Don't you think ps teachers have an impossible job

[choirfarm]

Just reading over the posts about different things people have been upset about with ps made me realize that ps teachers must:

 

Challenge the truly gifted kids in the class, listen to the parents and adjust expectations, enrich, etc.

 

Adjust for the learning disabled: visual learners, visual disablility, dislexia, etc. Be able to meet and teach to their needs and now they mainstream those with severe disabilities including emotional ones.

 

Be a trained nurse- be able to monitor and handle all protocol if a child has a severe allergy

 

Meanwhile teach the children they have. So if they are elementary that means teaching all children on their level math, reading, science, etc. They probably have 25 kids give or take. OR if they taught high school like I did that means 100 students a day or more.

 

I agree with a lot of what some people are upset about, but at the same time I don't see how the public school system can do this...

 

This is part of the reason why I homeschool. But sometimes I wish posters were more sympathetic. They act like school is the enemy. They have a tough job. Even when my kids graduate, I won't go back. Some of you were talking about bringing the teacher who didn't follow protocol for that nut thing up on charges. Good grief, People also bring you up on charges for discipline, so you can't. It is just a mess and a lot of it is societal.

 

Christine

[Unicorn.]

:iagree: I agree w/ you 100% Too bad most people don't see it this way. :confused:

[Word Nerd]

:iagree:

[clarkacademy]

I agree with you. I feel pity for the public school teachers. I hate the school system not exactly the teachers. One major thing you forgot to mention though is make sure these teachers have time to be the police for all the kids who were never taught to behave at home. The expectations of public school are crazy and sadly with all the "rules" in place it is still a big fat failure.

 

They can't keep our kids safe from guns and violence let alone an allergy. I pity the teachers

[catz]

I agree with you. I pulled a highly gifted kid out the system at the end of first grade. Both his teachers were doing the best they could given their situations of too many kids, too wide a span in abilities, too many behavioral problems, too many parents in their face. But their job was almost impossible IMHO.

[kalanamak]

:iagree: I know I'm not up to it.

[veggiegal]

Just reading over the posts about different things people have been upset about with ps made me realize that ps teachers must:

 

Challenge the truly gifted kids in the class, listen to the parents and adjust expectations, enrich, etc.

 

Adjust for the learning disabled: visual learners, visual disablility, dislexia, etc. Be able to meet and teach to their needs and now they mainstream those with severe disabilities including emotional ones.

 

Be a trained nurse- be able to monitor and handle all protocol if a child has a severe allergy

 

Meanwhile teach the children they have. So if they are elementary that means teaching all children on their level math, reading, science, etc. They probably have 25 kids give or take. OR if they taught high school like I did that means 100 students a day or more.

 

I agree with a lot of what some people are upset about, but at the same time I don't see how the public school system can do this...

 

This is part of the reason why I homeschool. But sometimes I wish posters were more sympathetic. They act like school is the enemy. They have a tough job. Even when my kids graduate, I won't go back. Some of you were talking about bringing the teacher who didn't follow protocol for that nut thing up on charges. Good grief, People also bring you up on charges for discipline, so you can't. It is just a mess and a lot of it is societal.

 

Christine

 

:iagree:

 

And don't forget they have to do all this while teaching a highly standardized/regulated curriculum, using only approved resources, and with only so much time spent on each subject. At least, all that was mandated for me when I taught public school. I love kids, and learning, and teaching, but the lack of autonomy in my job ultimately drove me from it.

[choirfarm]

I agree with you. I feel pity for the public school teachers. I hate the school system not exactly the teachers. One major thing you forgot to mention though is make sure these teachers have time to be the police for all the kids who were never taught to behave at home. The expectations of public school are crazy and sadly with all the "rules" in place it is still a big fat failure.

 

They can't keep our kids safe from guns and violence let alone an allergy. I pity the teachers

Absolutely... the first year I taught nearly 21 years ago, I taught 8th grade history. 3 or 4 of my girls were pregnant. One of my boys was expelled from bringing a gun on the bus. He was a SWEET boy and was only doing it because he was scared of the 16yo drug dealer that was also in one of my classes. I taught 6 classes in a row with nearly 30 in a class. My planning hour was 7th when I basically collapsed. They had to have a policeman stand at my door when I wasn't there...

