Unions and the law

I am dreadfully upset by all of the recent unrest and attack on teachers. Each and every teacher I know, even the "bad" ones, started the profession optimistically and with good intent. We all start with the notion of changing the world or making a difference. We all want our test scores to be up. We all care about our kids. We really, really do. So this week, as teacher unions are being attacked and dismantled across the nation , I am appalled at the products of a free and compulsory education [ahem, legislators] attacking our national Rights citizens have for so dearly fought. Seriously, attacking teachers?? How can democracy stand without us? What do you think happens to the poor kids without us? How dare you say that our voice, that our opinions, and rights aren't important? Do you know with whom you mess? Do you realize, dear public, how much we are capable of when allowed to make decisions and teach on our own?? We are the keepers of the children, the architects of the future, we inspire and love. We guide and protect. We carry our "work" in our hearts and minds 24/7. And, then, as we have your children in our hearts and minds, you send only messages of criticism and mistrust. We have rights that we fought for. We ask for things that help us do a better job serving you and your children. Trust us. We are amongst the most educated, compassionate, tolerant, and loving people in the world. If we say we need 48 hours before a parent-teacher conference, and we need a union to get that point across to politicians that have never been in a public school, then let us have it.
I have friends in Tennessee and Indiana, and I am hearing about the debate in Wisconsin.

Here are a few quotes from fellow teachers circulating this week:

Only 5 states do not have collective bargaining for educators and have deemed it illegal. Those states and their ranking on ACT/SAT scores are as follows:
South Carolina - 50th, North Carolina - 49th, Georgia - 48th, Texas - 47th, &
Virginia - 44th. If you are wondering, Wisconsin, with its collective bargaining for teachers, is ranked 2nd in the country. Let's keep it that way.

Our union has helped us gain the following rights, all of which could be nullified with the passing of new legislation. To gain and retain caring professionals, we must have a voice!
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salary schedule that recognizes for advanced degrees
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duty-free lunch
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specified planning time
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coaching supplements
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stipend for National Board Certification
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protection for Career and Technical Education teachers and classrooms
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specified pay periods and pay dates
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cap on individual insurance premium
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advance pay for newly-hired teachers
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grievance process for contract violations
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dues deductions for REA-TEA-NEA members
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48-hour notice before parent conferences
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reasonable limitations on bus duty, arrival or dismissal duty
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guidelines for school in-service meetings
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guidelines for regularly scheduled faculty meetings
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protection from excessive vendors/solicitation at faculty meetings
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protection from students who have committed a violent act/threat against a teacher
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outline of the evaluation process
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specification for how to document conferences and reports
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contents and maintenance of personnel files
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bereavement leave
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Sick Leave Bank
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coverage for Workman's Compensation
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defined maternity, sick, and personal leave
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professional leave for individual schools
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school calendar committee
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fair treatment and nondiscrimination clauses
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tuition for hard to staff areas
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reimbursement for required Praxis testing for tenured teachers

Differentiated Instruction

Reccomended by another teacher friend.  A must see for anyone in the business.

Reforms: Step 1

Forget everything  you know about how you learned and what kids are supposed to be able to do.  Wipe the slate clean.  Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. It is time to get radical if we want to see change.

 

No more bells and 54 minute classes.  No more yelling at kids to tuck their shirts in (but how will we be able to tell if they have guns?? Umm..maybe if we stop yelling, they won't bring guns..)  Every teacher must also study psychology and development.  They must study cultures around the world.  They must know each and every family and student that comes into their classroom intimately.  Classrooms should be small, no more that 10-15 kids for each "normal" classroom.  Smaller for ELL and special ed students.  Much smaller.  Classrooms should have big work tables and lounging spots for reading.  They should have computers and easy access to books.  They should have papers and pencils.  They should be required to go outside daily, weather permitting, to play, to run, to hike, or just to sit and read.  We must go back to meeting the physical and psychological needs of our kids, and then move it to worrying about testing. 

In a perfect classroom, there is a kitchen.  Yes, a kitchen, wherein we all prepare the food and dine together.  Oatmeal and fruit for breakfast instead of a fried "chicken" patty on a stale "bun" that smells like cardboard that my kids literally eat for breakfast.  If the kid is "lucky" he eats a bag of chips for breakfast instead.  This is an insane way to start the day, but many, many of our kids do.  If the parents won't change it, we need to, and then, maybe, just maybe, they'll teach their kids how to eat right too.  We are one of the richest countries in the world, and we throw money at an enormous problem all the while ignoring the very basics.  We talk about reducing childhood obesity, and teach nothing.  We offer them no healthy choices.  We need to INVOLVE them in the process of food rather than just sticking an old apple at the end of a cafeteria line.  When I bring apples in for my kids, they act like I have just brought them a piece of heaven.  (I try to do this once a week.) One teacher in my school reminisces of the days when she brought in an exotic fruit once a week for them to sample.  What a great way to get kids excited about good food!  You can also use cooking to teach math and reading, following directions, problem solving, respect, and creativity.  You give them experiences to write about.  Cooking and preparing food for each other, meal planning, serving, and cleaning up can take less than an hour, but I would contend could shave hours off of "test prep" because we have met basic needs.  Please, do a cost analysis and tell me how this option could possibly cost more than poor lifelong health, or the inability to learn and focus because of poor nutrition.  Food is so basic a need and concept, yet in this fast food world, who has time to focus on the essentials? We need to teach our kids survivial skills- how to feed themselves well.  From day one.   Our kids are paying the price, and this could be an easy fix. 

Pep Rallies

Once upon a time, in middle-school, in fact, I was a cheerleader.  I made the team.  I used hairspray and cheered the team.  I giggled with girls after school and even was elected co-captain one year.  Then, I grew up and changed.  I decided that I wasn't in to sports. At all.  I decided in the 11th grade to run with a different crowd that wasn't in the spotlight.  I became more interested in music and reading than jocks and scoreboards.  We all change and grow.  We discover who we want to be and how we will be that.
As a teacher, I see my students as diverse as the adults that I encounter every day.  I am baffled, however, that as schools and teachers, we seem to think that each student should be the same.  At our school, a middle school, a pep rally is a reward.  Students are allowed to not wear standard school attire on pep rally day as long as they wear a school t-shirt.  They are allowed to miss class and instruction time, ONLY to go to the pep rally.  There are no other options. If you don't go to the pep rally, it is because you are being punished.  The pep rally is billed as this wonderful event that only if you are good, you get to go to. Problem is that not all students give a flip about booty rap, teachers competing against students in b-ball, and seeing which grade can yell their grade the loudest.  ("Seventh grade, " yell, stomp, repeat.)  Some kids LOVE it.  Some kids find it relatively amusing, and some loathe it. But, as a reward, they all have to go.  And, I have to go.  Pep Rally's are loud and annoying.  The superficial light in the gym combined with the arbitrary yelling is enough to give anyone a headache.  It is nightmarish in many ways.  As a teacher, I have to go, too.  The cool teachers are the ones digging it, boogieing, and showing their school spirit.  A few students asked me for an alternative.  A reading club or a study hall, but this is frowned upon.  Not wanting to attend is an obvious affront to school spirit.  Or maybe, this assumption that we are all the same or should be is ingrained not only in our testing but in our recreation as well.  I love to see my kids having fun and enjoying themselves, but I also clearly see that the kids who seek the alternative should not be incriminated or discriminated against.  Neither should I. Just think what kind of service projects or learning subjects or critical thinking skills we could get in with a group of middle schoolers and a concerned teacher!