All teachers fired!!!

Nancy

Well-Known Member
flutterby,

Of course I didn't mean it. I thought the context of that statement told that but I'm sorry if it didn't. I was being a bit sarcastic I suppose. I hear people complaining all the time about their property taxes going up to pay for school levies and it tears our communitites apart with the bickering. And the loudest complaints come from those who can well afford it. They blame teachers outrageous (this is kidding too) salaries. My point was until we find a different way to fund our schools this kind of bickering will continue. But as of yet no one has been able to come up with a better way to fund our schools. Do we want more gvt funding? (better not get into that discussion).

We complain about school levies, we turn them down, busing stops, teachers are fired or laid off, art and music programs are discontinued, education begins to fail, our children fail. What is the alternative to property taxes? Should we charge tuition? I don't think so. I believe all children are entitled to a good education. But we don't want to pay what it costs to get a good education. It's not all about teachers salaries. It's also about technology in the classroom, innovative ways of teaching, more relevant curriculum, better facilities. It is becoming that society doesn't want to pay for anything anymore that doesn't directly contribute to their bottom line. We are loosing sight of the focus.

Perhaps we should require all parents to volunteer in the classroom, thus being able to discontinue aids and extra personnel in the school district and save money. But then you have parents who say they don't have time to volunteer. Even here on this board we hear comments about what goes on in school stays in school and the schools should handle it. I'm not pointing fingers, I don't know what the answer is. I do know there are a lot of parents who are not involved in their child's education. That has to change also. It is quite evident that all of us here are very involved. But that is not the case everywhere. In easy child's class there are children who don't even go to school if their parent(s) don't feel like sending them. I could tell you many stories about the difficulties teachers have motivating their students when they don't get the support of parents.

I don't think it's a matter of legislators standing around watching parents and teachers point the fingers at each other. It is a multi pronged problem that no one has the answer to and we don't have the desire or funding to find it.

Where do we think state funding comes from? We just change the cookie jar that the money comes out of.

I'm sorry I got off track. In answer to your question of course I wasn't serious, but that's what it will come down to if we don't find a better way. Our schools will continue to fail and only those who can afford private school tuition will succeed. I'm one who believes everyone is entitled to good quality health care but we see where that has gotten us.

Nancy
 
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TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
DaisyFace, I thought the same thing, LOL!

I can see that this was done deliberately to make a point. We'll see how it all plays out.
There is clearly something wrong with-our public education system overall and just one thing will not resolve it.
 

klmno

Active Member
I have heard from people in sd's that many parents aren't as concerned or involved in their kid's lives as I am with difficult child- and I'm sure many or most warrior moms have heard this, too. I wouldn't say most parents don't care but many are completely unaware of a lot of things we have learned the hard way- we being those of us on this board.

Re. the legislators- I didn't mean that they are just standing around watching parents and teachers point fingers because they think it's an answer. I think it lets them off the hook. Obviously how they handle things will vary with each assembly from state to state but I've been watching ours this year and can tell you that the proposed budget cuts had a grossly disproportionate amount being cut from areas pertaining to minors, with a big one being k-12 education. It (being the cuts from areas pertaining to kids) were so disproportionate there have been some pretty "high up" people causing a stir.

It's a matter of where they are still choosing to put money and where they are choosing to cut it - it makes their priorities obvious and clearly, in this state right now it isn't with our kids. And the sd's themselves- they can get funding appr'd for building sometimes and even though they know the money could be better spent for something like books or teachers' salaries, if the money was appr'd for building they aren't allowed to spend it for something else. If they don't spend it, they lose it altogether. So they spend it for construction purposes because it's keep their name around with the higher ups as needing money and then they go back and ask for more for educational resources and so forth. So all that goes back to the state authorities, too.
 

Nancy

Well-Known Member
I have been told the same thing whenever I met with the school. They were very surprised at how involved we were and how informed we wanted to be in our child's progress and success. difficult child still gets comments from school personnel about how supportive her parents are and how she should be counting her blessings because that just doesn't happen often, and she is no longer in the school system.

Sadly I think that there are many cuts going on across the board that are negatively impacting some population, not just our education system. Our state is cutting back on services for the elderly and disabled. Programs all around are being cut. Our state has mandated that we have all day kinderagrten in every school district. The schools have all asked for and received waivers because they have neither the space or the funds to hire additional teachers. So what good is that mandate? Where does the money come from? There isn't an unlimited source. We have to figure out how to do better with what we have. But somewhere someone is not going to be happy. I would like it to be the dishonest ones (I won't name any particular group) who spend our tax money to profit themselves and their causes.