I was really glad we moved when dh started his residency the next year!

[jennsmile]

You didn't mention the pressure they have to make sure the class is on task, and learning so they can pass state exams. And the have to pass oberservations from admininstrators and have their teaching evaluated.

[Jennifer3141]

I think teachers are set up to fail within the current system. And the only way that will ever change is if we reform everything we think we know about education and caring for small human beings.

[KrissiK]

Certainly. I've never thought it was the teacher's fault. I used to teach myself, though in a Christian school, and every one of your points is valid. The best a classroom teacher can hope for is to give her students a mediocre education, teach them to read and write and compute (hopefully) and if the gifted ones need more, then hope you can inspire them to pursue knowledge on their own, and the not-so-gifted students you hope that they can hold on and learn something. I remember so many parent/teacher conferences when one parent or other would ask me to make special dispensations for their student or challenge their gifted student with some kind of neat project or something and I'd just sit there and kind of despair thinking, "You know, I have 6 classes of 25-30 kids each. I have 45 minutes with them each day. And I have a life outside of school." A lot of people don't realize that most teachers don't want to be at school till 6:00 or 7:00 each evening. Some do, the super-dedicated ones (although their dedication comes at a price), but the majority of us have families, would like to go home and rest, maybe pursue some sort of hobby. I was dedicated to my job, I liked it, but there's a limit. There's only so much I can do.

[mommaduck]

I agree with you. I feel pity for the public school teachers. I hate the school system not exactly the teachers. One major thing you forgot to mention though is make sure these teachers have time to be the police for all the kids who were never taught to behave at home. The expectations of public school are crazy and sadly with all the "rules" in place it is still a big fat failure.

 

They can't keep our kids safe from guns and violence let alone an allergy. I pity the teachers

:iagree:

[Bang!Zoom!]

This is going to be an enormously long thread... :)

[twoforjoy]

I do feel badly for public school teachers. I think they are in a difficult situation. I especially think we place unrealistic expectations on them, and then fault them when they can't meet them.

 

FWIW, though, most of the public school teachers I know love what they do. They don't like the public scorn aimed at them, they don't like taking pay cuts year after year, and they don't like being the scapegoats for like everything that is wrong with society, but they love the kids they teach and they love teaching.

 

I agree with you. I feel pity for the public school teachers. I hate the school system not exactly the teachers. One major thing you forgot to mention though is make sure these teachers have time to be the police for all the kids who were never taught to behave at home. The expectations of public school are crazy and sadly with all the "rules" in place it is still a big fat failure.

 

They can't keep our kids safe from guns and violence let alone an allergy. I pity the teachers

 

Statistically, kids are safer from violence in schools than they are at home. School violence, especially serious school violence, is actually pretty rare. Unfortunately, child abuse is much more common.

 

I'm also not sure that the reason kids misbehave in school is because they weren't taught to behave at home. Behaving at home, where you have, usually, one or two adults watching a small (or at least small-ish) number of children in a familiar, comfortable environment is very different than behaving at school, where there's one adult and numerous same-age children in a different environment. That's a very difficult situation to control, and it's certainly hard for teachers, but I don't think it's necessarily the fault of parents, who can't replicate the school setting at home in order to train their child to behave in it.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

With regards to allergies, one does not need to be a nurse to adequately handle and recognize anaphylaxis IMHO as a RN.

 

Red Cross or American Heart Association Courses can train and do train lay people to do these things with their First Aid and CPR courses. IMHO all teachers and aides should be required to take both courses:)

[Snickerdoodle]

Just reading over the posts about different things people have been upset about with ps made me realize that ps teachers must:

 

In addition having kids that might not get food at home, have parents that are abusive or negligent, or are homeless.

[Kathleen in VA]

Yes, having taught in public and private schools I know the job is nigh unto impossible. I taught at a Title I school and had my students (5th graders) in the same room for about 1.5 hours per week. Yes, you read that right. 1.5 hours. The other hours had my kids at ESL, MARS (Math and Reading Specialist), Reading Specialist (no math), LD, G&T, Music, PE, and Art. It was a job just scheduling all of this and remembering to send the students out at the right times all week to meet with their specialists and teachers. That was before Excel, lol. Talk about time consuming. How in the world was I supposed to get to know the strengths, weaknesses, learning styles, etc. of 30+ kids well enough to teach them well without more time with them?

