“As I heard the tread of pupils coming up my ancient, creaking stairs, I felt like a tart awaiting her clients.”
A.L. Rowse – On Life as an Oxford Don.
In the classroom, where the wheels hit the road, teachers face an unrewarding and frustrating tenure. It is an absolute wonder that we can even keep teachers in the classrooms of this country. Disruptive students, unsupportive parents and unproductive government requirements are the burden teachers carry as they try to impart information and process to their students. And, when states attempt to reign in spending the first item on the chopping block is always teacher pay and benefits
I have taught elementary and high school, and have been an elementary and high school principal. I have made my bones in education and can speak with authority as both a teacher and administrator.
Now that I am retired, almost everyone I associate with is a non-educator. And, when the subject of education comes up, as it often does; without exception, I have to listen to complaints of how bad teachers are, how easy their job is and that they are overpaid. Both parents and grandparents seem to relish criticizing teachers in general. The less educated the respondent the more critical the complaints.
Most teachers are better educated than your bank president. Many teachers have one or more Masters Degrees and some have Doctorates. Yet, doctors and lawyers and bank presidents do not have to recertify every four years, but teachers do. The federal government is constantly devising new hoops for teachers to jump through to obtain or retain their certification.
Chaos ruled in the classroom
As bravely the teacher walked in.
The havoc wreakers ignored him.
His voice was lost in the din.
Roger McGough – The Lesson
Parents have trouble disciplining two or three of their own children. They usually find that giving in and compromising with them results is a more congenial home environment. They deal with outburst, resistance to authority and temper fits at home, yet can’t understand how their child could be a problem in school.
When students come into a classroom they are required to sit in an assigned seat – which they do not want to do. They are required not to communicate with other students – which they resent. They are required to pay attention – which they do not want to do. They are required a modicum of decorum – which they resent. They are given assignments – which they do not wish to complete. Students resent the teacher’s authority which attempts to curtail the egocentric adolescent peer structure that is the primary focus of their entire lives.
Students would much prefer a chaotic classroom. When teachers can’t keep order the students are in charge. The greatest pleasure that a classroom can derive is to demoralize a new teacher.
Class discipline must be the major objective of the classroom teacher before instruction can commence. In public school classrooms of twenty-plus students you will find a small number of students paying attention – a larger number of students distracted – and a small number of students intent on disrupting the instruction. Discipline is achieved by establishing class routines. In an ideal classroom students would carry out the routine with very little input from the teacher. It only takes one or two disruptive students to destroy the class routine and disrupt the teacher’s presentation.
“Is our children learning?”
George W. Bush
I am sick of hearing about the need to increasing teacher certification requirements and the existence of unqualified teachers as the problem of education. This is the barking cry of politicians running for reelection – politicians who have met no competency requirements for their job.
This nation does not respect teachers. Parents do not support teachers. And, no one wants to admit that the lack of parental discipline and parental expectation are the overriding factor in a failed education system. Students come into the classroom undisciplined and unreceptive. The education of the child should be the parent’s responsibility – the school should be there to assist.
William Gilliland
Farmington
I believe that our school system is set up intentionally to separate the children from their parents. The best way to fix this is get rid of public school system as we know it, especially how it’s funded. Take the costs out of the property tax, and put them directly on the parents, make them write a check each year to the school. Parents are naturally financially vested in their children. Parents will become more motivated to see a return on their investment. Sound like a private school? good!
Ask yourself way some of the biggest advocates for public schools only attended private schools and send their children to private schools! Odd isn’t it.
Hutch:
Does your proposal defund education by exempting businesses and non-parent property owners or does it just raise taxes on parents?
Mr. Gilliland, I like your style “The less educated the respondent the more critical the complaints”. Let me that simple for the people who have complaints with the education system. You are stupid and the more you disagree with him the dumper you are.
I do have issues with the education system. Good teachers (for lack of a better term and to keep it simple) are under-paid and many teachers are grossly over-paid. In my opinion we need to weed out the bad teachers (lack of a better term and to keep it simple) so we can get better teachers and pay them properly. Just to clarify I would be fine with more tax money going to the education system if we got a better education system. To explain to the less educated critics, I would pay more taxes if I got more bang for the buck.
