(Going back to review that post before writing this one, I am certain she has amended her original wording. In the follow up comments, she also stated she cleared her post with several teachers and principals she knew. I am skeptical of this claim.)
Weeks later, when I did work to engage her in an on-line conversation, she said she hadn't attacked all teachers, and she asked if I had seen the movie. She didn't think I should comment on her editorial without watching the film. This was all during a time when teachers were taking a beating in the media and from some local state governments, and I sure wasn't up for another punch from a movie. When I'm in the thick of the school year, school consumes me. I couldn't watch a movie about it too.
However, she did have a valid point.
Finally, while Brad was away the other night, I watched the movie.
My first thought was,
I am not surprised by anything in this film.
There was nothing new in it.
What's shameful is most people who watch it are shocked.
I am not surprised by anything in this film.
There was nothing new in it.
What's shameful is most people who watch it are shocked.
You see, I studied such inadequacies in both my undergrad and graduate coursework. Most notably, at one point I was assigned the book There Are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz and, and on my own, I read Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol. Both were heartrending.
Most assuredly, there are children in America who are not being served by their local public school system. There are many parents who are apathetic, or students who accept the status quo--what else do they know? But there are many, many caring parents and children who want more and know there has to be better for them.
I am blessed to work in a strong, healthy suburban school district. Still, I want to refute, based on my experience, some of the things mentioned in her post and in the film. In a way both she and the film makers blanketed so much of education.
- It took me four years to earn tenure not two. In our district, tenure does not guarantee me a job for life, it only offers me the protection of due process should an administrator decide I'm a poor teacher. Just as a student has data collected to help serve them, administration would need to collect data to terminate my employment.
- I have known teachers who haven't reached or earned tenure and have been dismissed. I know another who lost her job--though she was allowed to "retire" to save face--because she did not do her job well after many years of re-mediation.
- We have no storehouse for "lemons" or ineffective teachers in our district. Our union and our administrators wouldn't allow for such. We aim for excellence.
- The movie and the post promoted charter schools, but then the movie stated that only 1 in 5 charter schools is effective. That's 20 percent. That's no better, in fact it's worse, than the statistics for successful public schools.
- Charter schools, and parochial schools for that matter as evidenced in the movie, can and do kick students out. After choosing who to accept, they can and do let children go based on performance and income. Public schools cannot. We are open to all students.
- Our school uses RtI, Response to Intervention and Problem Solving to help re-mediate children's reading issues, math issues and behavior issues. The most important goal is to help readers. We are dedicating the first part of each school morning to RtI, and ALL staff is involved. Most importantly, we diagnose and treat all readers who are in need. Reading must be number one, and at our school it is.
- We have a reading specialist, who serves kids through the second grade in addition to what the classroom teachers are doing.
- Our school improvement team designed an after school reading program for third grade at risk students--this program is funded solely through grants and proceeds from flower sales. The teachers buy nearly 50% of the flowers.
- Merit pay was mentioned in the movie and mentioned in the blogger's vehement response after watching it. This is a tough subject. Simply put, I enjoy working with the struggling kids, I treasure any growth from them. Would I "take" kids with Asberger's, children with reading issues, students with emotional issues or teach the kids for whom math is so hard, if their growth determined my ability to make my mortgage payment? How would my merit be measured?
- I have volunteered to be one of my building's union representatives for the upcoming school year, to see for myself how things work at that level. I have always admired my peers who have done so, and now it's my turn. I am certain I will not agree with everything stated, but I want to learn. Like any political organization, the NEA has leaders who like to be seen and heard. That doesn't mean each one of us agrees with them.
- The post also mentions teacher credit unions. Obviously this blogger is confused since credit unions are similar to banks, and they have nothing to do with contracts and teacher rights. Nor does tenure have anything to do with higher pay. She has a true misunderstanding of what she is decrying.
My job is a privilege.
There are good teachers everywhere, and as stated in the film, good teachers make a difference. If anything, this film has me wanting to do more for my kids. As I sit here in summer, missing them but enjoying this break, I pray I find more strength for next school year. Please Lord, continue to strengthen me. Everything is all about you after all.
*In order for full disclosure, I admit this is a young woman I have not often been able to get along with, so any communication with her has been dicey--on the part of both of us. (Link to her months ago post will be provided to those who ask for it via email.)
I will be sharing this post with my superintendent and my principal because I am thankful for their roles in my life and the care they show for our students.
I will be sharing this post with my superintendent and my principal because I am thankful for their roles in my life and the care they show for our students.
23 comments:
I like that you wrote this post. I always wonder how teachers feel about the more recent, for lack of better term, attacks on our education system and teachers themselves.