 

I had a Vietnamese boy who could not speak a word of English but excelled in math, a girl whose mom required her to cook dinner and babysit her younger siblings when she got home from school each afternoon/evening (hence, she feel asleep in class everyday), a young lady who was severely abused and could not look you in the eye or stand to be touched, a young man who had a super high IQ but could not write his own name, and the list goes on and on. Yes, public school teachers have an incredibly difficult job and my heart goes out to each and every one.

[momsquared]

I appreciate the support. :lol:

 

I don't think my job is "impossible", but it is very difficult. Most people don't realize all the things we are responsible for in any given day.

 

Usually this is where some anti-teacher person says we should be able to do all these things because we make all this money and have all this free time because we barely work. :glare:

 

I always encourage people that think it is easy to teach. Most those people wouldn't make it until lunch. :auto:

[the4Rs]

Thank you for this post. I get so tired of teachers getting so much flack from homeschoolers. They aren't our enemies. The system has failed THEM and us. Most are doing the best they can in the circumstances allotted them...and it just isn't enough. And they know it and there is nothing they can do about it.

 

Let's extend a little bit of grace to those that are really trying their best.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

I do agree that teachers need more support form administrators in disciplining children as well as from parents. Too many parents are not disciplining their children IMHO:(.

 

I also think there should be tracking possibly as long as they correct for errors in placement quickly since I think differentiation is too tall of an order. I was tracked to the lower track on 3 separate occasions in error and was told each time that it was too late to do anything about it:glare:.

 

I think mainstreaming should be done only with adequate support and in a way that other students can still achieve a high education. So if someone needs one on one they should get it. Ideally all students should be mainstreamed when possible but not at the expense of others IMHO. If a student only screams most of the day they should be in a separate class that would meet their needs.

[higginszoo]

Yes, they really do. Though one of my dc did have a truly bad teacher, most of my children's teachers were wonderful professionals, who were really trying their best to do right by these children, but were set up without the right resources and too many opposing needs to manage. Even the cs where we were before -- people asked why my dc weren't there. My response that it wasn't fair to expect the teacher to try to manage the needs of my highly gifted children (who tend to act out if overly bored) with the large number of children in that school who were immigrants and just learning English. It was something that apparently many people don't even give thought to. I really don't blame most teachers for the lack of quality, but when they're given such a range of needs and often lousy curricular materials to work with, they probably don't do as well as they would if they were set up to succeed and not to fail.

[Lovin Learnin]

All daunting tasks for sure, but some of those issues could be dealt with if the school had the right processes in place. Sorry, but there is no reason any kindergarten student with severe nut allergies should be seated next to a child with nuts during meal time. I do blame the teacher/school for that. If they took the allergy seriously they would have a process in place to either remove the child from the room when others are eating or to check everyone else's food prior to it being opened to avoid exposure. I don't believe the teacher should be brought up on charges, but she should be held accountable in some way.

 

I personally believe that most of the near impossible tasks listed by the OP are less of a teacher issue and more of a school system issue. With the right management and oversight I believe you can take a lot of the burden off of the classroom teacher and minimize the difficulty of some of these issues.

[lisabees]

I think teachers are set up to fail within the current system.

 

:iagree: Thank you for this thread OP. So many teachers get into the education field because they love kids and they want to make a difference. The system is making it near impossible to achieve what teachers truly want to achieve.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I think teachers are set up to fail within the current system. And the only way that will ever change is if we reform everything we think we know about education and caring for small human beings.

 

I have to agree with this. I would not want to be a teacher in today's schools.

[Scuff]

With regards to allergies, one does not need to be a nurse to adequately handle and recognize anaphylaxis IMHO as a RN.

 

Red Cross or American Heart Association Courses can train and do train lay people to do these things with their First Aid and CPR courses. IMHO all teachers and aides should be required to take both courses:)

 

:iagree: First Aid & CPR classes were standard in the few different jobs I did that were with children.

[veggiegal]

I appreciate the support. :lol:

 

Usually this is where some anti-teacher person says we should be able to do all these things because we make all this money and have all this free time because we barely work. :glare:

 

 

I've seen many studies that look at how many hours teachers actually work--classroom time is only one part. Prep, assessment, meetings, planning, professional development....IIRC the studies show a 55-60 hour work week is the average for teachers. Certainly not tons of free time there.

