Stop the Blame Game II

We simply must stop blaming the teachers. What impact will the continual carping about bad teachers have on the 50% of all teachers that can retire in the next 10 years. Educating children requires a commitment from not only the teacher, but the student, the parent, the administrator on campus, the superintendent, the school board, the legislator, and the community in general. If it takes 5 to 7 years to develop academic language skills, don't fund just 2 years. Be realistic in that in a workforce of 2 million teachers, we are not all going to be great. Some will be great, some will be above average, some average, and some below average. When you consider that 5 years after entry into teaching, only 50% of the entrants remain. In the next 5 years another 50% will leave. I would think that eliminates many of the bad teachers. Maybe would could focus on some of the other factors.

Posted By: rhe, 2009-07-26 3:45 PM

Goodness of fit

It is not as simple as "good teachers" and "bad teachers". There is a goodness of fit issue in placing teachers where they can be most effective. Many are making the argument that "the best" teachers are teaching high achieving students while "the worst" teachers are teaching students who have low achievement. There are teachers who are extremely talented at meeting particular challenges who should be placed where they can be most effective. Some of the teachers who are exellent at teaching the high achievers would be a disaster in a classroom of low achievers, and vice versa. This is especially true in middle and high school. "Differentiation" at these levels is a myth because very, very few teachers can carry this out effectively, even with "training".

Posted By: levirm, 2009-06-16 10:18 AM

Lets Get Back to the Basics Throwing Money at Things is Not a Solution But it Looks Good

If the Gates Foundation were to provide a portion of what the study cost and allow me to do with the grant what I feel, and already know, works the cost of education would be much less and the results would be amazing. Any child who has ever received money from an absent parent knows money does not fix how they feel when they do not get to spend time with that parent. We have a simple problem and the solution is simple, really it is. However, it appears the preference is on purchasing technology instead of purchasing paper, pencils, pens, crayons, scissors, glue and basic items requiring children to use their senses as we did in the 1960s and 70s. Now we give kids computers to help them learn and this is the biggest crime in America. I am a 50-year old single mom of two boys (one is 10 and the other 15) and I volunteer at the youngest son's school as a "reading buddy" and "coach" to 1, 2 and 3 grade students. I have seen dramatic, inexpensive, and proven results happen that a computer or super trained teacher will never accomplish. Why? Our teachers have too many students in their classes to spend time one to one with many that struggle with the basics of reading and writing. I am dyslexic and my weakness was understanding what I was able to read. I "fell through" the cracks because I scored high on standardized tests and did not need to "understand" what I read until high school. All of the teachers I know have told me it is one to one and small group lessons where the most learning moments lie. Teacher aides are a valuable and rare sight in most schools. Most schools only have aides for special ed rooms. This forces many students into special ed that really only need extra help (SLD and ADHD get labeled as behavior problems and do not get the help they need due to funding issues) for a short time. My "developmentally delayed" son was found to really be dyslexic, smart, and needed speech servies. His develop was never delayed but he was put into sped until I advocated for him to be placed in the least restrictive environment and paid for private testing. I have worked with many kids like my son who have done well in small groups and in one to one reading. This year I realized that the first thing I do is build a child's self esteem and confidence because they lack these when they are not understanding what their classmates seen to be doing with little to no effort. Then I work with them and as I see how they learn and what is blocking them I discuss with the teacher what I see working and what is not. Lucky we are to have a speech pathologist at our school. If they get speech services early enough (many kids have fluid or other ear problems and if you cannot herar the sounds to read the word then ......you may as well go play) then they have a chance to succeed. For the amount of money we spend "studying" the problem so someone can look good and justify more technology we could hire and train good TA's, give teachers more pay, see children succeed, and lower the crime rate in our country. Yep, the young criminals cannot read fast enough to keep up nor do they understand what they read. So for them it is simple economics-why should they waste time in school or working at a minimum wage job when they can make more money selling drugs or robbing people. I doubt the Gates Foundaton would provide a grant for me to disprove their study and prove to them what teachers and involved parents already know. Why? It takes no technology - it takes human power, compassion, patience, and dedication (the stuff our teachers and good coaches know how to do. Perhaps I will write a letter to the Gates Foundaton and hope it is not screened like resumes are in employment databases and that a human reads what I have to say. I am finishing a BA degree. When I graduate in the next 2-3 years I plan to pursue a Masters in Speech Pathology or perhaps Education so I may work in my old age with elementary school kids. I want to be part of the solution. In the meantime it will be very hard next year to keep me away from volunteering (defn---no money paid to me:)) Education is the key to our nations problems. Technology is not the answer - it is a tool. If we rely on this tool then we will become less than robots ourselves. Well now it is time to do my homework. TEACHERS ARE SECOND ONLY TO OUR CHILDREN IN IMPORTANCE IN OUR COUNTRY. PLEASE TELL YOUR TEACHER(S) THANK YOU AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN. SummerLee Anchorage Alaska