I saw the movie. And was not surprised, but I live in Milwaukee and see the results of MPS every day. Further, I felt like the movie was incredibly one-sided, really pushing the ideas of charter schools. The problem is, charter schools consume far more resources then public school counterparts. In a time when government has completely devalued education and is stripping funding at every turn, that doesn't seem like a realistic solution.
Back in my high school days, a HS teacher at Batavia stood in front of the class and said,
"Do you all realize you are in oe of the top educational areas in the country?"
And we laughed. We thought no way did Batavia and the surrounding cities have some of the best school systems in the country. But on a daily basis, I look around and realize it's true. And I feel beyond blessed that I had access to that education. And it saddens me more then anything, that many if not most children in this country don't have that same access.
THe information in your post doesn't surprise me either. I would never believe that BPS misuses things like tenure or unions to reach selfish, non-educational goals. Batavia truly is committed to excellence and is very lucky to have a community that supports the schools wholeheartedly.
In contrast, MPS and it's teachers and unions are the reason why school districts everywhere are having their budgets cut and having increased expectations to satisfy. And that sucks. As a union they don't even look out for each other. They refuse to work with the district on the contract and as a result 200 more teachers will be let go. It's cannibalism, and since I know the greatest number of that 200 will be young, fresh graduates who probably had great motivation and a true desire to teach it breaks my heart.
There are many, many, may great teachers out there. There also many abuses and failures of the educational system. In typical societal fashion, we are so shortsighted we don't understand the solution is not to cut funding and decrease the independence of a teacher to teach. It's quite the opposite and also quite simple. Recruit good teachers. Let them teach.
Good luck being union representative, I think you'll do great!
Interesting. I don't know much about the details of teaching but I do admire those who work with our kids on a day-in, day-out basis, teaching, motivating, encouraging not just in their schooling but in behavior and values that they will carry through life. A teacher is with our kids more hours than many parents. I am thankful for the few who have made the extra effort with my kids during their years in school; each needing that extra attention at different points. Matt became an excellent reader because of one, Amanda became an expressive writer and Craig just periodically needs to know he is capable of more than he gives himself credit for. I love the movie Freedom Writers because that teacher took the time to know her students instead of just endure them. Thanks for what you do; your heart shows.
It sounds like your school is a wonderful one and kudos to everyone there for making it so. Our school district is different. I've had the unfortunate experience of dealing with several teachers over the years who just didn't care any more and weren't about to make one iota of extra effort for a child with problems (I'm talking about Megan, here).
Then there are the standardized tests. I've always hated that our schools stopped teaching about two weeks before these tests and started "coaching" the kids on how to pass the tests. I'm not aware of them hiding any poor students as has been in the news elsewhere, but students who failed (like Megan) were coached some more and allowed to take the test over again to get a passing grade. Now I wonder if they did because it hit the news yesterday that several schools in SW Pennsylvania (ours among them) have been accused of changing answers on students' tests to give better grades.
I know there are absolutely wonderful and gifted teachers out there and I'd count you among them. It just hasn't been my experience here. :(
I hadnt seen the documentary to voice my opinion on that, but I do know people ALWAYS have an opinion - dont they? Like the other blogger... what makes blogging fun... sometimes ;)
I applaud you & all the teachers that work so hard. I have friends who are teachers & to hear the things that you run into with parents, the system, even the children... its one tough job. I dont think people realize it... we just envision the person sitting behind a desk with an apple on it. Not realizing that behind that desk are things trying to knock you down.
I'm proud of you... teachers change the world!
Kayla, my job is exhausting. That's not a complaint, it's my truth. So when media and the general public make statements about my peers, I feel diminished.
Because everyone went to school, it seems everyone thinks they know what teachers do.
In the years I've been teaching, the demands have grown ten-fold. It's simply hard to keep track of it all and do my job well. It think that's where the exhaustion comes in.
Batavia is an amazing district, and I am proud to be a teacher there. Last year, instead of having teachers let go, our union voted for a salary freeze, so to speak, to make available the funds to keep our peers and serve our students. That got little media coverage.
Charter schools are not the answer, the movie SAYS that and then pushes them anyway.
I think bigger districts lose the human touch and the bureaucracy is such a stumbling block. Egos get in the way. Hearts are lost.
The union thing? It was my turn. I feel too, that if I'm going to be put in the line of fire from society, I need to know more to understand for myself what's going on.
Donna and Rebecca Jo, thank you.
Stacy, I'm sorry for your daughter's experience, and I did hear a little bit about PA on the news. The state tests are daunting. I believe if our kids get good instruction leading up to the test, they'll be ready. I do teach test taking strategies throughout the year, but my goal is to help them for their long term school careers and NOT just for the one week of testing.
Do I want to change the world of education? Yes. Can I? Most likely not. But I can endeavor to do the best for my kids, and that remains my goal.
I haven't watched the movie nor do I intend to watch it.