[sahm99]

I so agree with you!!!

 

With every day teaching my own, my respect for PS teachers grows!

 

I could not do it, and in spite of everything to be taken care of, there are a lot of them doing a great job.

[veggiegal]

Thank you for this post. I get so tired of teachers getting so much flack from homeschoolers. They aren't our enemies. The system has failed THEM and us. Most are doing the best they can in the circumstances allotted them...and it just isn't enough. And they know it and there is nothing they can do about it.

 

Let's extend a little bit of grace to those that are really trying their best.

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[Stacy in NJ]

Also, it's nearly impossible to effectively discipline in the classroom.

[amy g.]

I agree that teaching in a public school is difficult. The last place I taught was wonderful because the children were well behaved. Most families were intact and had involved stay at home mothers, but the year I quit, the principal told me that there was a new mandate to teach test taking skills to Kindergarteners.

 

That's just not something I can agree to do.

[MrsBasil]

I wouldn't want to be a classroom teacher, that's for sure.

 

Actually the treatment and expectations of teachers in our school district is one of the many(many, many) reasons DH and I have for homeschooling.

[zenjenn]

but the year I quit, the principal told me that there was a new mandate to teach test taking skills to Kindergarteners.

 

My child had her first standardized test in OCTOBER of her Kindergarten year.

 

Yes, they have an impossible job. I also think there are a lot of mediocre and even crummy teachers because many of the most inspired teachers are driven away from the profession.

 

It is a rare, rare, person that is a gifted teacher AND is willing to endure the enormity of BS that exists in public schools.

[amy g.]

Oh yes, I've seen plenty of awful teachers. One was given a low evaluation because the principal could not understand what the purpose of her lesson was.

 

The teacher was incensed. What did she mean purpose? No one had ever told HER that lessons were supposed to have a purpose, and that the teacher needs to know what concept is being taught.

[G5052]

I love teaching as a profession. I teach my own children, college students, local homeschooled students, and online homeschooled students.

 

But teaching at the public community college is far as I'll go, not public K-12 school. Even community college teaching is highly regulated. They carry professional liability insurance on me that specifies certain ways that I have to handle things in order to be covered. My syllabus is periodically examined for legal problems and must be followed 100%. And periodically they administer a test to my students at the beginning and end of the semester to see if I'm really teaching to the state criteria. At least my students are adults and are responsible for themselves or have a waiver from their parents if they're under 18. If they don't show up for class or leave class, I'm not responsible. I can even ask them to leave class or call security and have them removed. I'm not judged by how many I fail as long as I follow my approved syllabus, and the population is somewhat self-selected for students who have a reason to be there.

 

No way do I want to teach under a more regulated system with a wider range of students. Several of my homeschooling friends have gone back to school for teaching certificates and are working in the public schools. Not me at this point!

[Bang!Zoom!]

My child had her first standardized test in OCTOBER of her Kindergarten year.

 

Yes, they have an impossible job. I also think there are a lot of mediocre and even crummy teachers because many of the most inspired teachers are driven away from the profession.

 

It is a rare, rare, person that is a gifted teacher AND is willing to endure the enormity of BS that exists in public schools.

 

 

Zenn, I've seen splinter groups done on this.

 

I saw a group of k-8 teachers band together and open a private situation that was incredible.

 

They basically threw out the system and found parents that could work with them.

 

These were also extensively trained g/t teachers, specialists, stratospheric.

 

They are out there.

[creekland]

Just reading over the posts about different things people have been upset about with ps made me realize that ps teachers must:

 

Challenge the truly gifted kids in the class, listen to the parents and adjust expectations, enrich, etc.

 

Adjust for the learning disabled: visual learners, visual disablility, dislexia, etc. Be able to meet and teach to their needs and now they mainstream those with severe disabilities including emotional ones.

 

Be a trained nurse- be able to monitor and handle all protocol if a child has a severe allergy

 

Meanwhile teach the children they have. So if they are elementary that means teaching all children on their level math, reading, science, etc. They probably have 25 kids give or take. OR if they taught high school like I did that means 100 students a day or more.

 

I agree with a lot of what some people are upset about, but at the same time I don't see how the public school system can do this...

