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After having heard Nina trip all over herself on a radio talk show last week--in which the host essentially called for the firing of all veteran teachers---it's clear that she has no clue if there is no script. She is running a shell game. What idiot would give she and her cronies a vote of confidence after giving so much away over the past few years?
In simple terms, teachers need to think beyond themselves. A good education is what ALL children need to be successful adults. Teachers must coalesce around providing that education rather than protecting their jobs, their seniority, and their own futures. Those things will follow naturally when the purpose and commitment to educating children successfully is clear to the public that they serve.
The EDUCATION of our children, all of them, is the bottom line. When that is clear, all will be as it should be for teachers. Teachers are the only ones with the power to overturn central office incompetence that currently reigns in Pittsburgh.
Seize every moment on behalf of children and their education, equitably and with excellence. All else will fall into place.
Have to disagree there. If teachers had seized every moment at Westinghouse, for example (and they may very well have done just that)< the lack of schedules, books and other basics would have prevented everything from falling into place. As for teachers disregarding their own futures, why would we expect teachers to be totally selfless? When they cannot pay their medical bill or their child's college tuition, will hospitals, doctors and the college just continue providing health care and a college education?
No one is denying the problems at Westinghouse. And yes there were teachers who seized the moment and took students to a different place, a better place, in spite of the disarray that surrounded them.
No one is denying that some learning took place somehow, but did all else fall into place? Was the teachers' purpose and commitment to educating children clear to the public? One purpose of having unions is to allow teachers (and firefighters, police officers, etc.) to focus on their work knowing that someone is looking out for them in terms of compensation, working conditions, and fair procedures.
Is there any public school district in the country comprised entirely or even mostly of teachers who give no thought whatsoever to their own interests as employees?
*Is there any public school district in the country comprised entirely or even mostly of teachers who give no thought whatsoever to their own interests as employees?*
Or in any place of employment? Honestly, you'd think that people expect teachers to take vows to be Mother Teresa! All working people should be concerned with their working conditions, their pay, their future.
I'd hate to think we were raising a generation of kids who think that teaching means being poorly paid and disrespected...or who expect that they will be underpaid and disrespected by their employers in general. The reverse message -- if you're the boss, take what you can get and don't concern yourself with your employees is just as bad to learn.
Plain and simple. Our teachers are really getting dogged out by this administration and the union is not standing up for them the way unions should. Lets face it, in an attempt to be fair minded and overall good people PPS put a superintdent (Lane) in there that they knew was not capable of running a urban district like Pittsburgh. But wanted to show our African American Community we care. But we hurt them and ourselves.
No one is please with Lane but ^ board members. No teachers, Not even her own community. She has to go before we lose everything.
I think what is really lousy about teaching right now is that students have no boundaries...they keep going and doing the wrong thing and teachers' hands are tied as far as keeping control. Students come in with language worse than an old tugboat captain--sory don't want to hurt tugboat captains---the other day in the paper an article stated a young lady did not want to stand and recite the pledge of allegiance. The ACLU supported her and she doesn't have to stand and be respectful of all the men and women fighting for her---really. Students have no responsibility it seems and everything falls onto the teachers. A teacher wants to teach, but has all these issues to contend with, so yeah I agree with anonymous 10:34 being a teacher right now is lousy.
"being a teacher sucks" is mild up against the names t eachers are called everyday- by very young children in this no consequences environment. It is really impossible to explain to this bright group of adults who read this blog and write what it is like to be in an environment where no matter how bad your behavior,language etc is--NOTHING happens to you-- and even harder to explain that to children who dont act like that-- and are smart enough to know calling someone's mommy ( no phone etc) is just another empty threat.
The teacher establishes the environment inside the classroom. It is what he/she creates. Parents and administrators are not in the environment and so are not responsible for the tone, the attitude, the behavior, or the expectations. Many teachers handle this in their own way, productively, for themselves and their students. Those outside of the classroom are not responsible for what occurs inside the classroom and therefore consequences from beyond the environment have an effect that is often counterproductive for teacher and class.
Students with untreated medical conditions; students without enough sleep; students who are hungry; all can affect the tone, the attitude and the behavior in a classroom. Others outside the classroom, undoubtedly, have responsibilities that directly affect the classroom environment.