Posted By: summerlee13, 2009-06-10 6:43 AM

Support for Teachers

After reading the article “Gates Foundation: Teachers trump class size,” I find it interesting that the Gates Foundation has put so much money in the research of class size only to find out that there is actually another issue at hand, effective teachers. In fact at the end of the article when it is stated that, “...the most important factor to successful schools is excellent teachers and supporting what they do in the classroom,” (Gates Foundation...) the two most important words are “teachers” and “support”. If it is effective teachers that make students successful then it begs the question who are these effective teachers and what time, money, and resources do they need to be successful. Recently, I read an article written by Robert J. Garmston that breaks down the parts that are put together in order to make an effective and perhaps even an excellent teacher. Garmston’s article, “Becoming an Expert Teacher,” begins with placing teachers on a continuum from novice to expert and then goes on to give the reader is six areas to strengthen, reflect upon, and apply in the classroom (Garmston, 1998). The Gates Foundation can actually play a major role by supporting teachers through further education, professional development, etc. in order to better equip teachers to excel in the six areas discussed by Garmston. These six areas are key components to creating an effective teacher who is prepared to change the lives of his or her students. The six areas are as follows: Content, Pedagogy, Students and how they learn, Self-Knowledge, Cognitive processes of Instruction, and Collegial Interaction (Garmston, 1998). If teachers were given the time to explore and expand their knowledge in these areas schools in America would be in better shape. The thing to remember is that each of these six areas work together and each plays an important role in the classroom. If a teacher does not have a strong knowledge of content then students will not benefit from the classroom experience. When a teacher is not aware of the varying learning abilities of students in the classroom the some students will fall through the cracks. It is wonderful if a teacher is knowledgeable in his or her content area but if he or she teaches using strategies that are above or below student ability, all of the content will fall on deaf ears (Garmston, 1998). So, as you see, if the Gates Foundation contributed money to the education of teachers in turn they would be contributing to the betterment of students’ learning experiences. Teachers are life-long learners who are definitely up to the challenge of continuing education, it is the support and the funding that these teachers need in order to be an effective and excellent teacher to America’s youth. Garmston, Robert J. (1998). Becoming Expert Teachers (Part One). Journal of Staff Development, 19(1). Retrieved June 2, 2009, from http://www.nsdc.org/library/publications/jsd/garmston191.cfm Gates Foundation: Teachers trump class size (29 May 2009). eSchool News. Retrieved 3 June 2009, from http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/ index.cfm?&i=58946&page=2#commentform

Posted By: c clausen, 2009-06-04 12:07 AM

Intellectual curiosity. That's what makes a good teacher. Not a teacher who is one chapter ahead of the kids. Someone who can take a subject and place it in the context of the big world. Someone who makes a subject relevant and exciting, because they are excited about it. Of course, a good teacher is well organized and can teach a subject five different ways, but a great teacher makes the classroom come alive.

Posted By: mghaggerty, 2009-06-02 7:33 AM