I do agree that disrespectful students are because of the parents. Teachers should not have to deal with a student that disrespectful to them.
All and all teachers do have it pretty good. With all the drawbacks (mouthy students, getting recertified, parents, etc.) the benefits out weigh them. How many jobs do you get all week-ends off, banker’s hours, every holiday off, snow days, the summer off (away from the students), good pay, good benefits, and a retirement program on top of SS.
When i went to school our teachers commanded respect.(Yes, I’m older.) They didn’t have to beat us to get that respect, although the threat was always there. The bggest problem with teachers today is the liberal, artsy colleges they graduate from. Start with teaching the teachers some discipline and responsibility(no, it is not always someone else’s fault as liberals believe), and it would be much easier to pass these things on to children. I recommend teachers earn their degrees while serving with the Marines.
I apologize for overgeneralizing; there are still some great teachers. But how many do you know that measure up to, for example, Mr. & Mrs. Mitchell of Temple? Short list, huh?
Captain,
Yes when I went to school our teachers received respect also. The reason for this was that if they did not we received something else when we got home. I can remember a time in seventh grade when my teacher clearly treated me unfairly. I responded in frustration by speaking back disrespectfully. When my father found out I did extra chores for a week. He also took me to the teachers house to apologize. Once I did he told me to wait outside in our farm truck. He came out about ten minutes later. I never disrespected my teacher again. It wasn’t until after my father passed away that the teacher (retired then) told me about the conversation between he and my father and explained why he never treated me unfairly again.
The point was that even when my parents had a disagreement with the school we never knew about that. They dealt with it directly adult to adult. When students hear parents and others in the community running down the teachers it is no wonder they feel emboldened to disrespect them.
It’s time to stop flogging teachers in public based on hearsay and rumor and for all parents to teach their children the value of respect and courtesy by example as well as word.
As a culture we seem to have forgotten that education begins first and foremost in the home. When children do not have a loving ,solid, stable, home life their chances are good that they will have probems in a school environment. We can’t expect teachers to parent our children as well as educate them.
The system broken, The school is closed, the prisons open
Last I knew, we had a constitution and laws. No teacher changed what was working who didn’t HAVE to. One song I sang through the years was, “If it was working so well, why did you make me change?”
Back to Basics,
Your right. When I was a lad the three places I learned how to be a decent human being were. First my home from my parents, grand parents, aunts, uncles and older kids who raised me with love that was strong enough to set boundaries and an example of positive living. Second the community including the church we went to for youth group as well as Sunday School and worship where I learned to show tolerance, respect and courtesy to others and to keep faith with my beliefs without disparaging others. Third the school where we were educated by teachers in the broader things of the world including a belief in democracy, self determination, the rights of liberty and the importance of justice as well as academic subjects. There were often hard times, we seldom had any luxuries and we sometimes were hungry but we never were without food and clothing for our souls.
in response to trapper’s last paragraph
I’m a high school teacher and…
I work on the weekends.
I work after dinner.
Snow days? Great time to get some extra school work done! (same for vacations)
And, according to current legislation I am NOT eligible for SS when I retire.
You nailed it Mr Gillland. Thank you.
It would be easier to consider some of the comments by the regulars on this page, with more regard, if they would describe what they have recently observed in the class rooms of the MBRSD. If they cannot do so it would suggest their comments are uninformed and thus, essentially, meaningless to this discussion.
My two grandmother, mother, sister, cousins and wife were/are teachers and some are members of the teachers union. One of them won Maine teacher of the year. So as one who is familiar with the current realities educators are faced with every day I can say it certainly doesn’t include bankers hours.
I’ve heard many stories of the same challenges you describe. Granted, there may be a few “bad” teachers out there but that is a reflection of society in general. Hutch writes “I believe that our school system is set up intentionally to separate the children from their parents.”If he only knew that parenting is the last thing that many children receive at home, and that some don’t want to go home at the end of the school day. More than one primary school child arrives at school with no winter coat, having had no breakfast, slept in the clothes he/she wore the day before, frequently have lice yet their parents, with their DHHS enablers in tow, blame the school if their children are not learning or are disrupting class rooms.