Any teacher who feels that somehow, Pittsburgh parents will come to their rescue or see it their way should think again. We have no friends among parents, no matter how many "appreciation days" they give us. These people look at us as having great salaries, great 3 months vacations and 6 hour days. I've had it with parents and the general public. Come walk a mile in my shoes, then complain. I make no apologies for who and what I am. I make no apologies for being entrenched in the middle class. I went to school. I paid my dues. Know-nothing parents can stuff it.
Its is disturbing to me that much of this blog has been taken over by posters using it to continuously rant with absolutely nothing informative or constructive to say.
I think we all know by now that some posters don't trust the PFT and/or feel that the teacher evaluations are a "witch hunt" and/or have little respect for "Lane and Co." or Lane and her "girls".
Teachers, if RISE is not a fair and accurate way to evaluate teachers (and there is some evidence that this is true), then how should teachers be evaluated? I don't think that going back to the days where 99% of teachers received a "satisfactory" evaluation is the way to go. Someone, please post a thoughtful, detailed better way to evaluate teachers. Because as loathe as many posters here are to admit it, there are teachers that need help or need to be let go.
**Someone, please post a thoughtful, detailed better way to evaluate teachers. Because as loathe as many posters here are to admit it, there are teachers that need help or need to be let go. **
Copying and pasting from what I posted on another thread:
What would I do? I would let the principal know about this problem. I would keep track every day of what my kid had done in that class so that when I talked with the principal I would have a list of problems. If I had any examples of poor assignments, etc. I would use those as well.
THEN I would expect the principal to do his or her JOB! They are supposed to observe, pull in the ITL, use an improvement plan if necessary, and document.
Plenty of teachers were fired this year, proving that it can be done without all this moaning and groaning about how it can't be done!
I expect administrators to do their jobs and the union/reps to support those who pay them. (And no, I'm not a teacher in the union.)
Otherwise I expect the district to PROVE that they are capable of telling who the most and least effective teachers are, how they come up with those ratings and rankings and to be very transparent about how many more senior "bad" teachers there are and how many young, newer "much better" at teaching teachers there are so we can have this discussion with some numbers attached.
Otherwise, we just have their assurances that this is fair and not an attempt to lower salaries by deciding that every teacher turns bad before they make "too much" money.
17 comments:
After having heard Nina trip all over herself on a radio talk show last week--in which the host essentially called for the firing of all veteran teachers---it's clear that she has no clue if there is no script. She is running a shell game.
What idiot would give she and her cronies a vote of confidence after giving so much away over the past few years?
In simple terms, teachers need to think beyond themselves. A good education is what ALL children need to be successful adults. Teachers must coalesce around providing that education rather than protecting their jobs, their seniority, and their own futures. Those things will follow naturally when the purpose and commitment to educating children successfully is clear to the public that they serve.
The EDUCATION of our children, all of them, is the bottom line. When that is clear, all will be as it should be for teachers. Teachers are the only ones with the power to overturn central office incompetence that currently reigns in Pittsburgh.
Seize every moment on behalf of children and their education, equitably and with excellence. All else will fall into place.
Have to disagree there. If teachers had seized every moment at Westinghouse, for example (and they may very well have done just that)< the lack of schedules, books and other basics would have prevented everything from falling into place. As for teachers disregarding their own futures, why would we expect teachers to be totally selfless? When they cannot pay their medical bill or their child's college tuition, will hospitals, doctors and the college just continue providing health care and a college education?
No one is denying the problems at Westinghouse. And yes there were teachers who seized the moment and took students to a different place, a better place, in spite of the disarray that surrounded them.
No one is denying that some learning took place somehow, but did all else fall into place? Was the teachers' purpose and commitment to educating children clear to the public? One purpose of having unions is to allow teachers (and firefighters, police officers, etc.) to focus on their work knowing that someone is looking out for them in terms of compensation, working conditions, and fair procedures.
Is there any public school district in the country comprised entirely or even mostly of teachers who give no thought whatsoever to their own interests as employees?
*Is there any public school district in the country comprised entirely or even mostly of teachers who give no thought whatsoever to their own interests as employees?*
Or in any place of employment? Honestly, you'd think that people expect teachers to take vows to be Mother Teresa! All working people should be concerned with their working conditions, their pay, their future.
I'd hate to think we were raising a generation of kids who think that teaching means being poorly paid and disrespected...or who expect that they will be underpaid and disrespected by their employers in general. The reverse message -- if you're the boss, take what you can get and don't concern yourself with your employees is just as bad to learn.
