Classroom Cop

This is our pandemic! We are facing a huge deficit and our kids continue to fail in school. We really need to face the truth and make hard changes. Our diverse society challenge anyone who is in the classroom. Teachers are facing kids & parents who don't speak english and can barely write coherently. Until we challenge ourselves to face the truth and require parents to held accountable, little will change. It's just our society is unwilling to hold this discussion!

In our middle school, the biggest challenges I see stem from the home lives of students. Our students come from broken homes, uneducated parents, and from neighborhoods with low expectations. They bring this with them to school and cannot drop their problems at the door. They often entered pre-K with a deficit in language, skills, and communication and have been racing for years to "catch up", ever falling further behind.

Many of us teachers do our best, all day every day, but a lot of the students' backgrounds interfere with their learning. Many haven't learned to communicate, to ask for help, to work out problems without anger, and to relate to those different from them. They carry around their parents' anger, frustration, hatred, and fears.
It is really pitiful how few are sent to school with no home training, sparse vocabulary, and no social skills. I wish we teachers could work half the magic the world expects us to. God knows we try (we sure aren't in it for the money or the weekends off).

I agree that social promotion should end, that some educators should be let go, and that hard decisions should be made. I also believe that America might need to consider a more European style of schooling---more of a tracking system. Some students can do college, and should prepare to go. Some students cannot do college, and need to prepare for vocational work. I think the schools should begin tracking at an early age--perhaps even 7th or 8th grade. I believe it would be a more successful method, because students, their families, and their teachers could help identify the best route and the strengths for that student.

I also think many of the policies and decisions being made for schools should include the educators. We are the ones in the trenches, the ones who fight the daily battle against poverty, ignorance, and apathy. We also have the best ideas of what we need to do our job and to change lives. I hope for a day when a system puts teachers in the driver's seat, not CEO's and businessmen.

Imagine this scenario:
You are sitting in a high school classroom with one teacher and 29 other students. You are being asked to go through the steps to resolve two-dimensional vectors into their components (CA science standards, Grades 9-12) or to analyze the effects of the Industrial Revolution in England, France, Japan, Germany, and the U.S. (CA social science standards, Gr. 10). There will be a big standardized test on this and other stuff like it toward the end of the year, but it doesn't count for your grade - only the teacher's. There's no toilet paper in the restrooms, the halls are dirty, a student was shot down the street from the school yesterday, you're not getting anything for this work except a performance grade, you want to watch the game this afternoon with your friends, and there are rumors that all the teachers are going to be fired. Oh, and your dad's in jail and your mom won't be home because she's working two jobs to pay rent. Would you do the work? Could the teacher motivate every kid in that room to do the work?

If you think so, I've got a bridge in Alaska to sell you.

Each school is a reflection of the community it serves. You can't "fix" low performing schools unless you simultaneously work to "fix" the underlying problems within the community where the failing school is located. Some of the comments here imply that if schools would just do these 1 or 2 things - all will be right with the world (or at least with schools). No way... there are no easy fixes. There is no magic bullet.

People sit back & tout these charter schools and these mayors who think they are doing a better job than the public school. I'll tell you why it works. Charter schools do not have the idiotic rules that public schools have to follow. They can require students to wear uniforms, they can require students to stay for extra tutoring, they can demand that kids improve their behavior or they will be transferred out. These are only a few methods allowed by these 'charter schools.' Public schools can function very well if all stakeholders are held accountable. Starting from the kids, parents, teachers, administrators, and community. Until the system allow more rights to schools to discipline these disruptive, lazy, and absent students, nothing will change. Give me the freedom and money and I'll show you how a school can turn!

Low-performing schools must have MILITANT boot-camp structure to establish order and focus! Schools that lack order and performance need to have clear-cut, bottom line rules to get straightened out. Most are poverty stricken, high crime areas and government intervention is the appropriate step. It's about time. Some of these schools are like war-zones and responding to them as such will benefit society as a whole!

