So, if you aren't buried under a rock, or lost in space, it's likely you've heard about the teacher's union assault in Wisconsin, followed by a similar incident in Ohio. It's kinda hard not to be concerned when you're a teacher. Now, I've never been much of a union person, simply because I believe in the idea that, if I do a good job, then the people who employ me will want to keep me around. I don't believe I've ever done a bad job at anything I've tried, so I've had a fairly secure employment history.
The problem with this thinking is the issue of who employs me now. You see my boss is a principal, and she tells me I'm doing a good job, so I'm O.K. there. Her boss is the Superintendent, who tells me I'm doing a good job, so I'm O.K. there. His boss is the School Board, who seems to make the weirdest decisions ever, right off the cuff, so this is where my concern lies. I mean, if they want to save the most money, who are the teachers they will cut? Bingo, the ones that cost the most! And, since I'm the consummate over-achiever, I went out and educated myself to the max, making myself an expensive commodity. Why, oh why couldn't I just, for once, be a complete slacker?
Sometimes I wonder just what it was I was thinking, going out and getting my Master's Degree, then adding on an additional certification and some more hours (30 in all, so far).....so that I could be a better teacher! I mean seriously, wouldn't it have been good enough to just make the status quo? It appears that's what the world wants right now, and here I am, over educated, over achieved, and over stressed....someday, when I figure out what the world really wants, I promise to let you all in on the secret.
Anyway, that seem to settle in my brain the most, because this issue has the possibility of removing me from a job I adore, keep me from doing the one things I believe I was made to do, and relegating me to a statistic....one more person standing in the unemployment line! As I ponder this I often think...well, at least my car is paid for! See there is a little sunshine at the end of the tunnel after all.
This week at school was an interesting one. I had so many kids out sick, that I couldn't really move forward in the curriculum, so I spent a lot of time doing some review with the kids. It was a good week, went pretty fast, and the kids are demonstrating that they've remembered things I taught them earlier in the year, which is a serious boost for my ego.
On Thursday night, the phone rang in my room, and when I answered it was a parent of a little boy in my class. The mom said she's, "tired of little F bringing home all zeros on his papers, and we need to meet to figure this out." I explained that he's not reading the papers he gets zeros on, just filling in the answers, which is why he gets a zero. Mom, "Well, that's because little F can't read." I explained that he can, but he doesn't want to, and when he brings papers home and she reads them to him, of course he'll do better. Mom, "Whattaya mean he can read?" "When I go over his papers he just looks at them and waits for me to say the words." I explained that's because he knows she will do it for him....her response..."Well, you mean little F is pulling one over on me?" Now, I wanted to say yes, but I just waited...she kinda laughed and said, "Stop cryin' F, you're not in trouble yet." She said she's "gonna talk at him some" and find out what's goin' on, but could I please write on all his papers that he needs to fix them, so he won't argue with her about whether or not he's going to.
Ohhhhh...so the problem is the mother needs me to tell the child that he has to make corrections, and if I don't he won't do them? And yet somehow, teachers are to blame for all that's wrong with education...? Yeah, I'd agree with that, what about you Mr. Kasich?
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