Post by upnorth218 on Nov 11, 2013 22:00:11 GMT -5
Hello fellow teachers!
I am a social studies teacher in the far north country of Minnesota.
I came across a clip of gov. Christie bullying one of your own...did a google search, read a letter signed "BadAss Teacher"...and here I am.
I must say, I have it better than most of you. But it's coming.
We over-test kids. We have to. The state mandates it. We work our tails off to pass state tests and we are rated one of the best schools around. We have a grad rate of 95 plus percent. Our kids are great kids and we even have a good deal of free/reduced lunch participation here. We are trying to get through as best we know how.
We're doing something right but I am fearful of this growing creep by corporate America into our system.
The teacher evals are coming. I'm not happy about it. It's boilerplate ALEC stuff the legislature tries to ram through..they have had some success so far, they are going to keep pushing. These people will not be satisfied until the public system is destroyed.
I for one am sick of professional development built on buzzwords. Dufours. PLCS. Marzano. Shall I go on?
I sat as a team member writing an AYP plan a few years ago and a consultant told us how we had to go with "data driven decision making" and that teaching was a science. I took exception to that, knowing it was a crock of shit. (Can I say that word here? I hope so...)
I told her teaching is an ART. She took issue with my assessment but I stuck to my guns.
As for me on a personal level, I am 44..married to the most awesome lady imaginable for the past 25 years (going to vegas to celebrate soon)..three wonderful kiddos of our own. I run (a lot), read, and spend the winters in ice rinks watching my HS boy play hockey.
I am a former dyed-in-the-wool conservative. A summer Teaching American History seminar that included some diverse viewpoints and an honest reading of our history pushed me out of the Fox News mindset. I'm a proud progressive today. When I read Mark Naison's experience with Teaching American History, it really resonated with me because that program did AMAZING things for me..as a professional and as a human being. It opened my eyes.
I have blathered on too long. It will be nice to get to know all of the rest of you!
N
I am a social studies teacher in the far north country of Minnesota.
I came across a clip of gov. Christie bullying one of your own...did a google search, read a letter signed "BadAss Teacher"...and here I am.
I must say, I have it better than most of you. But it's coming.
We over-test kids. We have to. The state mandates it. We work our tails off to pass state tests and we are rated one of the best schools around. We have a grad rate of 95 plus percent. Our kids are great kids and we even have a good deal of free/reduced lunch participation here. We are trying to get through as best we know how.
We're doing something right but I am fearful of this growing creep by corporate America into our system.
The teacher evals are coming. I'm not happy about it. It's boilerplate ALEC stuff the legislature tries to ram through..they have had some success so far, they are going to keep pushing. These people will not be satisfied until the public system is destroyed.
I for one am sick of professional development built on buzzwords. Dufours. PLCS. Marzano. Shall I go on?
I sat as a team member writing an AYP plan a few years ago and a consultant told us how we had to go with "data driven decision making" and that teaching was a science. I took exception to that, knowing it was a crock of shit. (Can I say that word here? I hope so...)
I told her teaching is an ART. She took issue with my assessment but I stuck to my guns.
As for me on a personal level, I am 44..married to the most awesome lady imaginable for the past 25 years (going to vegas to celebrate soon)..three wonderful kiddos of our own. I run (a lot), read, and spend the winters in ice rinks watching my HS boy play hockey.
I am a former dyed-in-the-wool conservative. A summer Teaching American History seminar that included some diverse viewpoints and an honest reading of our history pushed me out of the Fox News mindset. I'm a proud progressive today. When I read Mark Naison's experience with Teaching American History, it really resonated with me because that program did AMAZING things for me..as a professional and as a human being. It opened my eyes.
I have blathered on too long. It will be nice to get to know all of the rest of you!
N