Low-performing schools should have boot-camp structure until order is established; omit extra priviledges and focus on clear-cut learning and performance. Good for you, mayor! Now, if only we can get this going in California... Inner city schools (those with high violence, corruption, and poor management/structure) must have intervention. Judging from my experience, the current models are non-effective and fail re-establish order-- let alone maintain it. As a result, students are able to control the teachers, classrooms, schools wih their disruptive behaviors. In my opinion, extremely low-performing schools need bottom line structure and discipline! Students must learn how to have discipline and structure in order to persevere in life, and attain the skills necessary to do so. When schools are in chaos, and there is no accountability for the administration, as well as students, education is out the window. Some of these schools are like war-zones, therefore, responding as such is proper, appropriate and will benefit society as a whole. It needs to stop! It's about time!

As a teacher I do need to be held accountable for the learning that is occurring in my classroom. The manner in which I am held accountable needs to be established, however. If test scores are the answer then we need to define what kind of test scores. There must be a growth model for our students. To simply say "every student must be at this level by the end of the year" is unrealistic and unfair. If I have a 9th grader who enters my class with a 2nd grade reading level he or she will not be reading at a 9th grade level in one school. No way, no how. I could be teacher of the year for the United States and it wouldn't happen for the simple fact that the human brain simply does not work like that- particularly when our high school classes are 45 minutes long. Two years of growth is a significant change and major success. The testing system we have in place does not track or grasp that. Additionally, while I truly believe there is a fund allocation issue in our schools as well as a simply lack-of-fund issue, it must be addressed. We expect teachers to create miracles without any basic supplies- I don't even have enough desks in my classroom for my 35 students. I have three kids who sit on the floor or radiator. There is a single copy machine/printer for the 137 teachers in my school- and it has been broken for three weeks. Innovative teaching does not occur when the only supplies available are a 90 degree room and a teacher's voice.

As a teacher I do need to be held accountable for the learning that is occurring in my classroom. The manner in which I am held accountable needs to be established, however. If test scores are the answer then we need to define what kind of test scores. There must be a growth model for our students. To simply say "every student must be at this level by the end of the year" is unrealistic and unfair. If I have a 9th grader who enters my class with a 2nd grade reading level he or she will not be reading at a 9th grade level in one school. No way, no how. I could be teacher of the year for the United States and it wouldn't happen for the simple fact that the human brain simply does not work like that- particularly when our high school classes are 45 minutes long. Two years of growth is a significant change and major success. The testing system we have in place does not track or grasp that. Additionally, while I truly believe there is a fund allocation issue in our schools as well as a simply lack-of-fund issue, it must be addressed. We expect teachers to create miracles without any basic supplies- I don't even have enough desks in my classroom for my 35 students. I have three kids who sit on the floor or radiator. There is a single copy machine/printer for the 137 teachers in my school- and it has been broken for three weeks. Innovative teaching does not occur when the only supplies available are a 90 degree room and a teacher's voice.

As the article brings out, other problems that have to be dealt with are the dysfunctional home and the dangerous neighborhood environment. When you really sit down and try to contemplate the vastness of what we're dealing with, it's almost overwhelming. And when you think about the people who want to continue to concentrate the power and decision-making to one central authority, it gets even scarier. From my own teaching experience, If the superintendent of schools, the school principal, the teachers, AND the parents don't all work together and are "like-minded" and supporting each others' efforts, then you might as well put your hat on and go home. Everyone involved needs to be working in agreement as to teaching, testing, and discipline.

I have read some of these comments on both sides and please get a clue. The US still has the best education system in the world. Why do students come to the US to study; MIT, Havard, Princeton, GA Tech, etc... Some compare our test scores to other countries and that is a joke, they take our test scores from ALL our students and line them up against the 9-12th grade IB students in these other countries. Singapore is one example, what they don't tell you is Singapore has a two track system for graduation. The majority of students (who do not score well on test given in the 8th grade) are sent to the tech schools for the 9th and 10th grade years. At the end of their 10th grade year they are finished they graduate. The students that do well on the placement test in the 8th grade are sent to IB high schools (as far as I can tell it looks like about the top 10% are sent to the IB schools).
In the US we have one track to graduation, there are numerous studies (Tough times;tough choices) that state the one track is one of America's weakness'. NCLB is like a Nazi type of running the education dept. of the US. Margret Spellings was the main brown shirt (and it sounds like this guy in Chicago is trying to act like Spellings). Test scores do not really mean that much. I have know some that did not do well in High school but when their brain matured some they went back to college and burned the classes up because they finally "got it". If only some out there would really listen to what teachers are trying to tell them and then follow that advice.

