lot to be desired for many years. You can have the best teachers in a school, but if you don't have a strong leader it doesn't work.
I think I know where the super teachers will be coming from. The super teachers will be coming from Bridgewater or UMASS or any other accredited college with an ed program. Good luck with that. The NBHS students will eat these newbies for breakfast.
Lincoln Park has moved to Hathaway Blvd.
I sure hope Durkin has thought this through. I see disaster written all over this. Buy into her vision and you are ignorant of the issues and solutions to the problems pervasive to our city.
If I were the mayor or a member of the sc I would be asking myself, "what is going on here," but I do not think any one of these folks have the capacity or the guts to question the Durkinator. This drama is a bad parody of a bad dream getting worse by the moment. If I were on the sc I would find a way to resign with dignity, because the future looks bleak and dark, and most of all embarrassing. Save face now, believe me, find a reason.
I guarantee that the teachers who will be hired to replace NBHS teachers who are let go will be those from Teach for America--people who get shipped in from all over the US and who are willing to work for dirt cheap pay for only two years and then move on.
Human rresources has already stated that they have over 100 applicants from teach America. So they will be coming from everywhere
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