Look this up in Ted lectures. I am a retired educator who has always rejected the "those who can't teach" argument. I understand why the argument exists- you don't want to pay teachers what they are worth, you are too lazy to try it yourself, you don't know how much pure labor is involved. And so on. To some extent, your attitudes have become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Since you won't pay, only the truly dedicated or those who will not dedicate themselves enter the profession. You with your second house, apartment in Paris, look at even the best of teachers with disdain. "I would never do that." And so, much the shame, you wouldn't. But many of your betters have and, admit it, you still remember some of them - the ones who made you think, question yourself, examine your conclusions, hold you responsible for doing the best you could. If you are honest, you judge education by the worst, and then remember with fondness that strange Mr. Smith who made you rewrite a paper because you could do better, made you look with greater honesty at yourself. Well, I go on too long. Please go to Ted lectures and listen to Taylor Mali and then lets have a discussion about education.
eliminate tenure eliminate the liberal perspective teach facts, not opinions abolish the union hold teachers accountable and their compensation is based upon performance then come back and we can have a reasonable discussion
I studied engineering. Most who tried failed. Those who failed changed their majors to education. So yes those who cant teach.
I read the bull(*)(*)(*)(*)! I should focus on that one good teacher and ignore the dozens that sucked. Like most trully educatedc people I taught myself because those who job it was to teach me were morons.
I read your post.....but refuse to sit thru a homework assignment. First off. If you want like compensation, WORK ALL YEAR LONG. Second, as stated above, eliminate tenure, and union safeguards. Be like anyone else, rely on your merits for your employment. Third.....Loose the attitude, it doesn't become you. "If you want to get laid, go to college. If you want an education, go to a library." Frank Zappa
The attitude is the result of a lifetime of dealing with those who have never taught but know everything about it. What do you do? I'll walk in, totally inexperienced, and tell you how to do it. We'll learn whether or not you develop an attitude. Now for this work all year crap. First, teachers didn't come up with it. Agriculture did. But now, poor little junior needs his summers off to forget everything he learned, come back dumber after a summer at home in front of the tv with mom and dad and no reading, no homework. But enough about that. Let me describe the life of a dedicated English teacher. Here is a sad fact of life. There is only one way to learn how to write - write. so, the dedicated English teacher, and I was one on the college level, requires lots of writing. In my composition courses, students wrote one essay a a week. Keep it simple - suppose I only had one course and 25 students. In HS many teachers have 6 courses and up to 40 per course. Let's suppose that the teacher is really disciplined and gets though the essays at 10 minutes each - not much if one writes anything. That is 4 hours per week grading. The HS teacher has spent 30 hours grading, if dedicated, and many are. Then there are the 30 hours actually spent in class, the class prep - another 15 hours or so. Committee work- add 5 a week. Contacting parents, clubs, etc.another 5 or so, and you begin to get the idea. My hours per week as a college professor with a per semester load of 15 credit hours often exceeded 100 hours per week. I know HS teachers who would argue I was a wimp. So, Mr. teachers don't earn their money, go take a flying ****.
Oh yes your job is the only hard job. There are a lot of things I'm not an expert at. That doesn't mean that I cant tell when my mechanic or dental hygienists sucks.
So now I expect you to start lobbying the NEA for year long class schedules? You have no idea what I do. It would baffle you.
Most teachers are highly qualified but some teachers lose their jobs due to their sheer incompetence in a subject that they are supposed to teach or extremist views which do not fit in well with the educational environment and English teachers with a heavy accent were barred from teaching English in Arizona and math teachers without a college degree in the field are also considered incompetent.
Are teachers professionals or are they more like unionized bus drivers? The hallmark of a professional is the recognition of his or her duty to the recipients of his or her services. Pay should be commensurate with professionalism, skill and results.
Like most professions, there are professionals and not. I was a professional. I knew others who were not. I also know doctors, nurses, lawyers, police, you name it who put in their time and let the recipient beware. I am not an advocate of tenure. I know how hard it is to fire the incompetent. But then, try getting a lawyer disbarred, a doctor barred from a hospital and so on.