So Daley acts like a conservative and installs a business approach with real metrics, actual incentives for results, and surprise surprise, the unions are insulted, and the results are good. Hmmmmm...

Dirk, you're clearly a fan of his. Leave this issue to someone who isn't automatically willing to lick Huberman's boots. If people really knew what it takes to be a teacher in a public school classroom that isn't AP, IB, or Honors, they'd crap their pants at the idea that anyone could be "called" to it. But some of us are. Let us do it, and anyone enamored of numbers can go straight to standardized hell.

Has anyone ever taken the time to question the universities that are turning out sub-standard teachers? I am appalled at how many "certified" new teachers, just coming out of universities, clearly have NO business in a classroom. Who is holding the universities accountable?

Before President Obama and those advocating for charter school, they need to look at the whole picture and strenghten our economy and help parents with better jobs so they we can spend more time with our children to help them out in their school academic challenges and activities. The assuption seem to be that teachers and principles are lazy and so are parents. We all know that the necesity both parents to work and sometimes to have two jobs undermine our efforts to help our children. Perhpaps schools need to be overhouled but first we need to take a long and serious look at where we stand right now and pinpoint the real obsticles that hinder our children from getting a better education.

It's about time, we hold teachers accountable. I work at a school, where test scores are not improving and the administration will make absolutely no changes. They keep the same teachers and wonder why test scores are crappy. It's insanity and its frustrating to a new teacher. You come in with such high hopes and expectations, then no support and any ideas for change are just shot down. Its as if, the administration thinks they can teach students in 2009, the same way they taught students in 1989. Its ridiculous. I'm all for change and accountability. All children can learn, no matter where they live.

The real problem that we have on this issue is not with the teacher's or the union. It deals with what is going on at home. Which is a whole lot of nothing. If the expectations at school were at least half met at home then you would see a tremendous turn around in "state test scores". The only type of stability these children have is at home. Many times these kids go home without a parent to discuss the new concepts they are learning in school. Instead, you have deadbeat parents who don't give a hoot about what their children are doing at home. The majority of schools that suceed all have a common vairable; a productice sound family base at home.

We need to stop pinning this on teachers and start understanding that over half the battle for kids to succeed at home is active involvement at home. Let's start to tackle that issue and educate those parents (who have dropped out of school) and begin to educate them about their RESPONSIBILITY with their children.

I am sure if the superintendent could fire parents then he would, based upon his stance against teachers. However, we can't do that. I am not making excuses for teachers, but to fire an entire staff seems not fair. You can't tell me that their are teachers at those schools who care about their jobs and take pride in it. Let's quit firing entire staffs and begin to fix the problem at home.

It's about time! Here in Los Angeles, the public school system is tantamount to a filthy joke. Almost half the students drop out, educational results are plainly substandard, and the school board does little to help, complaining that it has to do this or that to comply with state regulations and to satisfy the union. I guess the students have the lowest priority.

Getting rid of bad teachers quickly has become a hot issue here. A school board memeber introduce a measure to truncate the time required to dismiss a teacher whose performance simply doesn't cut it, but the board decided to "study" it. Bear in mind that it is largely this same that has presided over the school district's slide into inconsequentiality over the past 10 to 15 years.

Teachers and administrators need to understandvery quickly that the glacial pace of educational reform is just not acceptable for a parent whose child's entire school career would be consumed by the transition process. A father's or mother's child is not a sacrificial lamb or a lab experiment whose leftovers can be thrown in the trash if the necessary reforms are eschewed in favor of measures that are palatable to the union and administrators. Parents are fed up and very close to recalling all elected officials who act as if they answer to no one other than God Himself.

Similarly, we expect good teachers to distance themselves from the ones who are bad. Lumping themselves together for the sake of the union is a tactic that should have been abandoned long ago. Those who are lousy teachers, who are in the profession simply because they couldn't find something else to do, who bring no enthusiasm to the task, who regard their charges as "brats," and who are simply marking time until retirement must go, and those who defend their continuing presence must go as well because they are the enablers.