 

This is part of the reason why I homeschool. But sometimes I wish posters were more sympathetic. They act like school is the enemy. They have a tough job. Even when my kids graduate, I won't go back. Some of you were talking about bringing the teacher who didn't follow protocol for that nut thing up on charges. Good grief, People also bring you up on charges for discipline, so you can't. It is just a mess and a lot of it is societal.

 

Christine

 

Oh wow, I just came across this thread on my lunch break, at school. Some of those other threads you mentioned I don't even bother reading beyond the first page...

 

Today I'm teaching:

 

Alg 1B (second half of an Alg 1 course) to non-mathy kids. We're doing 2D inequality graphing.

 

Slope ratios (known as tangent - except the kids aren't at that point yet) to mostly non-mathy kids. This is Geometry.

 

Functions vs Relations to Pre-Calc. This will be a mix of mathy and non-mathy kids.

 

We also have a scheduled Evacuation Drill and had "fun" when the fire alarm went off unexpectedly (we no longer leave school for those, but it disrupts class).

 

I don't get concerned about health issues. Earlier this year I had a potential cardiac case that scared me. I called the nurse and they handled it. Had the kid collapsed I'd have done what I could, of course, but the nurse is far better equipped to handle it than I am.

 

And yes, controlling behavior is sometimes up to half the battle (but I don't usually have that problem - ex military here ;)). Opening the mind with apathetic kids is a far greater problem.

 

Now, off to read what I can before lunch is over. Of course, I also need to use the restroom in that half hour period of time.

[Mrs Mungo]

Yes, I think they have an impossible task.

[Daisy]

:iagree: Thank you for this thread OP. So many teachers get into the education field because they love kids and they want to make a difference. The system is making it near impossible to achieve what teachers truly want to achieve.

 

Exactly.

 

My husband loves his job but he does get very frustrated and stressed.

 

He's a huge supporter of homeschooling and would be the first to admit that in our current public school system, it is the child who is the one who gets the short end of the stick.

 

I wish more people would support his efforts to make a difference.

 

Yesterday he...

 

• Went to school an hour early so he could meet with a parent before they went to work.
   
  
• Administered a stupid test that had nothing to do with curriculum but probably helped fund some grant.
   
  
• Physically brought a screaming, throwing, biting 6yo down to the office (This child behaves this way every single day).
   
  
• Broke up two first graders who were fighting over a perceived insult. He couldn't contact the parents because their phone numbers were wrong (often parents give wrong phone numbers to avoid being called).
   
  
• Missed his lunch because he needed to sit with one of his students who has been misbehaving in the lunchroom.
   
  
• Dealt with the first grader who wet his pants in class.
   
  
• Hunted down a 3rd grader who had choked one of his first graders in the bathroom. It took him all day long to figure out which kid had done it but he didn't give up. He called the parents. He filled out a stack of paperwork on the 3rd grader (who already had an 8in thick file).
   
  
• Administered an ELL exam to 2 new students because he is the ELL lead for his grade level.
   
  
• Stayed after his leave time for 2 hours because he is helping the parents on the school site council determine how to use discretionary funds in the budget.
   
  
• Renewed his teaching certificate online.
   
  
• Went through and corrected 30 writing assignments and math assignments after he got home from work.
  

 

Yeah, teachers have it so easy. :lol:

[creekland]

Before the kids return, I just want to add that I love what I do. I think there's something in the brain that clicks when a person finds their niche. This one is mine (most days).

[nowimscrappin]

I absolutely agree with the OP - but I don't think she's even scratched the surface of what they have to deal with.

 

I have a child who is diabetic. Take the allergy thread and blow it up tenfold and that's the MamaBear you get from the mother of a diabetic who wants the teacher to recognize signs of high/low blood sugar, monitor insulin dosages (if not giving them), etc.

 

don't forget about the mainstreamed special education / autistic / spectrum kids. Its not just a varying academic enironment - but varying learning environment. One may have issues with sounds, other with visual issues, another can't sit still, another didn't take his ADHD meds, or he did take his meds. This may be completely politically incorrect but I think that special education has a place in the schools and kids belong in it for a reason - I think if a child has something that affects their learning, they need an environment suited to them, not put into an environment not suited for them and then try to make people work around them and make it suited for them. In the end, that hurts the education of all of the kids, but mostly the bright ones, because so much time is spent trying to accomodate the mainstreamed ones who, in many cases, would be better off in a unique environment for them anyway. Personally, I'd like to see someone advocate for the educational needs of the gifted in schools in the same way they do for the academically challenged - their needs are being neglected in some cases moreso than the academically challenged, because their education is "protected".