My kids go to a wonderful school district and I thank God for the teachers who have worked with my kids and gotten them where they are. Many of their teachers are kind, considerate and dedicated. In fact, Miss 15 started a letter writing campaign to save the job of one of her favorite teachers when she was laid off due to budget cuts. That being said, we do have our share of problems...
I think the problems come from all sides ~ politicians, parents and teachers. Some politicians think they can judge how well a school is doing by reading standardized tests. Some parents don't realize that education begins at home first (manners, respect, ect). And some teachers don't realize when the well is dry. (Our problem here is budget and teacher salaries). There has to be a common point where we can reach an understanding.
Ellen, as always, a well-written and thoughtful post. I haven't seen the film but most teachers I know are pretty down on it. Still, it has promoted a lot of discussion about issues in our education system, and that may be the silver lining. I feel strongly that teachers have been very unfairly treated in Wisconsin and elsewhere, but I am glad to see teachers standing up more and giving their side of the story.
ScottW
I have not seen the movie, and I grew up in a rual public school system. A system where my 9th grade English teacher was put to tears by the *fun-loving* jocks of my class.
We didn't learn anything. Neither teacher nor students were disciplined. School citing: Boys will be boys & she was a tenured teacher.
My problem with our school district is simply the size of the classes & the inability to allow the kids to grow at an individual pace. I don't expect our public school, meant to serve the masses, to address my concerns specifically. But on the flip side, I am thrilled with the opportunity to have my son attend an established with evidence of success Charter school starting at age 3.
I personally have a huge problem with the concept of Unions, but that is admittedly the result of growing up in a white collar automotive home. Our teacher's union was obnoxiously strong because have the spouses were UAW workers and the UAW would pitch in to lend support as needed. Anything with that much power & money is corruptable. I thank and respect the fact that Unions were needed a point in time. Over time, I'm afraid it has evolved from fighting for safety & worker's rights to a power struggle of us vs. them. With the US moving towards a service organization, and away from industry, that divide is exaserbated into a struggle for the individuals (or company) bottom line & away from the people it was originally founded to support.
Because no one's bottom line will exist if there is no money to fund the bottom line - then all the worker's rights, benefits & safety gains are moot.
When I watched the movie I took it for what it was. It's a documentary and people who make documentaries usually tell one side of an issue. The documentary fails to convey a very important piece...parental involvement. They seem to want to put everything on the teachers instead of focusing on teachers and parents working together to insure the best education for the child.
True, documentaries are usually one sided. And this documentary DID show parents who were involved, but it also argued that parental involvement and income matter not.
There were some inaccuracies in the film and some truths.
The reaction of the general public, and I include this other blogger in this, is to get all riled up and make a call for action, but then follow through is often lacking.
Get involved by showing up at a local hurting school and committing to reading with a group of kids one morning a week. Start a ministry at your church and partner with a nearby school in need to begin an after school tutoring program.
Businesses can do the same.
Commit to change. Commit to make things better.
Agreed.
At the district I worked at, we did a lot of the RTI stuff too. Almost all of the teacher participated,except the PE teacher who said it wasn't his job.
I was laid off politically because they were going to RIF me anyway due to budget constraints. They knew I wasn't happy there and said I was a bad teacher and just non-renewed my contract because it looks better in the papers (they were also in a contract negotiation) to say, we cut a bad teacher rather than we RIFed a good one. It really screwed me over regarding unemployment.
Two weeks before my eval the principal had me in her office to tell me how I was doing a great job and that she loved the lesson that I did, etc., etc. The next week, she called me in to tell me to be prepared for budget cuts and asked me what I was thinking. The next week, during my eval, she said I was unsatisfactory and they were non-renewing my contract. She noted I was unsatisfactory but she had only marked 3 areas of concern (there had to be 4 marked for unsatisfactory). I asked her about it, she said it was how she meant to do it. I contacted the union head, she said that I was right. I then got a phone call saying that it was a typo and that I had to come sign for a new evaluation. She had simply changed one score and offered no explanation. The thing was, another teacher (same experience, same subjects, I was 6th, he was 8th grade) got the same run-around and our evaluations were copies of each other in sections. They even had the exact same typos. Anyone who says that teachers don't need protections from administration doesn't understand stories like that... The union was supposed to file a grievance, but I don't think they got around to it with the contract and budget cuts... Thanks, DEA.
You will be a great union rep!
Thanks for being a great teacher and TRULY putting your heart into what you do. Batavia is a very impressive school district. It's interesting to see how it compares to our new schools. Even though we haven't been here long, we've noticed a lot of things we liked better about Batavia's set up- especially at the middle school. Anyway, just saying thanks. We appreciate you!
Ellen,
I have not seen the movie, but
your response to the movie and this woman's blog really is INCREDIBLY well-written; you cover a range of valid points. You mention that teaching during the school year is consuming; thank you for what you do. It is nice to hear the joy of teaching shine through this post,despite the frustration of the original blog post.