And yes Trapper, “The less educated the respondent the more critical the complaints” seems to the norm. But to say “All and all teachers do have it pretty good. With all the drawbacks (mouthy students, getting recertified, parents, etc.) the benefits out weigh them. How many jobs do you get all week-ends off, banker’s hours, every holiday off, snow days, the summer off (away from the students), good pay, good benefits, and a retirement program on top of SS. ” is making it a little too “simple”. I know many teachers who work two jobs and through the summer just to pay the bills. These are college educated people, many having two or more degrees. Did you ever see a Lexus in the school parking lot? Have you observed a class room lately to truly understand all they do?
The ‘weekends off’ – usually consist of needing to either get into your classroom to finish up work from the week, prepare for the upcoming week and/or do that kind of work on your own kitchen table at home, to be ready to start the week. Not many bankers take a large canvas bag of work home every night, weekend and vacation. Oh – and not many bankers spend their personal income on the clients. The majority of teachers spend some degree of their income on personal items for kids who need them (socks, boots, coats, hats, – or supplies and snacks that children need, to function in school).
You try teaching a class of 24 five year old kids for even an hour let alone a day. Personally I’d rather dig ditches. Which I have done. Through coral. But I digress. Maybe more energy should be spent on reigning in the criminals on Wall Street who got us blaming teachers and unions – in order to find the money they usurped with their exorbitant ‘bonuses’. But then again they are honest business men who earn their money through their own hard work and not from tax payers. Right?………..oops, I almost forgot about the bailout.
Oh and Hutch, none of my family or teacher friends went to private school or can afford to send their kids to one. But I’m sure your willingness to provide them with your property tax dollars could pay for a kids first couple of weeks at one. Let’s try it.
Or maybe we could just stop slamming the people who willingly enter a rather low paying profession due to their passion for teaching our children. We should feel lucky they didn’t become bankers. We have enough of those. But if they did you can be assured they would never receive blame for decimating education budgets through out the country. No, that’d be the teachers fault. Right?
The problem is not with our teachers. Our our students. It is with an antiquated educational system that no longer meets the needs of our society. We have been sitting kids at desks and feeding them information for 150 years, a system that has not evovled with the times.
Please stop about how it was when you went to school. Take a look at the world around you – NOTHING is the same as it was 10, 5, even 1 year ago. How can we expect the same results when all the players – students, parents, teachers, technology – have changed yet we expect the same methods to work???
Trapper,
The Maine State Retirement System is INSTEAD of Social Security. Teachers and public employees are forced into the retirement system without choice, and are therefore ineligible for SS. Look into the differences between the retirement system and SS and you will see a much greater cost of living increase and a smaller contribution from those who plan to pull Social Security.
I’m a teacher and I love my job. For me, the positives DO outweigh the negatives, and it is an extremely challenging and relatively unrewarding career (especially for those not intrinsically motivated). I really think that a lot of the anti-teacher (and retirement system) rhetoric stems from a lack of understanding. The retirement system is complicated, and the job of a teacher has a lot of intricacies that are not readily evident to the casual observer.
Please support teachers.
Hi Maddie,
I agree that times and technology have changed. I think the opportunities that technology gives us for virtual field trips, electronic media enriched digital educational resources, distance learning, simulation experimentation, etc. are wonderful. I know of teachers who use this technology to provide rich, creative interactive classrooms. On the other hand I find that in regards human dynamics much of what is written in Shakespeare (400 years ago) and Hammurabi (3700 years ago) is still true today. Our technologies have changed dramatically but the need of a child for supportive love, structure and guidance, strong examples of self discipline, compassion and respect, and a sensce of identity and belonging have not changed. We as a society have mastered the laws of physics, biology, chemistry, etc. but have to often abandoned the laws of decency and humanity. If we want our children to rise to a level of excellence we must through our lives provide them a stronger foundation than we have lately.