 

Again, most of that is probably not politically correct. I have a son I homeschooled for five years because the classroom environment wasn't the best one for him at the time. He's back in school and thriving. I homeschool my youngest now because I don't want the teachers to have to be her nurses about her diabetes and celiac (shoot, I don't want to either, but I don't have a choice, she's my child). I don't think its fair to put that burden on the teachers and since I can homeschool, I do. But, when I do send her back, I guarantee I won't be all Mamabear because she isn't specifically catered to every minute of the day - I will work to get a workable solution for everyone.

 

Probably the downfall of our public education system is the amount of time spent on testing instead of teaching, accomodating 25 different special needs in a class of 25, and teachers that are always new because the system itself drives the good ones away in 3-4 years.

[LNC]

I see where you are coming from - but when your child is disabled and in a public school it is your duty as a parent to advocate for your child. Sometime that means you can't continue to be the teacher's cheerleader. :001_smile:

[justamouse]

I think teachers are set up to fail within the current system. And the only way that will ever change is if we reform everything we think we know about education and caring for small human beings.

:iagree:

[Happy2BaMom]

I taught in the public schools last spring for three months (4th grade, title 1 school). NONE of the teachers I knew in that school worked anything less than a 50-hour week, and most (if you count all the grading and prep work done "at home") were working 60+ hour weeks. Teachers in this state haven't had a raise in three years. Class sizes, already some of the largest in the nation, have risen all three years as well.

 

Half of my class was academically failing and had no interest in learning. Anything. Ever. Yes, you can blame boring lessons and inappropriate requirements (and I do) but the other problem is social media and our celebrity culture. Nearly all the kids had cell phones and FB accounts. That's all they wanted to do - text, do FB/Twitter/whatever. And gossip and fight with each other.

 

When it came to conference time, the parents who did show either made excuses or blamed their kids. Not one asked how they might better support their children's learning.

 

Yet, for nearly 1/2 my kids, school was the one place they received two meals a day. Not perfect food, but food. For several of them, it was the one place they could come where someone at home wasn't screaming at them or hitting them. It was warm. There were books and adults who were trying. All of them could read at least at a 2nd-grade level and do addition and subtraction and basic multiplication, which, given the hurdles, is something.

 

I get upset when I hear homeschoolers trashing the ps system the same way I get upset when I hear ps teachers (or others) trash hsers. Nearly all of the trashing is based on uninformed hyper-emotional opinions and harsh judgments.

[kitten18]

I think teachers are set up to fail within the current system. And the only way that will ever change is if we reform everything we think we know about education and caring for small human beings.

I agree but I don't see that happening, ever.

 

Thank you for this post. I get so tired of teachers getting so much flack from homeschoolers. They aren't our enemies. The system has failed THEM and us. Most are doing the best they can in the circumstances allotted them...and it just isn't enough. And they know it and there is nothing they can do about it.

 

Let's extend a little bit of grace to those that are really trying their best.

:iagree:

[creekland]

One last "what ps teachers have to deal with" episode from today (true story - high school - my geometry class).

 

One student returned from lunch telling his classmates he felt sick. Naturally I went to check it out. His problem? Apparently at lunch he ate a large amount of salt on a dare. My response? "Yes, too much salt at once can make you feel ill and is bad for your body. Go to the nurse." The nurse gave him something to counteract it and sent him back. He then felt ill, went to the restroom and threw up. I returned him to the nurse.

 

There's something new every day, but I don't feel the least bit responsible for his illness nor do I blame my district for it. I'm thankful we have nurses on staff. I wish there were a way we could speed up wisdom in teenaged boys (and girls).

[southernm]

I agree. I will never teach in a PS again. My dear friend went back to the school we used to work at as a reading intervention specialist. She is so upset because there is one "bully" who works very closely with the principal. They constantly talk about the other teachers/put them down. Very high school gossip stuff. My friend is miserable and it is her personality to stay out of everything. It's become so bad she is about to quit. The politics among the staff at any school can be UNREAL!