Your paragraph that really resonated with me was about merit pay.
Merit pay is a tricky subject and there are many unknowns at this
point. It seems that if you work with low level kids, your kids have
tremendous growth potential. Those that work with gifted have higher
achieving students, but a smaller range of potential growth. If pay
will be based on student growth, you might be poised for "success".
Are schools developing a true value added model of assessment, or will they simply use existing tests that were not designed to gauge growth?
Oh - if the blogger you referenced changed her original post, it
indicates that she is aware of her poor word choice. That might be a
consoling thought.
Liz
Well said, Ellie.
In a state with no unions, millions more in county budget cuts to offset the increasingly lower tax base due to free-falling property values & taxes, with 5 more furlough days mandated (that's pretty much ALL of our teacher workdays cut; so do your job for free on your own time!), a sadly rising homeless student population, not enough textbooks, teachers and counselors buying their students' school supplies, parents with no valid contact numbers, and No Child Left Behind demanding that we meet 100% graduation rate among children whose main concern is whether or not they will go hungry tonight
... hmmm I guess Waiting for Superman is a movie that just doesn't tug at my heart strings.
Seems to me that no politician or film maker would voluntarily step into my shoes to teach a 15 year-old in a poverty level household with her second baby on the way from a family that has never had anyone graduate from high school to read so she can pass a state standardized test.
(name withheld to protect the commenter)
Well said, Ellie.
You are a great teacher who genuinely cares about her students.
As a parent of two children who lived through some difficult times in schools because of administrators who cared more about their "stats" and the perception of their school rather than getting to the bottom of the issue and getting in there and "getting messy," it's incredibly frustrating and time consuming to have to claw your way up the chain of command to make anything happen.
We've had the teachers who need a paycheck… but don't need or want the kids they're there to teach. It's disheartening to say the least.
Merit pay results in the horrendous things like happened in the Atlanta school district where the teachers were helping their kids cheat.
I don't think Chris Wittle's for-profit Edison project is the answer (and apparently others agreed because it failed) and now he's off to design some network of international schools called "the avenues." the NYT wrote up an excellent piece. The proof is in the commments. It's worth a read, given your topic today.
http://nyti.ms/oBFpcR
I'm just not going to read her post; it's summer, after all--I'm supposed to be relaxing. I get really bent when people lump ANY group of people into a "they" and make sweeping generalizations.
In a way, I think that our Wisconsin Governor has to get his way (and make things even worse) before anyone will "get it." Sadly, kids will suffer in the interim. I'll do my best to hold down the fort.
I have the same experience in my school district; we are like an oasis in a really choppy ocean these days. I was always proud to work there, and was thrilled to see how they responded this spring (with careful consideration--nothing rash). Many, many of our teachers retired to get out while the getting was good, and I have to admit that I was THRILLED about one of them. (As in any field, there are bad apples.)
Thank you so much for volunteering to be a union rep this year. I always appreciate you folks.
I haven't seen the movie, but have read many reviews. I thought your blog was absolutely stunning, articulate, compassionate and rational!
Keep up the good work! We do have an impact!
jack
Look at all these amazing comments, Ellen! I know this is not your usual kind of post, but clearly you've really addressed this issue beautifully. Perhaps you've found a new niche??? :)
The expectation that the American public seems to have that teachers are miracle workers and the answers to all of the world's quandaries is ridiculous at best. Cruel at worst. My husband and I have family on all sides that are public school teachers, so I SEE the hard work and heartache that goes into their vocation.
You keep goin' with your bad self, Ellen. You are an awesome teacher!
You did a super job with this. Very well done and respectful. I will admit that I have not watched the movie. My sister did and she flat out said it would be difficult for me to watch and given the place I was in when it came out, I didn't. I agree with a lot of what you said, but like you pointed out, without seeing the movie, it's hard to elaborate. I teach in an inner city magnet school. We, too, do our very best to serve each and every child, but sometimes it is such a steep, steep uphill battle.
I am so thankful for all the conversation this post created. Let's just keep loving our kids, and for those of us in education, keep loving OUR kids too!
Yay Ellen. What a frustrating and angering climate that film created giving license to those not in the know to run roughshod over educators who are most likely statistically as effective as workers in other fields.
I would love to have a union and get mighty pissed when people write letters to the editor talking about our union. I have no ration. I want to call them up and say, "Hey dumbass, we live in a state where unions are illegal." Educate yourself before you send a letter. And shame on the papers for not correcting this misconception.
Very long story short - I was talking to our assistant superintendent after he visited our faculty meeting and asked about working with the local media to show what goes into the average school day so that people would better understand schools and teachers. He said, "The public doesn't care about what you do.". Hard to move forward from that one.
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