Plain and simple. Our teachers are really getting dogged out by this administration and the union is not standing up for them the way unions should. Lets face it, in an attempt to be fair minded and overall good people PPS put a superintdent (Lane) in there that they knew was not capable of running a urban district like Pittsburgh. But wanted to show our African American Community we care. But we hurt them and ourselves.
No one is please with Lane but ^ board members. No teachers, Not even her own community. She has to go before we lose everything.
Being a teacher right now sucks.
When "being a teacher" is described in such graphic language, it is time to stop for everyone's sake.
I think what is really lousy about teaching right now is that students have no boundaries...they keep going and doing the wrong thing and teachers' hands are tied as far as keeping control. Students come in with language worse than an old tugboat captain--sory don't want to hurt tugboat captains---the other day in the paper an article stated a young lady did not want to stand and recite the pledge of allegiance. The ACLU supported her and she doesn't have to stand and be respectful of all the men and women fighting for her---really. Students have no responsibility it seems and everything falls onto the teachers. A teacher wants to teach, but has all these issues to contend with, so yeah I agree with anonymous 10:34 being a teacher right now is lousy.
Graphic Language Realy
Come listen to students language, and what they say to teachers
Come walk a day in our shoe's
Teaching in the PPS does suck
You do not have a clue
"being a teacher sucks" is mild up against the names t eachers are called everyday- by very young children in this no consequences environment. It is really impossible to explain to this bright group of adults who read this blog and write what it is like to be in an environment where no matter how bad your behavior,language etc is--NOTHING happens to you-- and even harder to explain that to children who dont act like that-- and are smart enough to know calling someone's mommy ( no phone etc) is just another empty threat.
The teacher establishes the environment inside the classroom. It is what he/she creates. Parents and administrators are not in the environment and so are not responsible for the tone, the attitude, the behavior, or the expectations. Many teachers handle this in their own way, productively, for themselves and their students. Those outside of the classroom are not responsible for what occurs inside the classroom and therefore consequences from beyond the environment have an effect that is often counterproductive for teacher and class.
Students with untreated medical conditions; students without enough sleep; students who are hungry; all can affect the tone, the attitude and the behavior in a classroom. Others outside the classroom, undoubtedly, have responsibilities that directly affect the classroom environment.
Any teacher who feels that somehow, Pittsburgh parents will come to their rescue or see it their way should think again. We have no friends among parents, no matter how many "appreciation days" they give us. These people look at us as having great salaries, great 3 months vacations and 6 hour days.
I've had it with parents and the general public. Come walk a mile in my shoes, then complain.
I make no apologies for who and what I am. I make no apologies for being entrenched in the middle class.
I went to school.
I paid my dues.
Know-nothing parents can stuff it.
Its is disturbing to me that much of this blog has been taken over by posters using it to continuously rant with absolutely nothing informative or constructive to say.
I think we all know by now that some posters don't trust the PFT and/or feel that the teacher evaluations are a "witch hunt" and/or have little respect for "Lane and Co." or Lane and her "girls".
Teachers, if RISE is not a fair and accurate way to evaluate teachers (and there is some evidence that this is true), then how should teachers be evaluated? I don't think that going back to the days where 99% of teachers received a "satisfactory" evaluation is the way to go. Someone, please post a thoughtful, detailed better way to evaluate teachers. Because as loathe as many posters here are to admit it, there are teachers that need help or need to be let go.
**Someone, please post a thoughtful, detailed better way to evaluate teachers. Because as loathe as many posters here are to admit it, there are teachers that need help or need to be let go. **
Copying and pasting from what I posted on another thread:
What would I do? I would let the principal know about this problem. I would keep track every day of what my kid had done in that class so that when I talked with the principal I would have a list of problems. If I had any examples of poor assignments, etc. I would use those as well.
THEN I would expect the principal to do his or her JOB! They are supposed to observe, pull in the ITL, use an improvement plan if necessary, and document.
Plenty of teachers were fired this year, proving that it can be done without all this moaning and groaning about how it can't be done!
I expect administrators to do their jobs and the union/reps to support those who pay them. (And no, I'm not a teacher in the union.)
Otherwise I expect the district to PROVE that they are capable of telling who the most and least effective teachers are, how they come up with those ratings and rankings and to be very transparent about how many more senior "bad" teachers there are and how many young, newer "much better" at teaching teachers there are so we can have this discussion with some numbers attached.
Otherwise, we just have their assurances that this is fair and not an attempt to lower salaries by deciding that every teacher turns bad before they make "too much" money.
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