[....]

Three of my best friends from college became teachers. I can't even post the stories they have told me. I can tell you that one of my friends has been attacked by students (during class), one student ripped her glasses off her face and threw them across the room (and none of the kids would help her) and she says that she's had homeless kids walk in and sit down (pretending to be part of the class - that just brings tears to my eyes).

 

My friend who teaches high school in an affluent area has told me some very disturbing stories that I can't post.

 

This probably isn't a popular opinion, but I think some kids aren't being taught to respect adults in authority...kids are spending too much time with groups of kids and not adults (the behavior modeling is negative)...and there's a "Lord of the Flies" thing going on in some situations...etc.

 

As far as the "system", I think there is so much testing/regulation that the teachers can't teach. I also think students spend too much time in school. And all these new educational (experimental) trends aren't helping much, either.

 

I feel bad for the teachers in those situations (and I know it isn't like that in every school).

[momma aimee]

Just reading over the posts about different things people have been upset about with ps made me realize that ps teachers must:

 

Challenge the truly gifted kids in the class, listen to the parents and adjust expectations, enrich, etc.

 

Adjust for the learning disabled: visual learners, visual disablility, dislexia, etc. Be able to meet and teach to their needs and now they mainstream those with severe disabilities including emotional ones.

 

Be a trained nurse- be able to monitor and handle all protocol if a child has a severe allergy

 

Meanwhile teach the children they have. So if they are elementary that means teaching all children on their level math, reading, science, etc. They probably have 25 kids give or take. OR if they taught high school like I did that means 100 students a day or more.

 

I agree with a lot of what some people are upset about, but at the same time I don't see how the public school system can do this...

 

This is part of the reason why I homeschool. But sometimes I wish posters were more sympathetic. They act like school is the enemy. They have a tough job. Even when my kids graduate, I won't go back. Some of you were talking about bringing the teacher who didn't follow protocol for that nut thing up on charges. Good grief, People also bring you up on charges for discipline, so you can't. It is just a mess and a lot of it is societal.

 

Christine

 

i do think they have a tough job.

 

I am more likely to tell a parent, or at least think, that complain their child is not challenged enough to 'bring the child home, there is only so much the school can do" and to enrich an advanced student beyond their classroom is "above and beyond"

 

but

 

when it comes to the case of child safety (and allowing exposure to a deadly allergic agent and not following SOP) I do feel they should be repermanded and legally liable. safety is baseline, not 'more than' such as addressing a gifted child.

 

I am a trained and former 'papered' foster parent. Every child in my care may not have been challenged mathematically each day -- but they were physically safe.

 

to me there is a BIG difference in "my child is not safe" and "my child is not challenged (if your child is beyond their peers". one is reason to homeschool the other is reason for heads to roll at the school.

 

for the record i think MOST of the issues in the public schools are the result of the PARENTS and their lack of parenting -- MOST, not all

[Jenny in Atl]

I have a child who is diabetic. Take the allergy thread and blow it up tenfold and that's the MamaBear you get from the mother of a diabetic who wants the teacher to recognize signs of high/low blood sugar, monitor insulin dosages (if not giving them), etc.

 

But, when I do send her back, I guarantee I won't be all Mamabear because she isn't specifically catered to every minute of the day - I will work to get a workable solution for everyone.

 

Probably the downfall of our public education system is the amount of time spent on testing instead of teaching, accomodating 25 different special needs in a class of 25, and teachers that are always new because the system itself drives the good ones away in 3-4 years.

 

:iagree:

As the mother of a Type-1/Celiac kid too, I could not agree more. Fi is still home with me, and most likely will be till she enters high school.

 

My oldest is in her second year of high school, and honestly she has only one outstanding teacher. His whole life revolves around his job (not married/no kids/ect). The others seem exhausted, over worked, under payed, expected to cater to kids from so many different backgrounds, and under constant pressure from the over paid, overly self-important school administrators.

 

Like one said from an earlier post; only until the whole education system is actually about the kids, will things change. I too doubt this will ever change.

[Celia]

Totally agree that they have an impossible job. I'm in Canada, so I don't know about your No Child Left Behind thing you guys in the US have going, but in a seminar on autism I went to recently, the speaker referred to it as No Teacher Left Standing. Made me stop and ponder!