Nancy
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
I found this article in our local newspaper. Granted it is 9 months old so it could mean nothing but it does say something about funding. Now whether it really did what it says it did...I cant be sure. Im not their accountant.

PEMBROKE — Superintendent Johnny Hunt and Robeson County school board members ended a two-day retreat at COMtech on a positive note Saturday after learning there will be enough federal stimulus money to prevent teacher layoffs despite yet another round in the seemingly endless parade of state budget cuts.

Erica Setzer, finance officer for the Public Schools of Robeson County, told board members that the state last week had cut an additional $662,000 from the system's operating budget. More than $2.2 million has already been hacked from the system's budget, and the state has also withheld $750,000 in quarterly-paid lottery funds. Hunt said he has been told not to expect any lottery money this year, leaving another $2.25 hole.

"Fortunately, there will be enough stimulus money to make up for whatever the state keeps or takes back," Hunt said. "That means we can hire all the teachers and teacher assistants we need and keep our class sizes where they are."

With no relief, the number of teaching positions would have been cut, meaning layoffs and more students per classroom.

Hunt said all summer school programs will remain intact as well.

"Thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, summer school will operate as planned, transitional academies will

continue, and the Learning Accelerated Program will continue," he said.

Hunt said the Learning Accelerated Program will ensure that at 57 seniors will graduate with their classes on June 10. The program helps keep kids in school through graduation, decreasing Robeson County's traditionally high dropout rate and improving its graduation percentage at the same time.

The school system has received about $8 million of about $16 million from the stimulus package and should get the remaining $8 million by September.

School board Chairman Robert Deese said board members discussed funding for school construction needs, noting there are about 132 modular units scattered across the system's 41 campuses.

"We ranked the schools based on the number of modular units each one has," Deese said. "The schools needing the most attention include East Robeson, Piney Grove, Purnell Swett, Littlefield, Deep Branch and Magnolia. Some of them have as many as seven modular units."

There is no local or state money available for construction because of the economic crisis, Deese said, but there may be stimulus funds available at no-interest or low-interest rates on a competitive basis.

"We'll also be talking to the county commissioners for some help," Deese said. "Their hands are kind of tied too, but there may be ways to get some money through them."

Funds are also available on a competitive basis for child nutrition equipment such as industrial-sized freezers, cookers and serving lines. Some Robeson Schools are in need of larger freezers because the number of students has increased beyond cafeteria capacity.

Deese said he was pleased with the overall tenor of the retreat, saying board members worked hard, stayed off their cell phones and spoke freely and passionately about their concerns without "backbiting or tension."

"I spoke with several members after the retreat was over and those I spoke with agreed that it was the least contentious and most productive retreat they'd had in a long time," he said. "We agreed to disagree on some subjects, but everyone got to speak their minds. We were working together, not against each other."
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
She defends the insurance companies profits saying that they are a business and entitled to make whatever profit they can.

I agree, private companies should make a profit. But when no one can afford their products, according to free market principle, they should go out of business. I would love to vote with-my feet and will do so at some point. But right now, I don't know what the solution is.

I just don't know of any teachers here who are wealthy on their salary.

Perhaps if salaries were raised to about $50,000/yr, and the positions were FT, as they are in Japan, the system would attract more competent people and there would be more to choose from. Lots more applicants, but a lot more qualified applicants, as well. I know college profs who would be great HS teachers but can't afford the pay cut. Just a thought.
We could put less $ in the bldngs themselves. (Unfortunately, Codes Compliance makes that a bit difficult.)
 
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KTMom91

Well-Known Member
There's been a push by a local district (not mine) for people to go into teaching as a second career, stating some of the things that Terry mentioned, like attracting competent people, with experience...and being one of those people, I can honestly say that teaching full-time is not really in my best interest financially. I was in retail management for ten years, I have my forty quarters in for Social Security, and now I'm paying into CA Teacher's Retirement. However, the way things stand right now, I cannot collect both the amount of SS and the amount of teacher's retirement I would be entitled to...it's pretty much one or the other. I believe more people would consider teaching as a second career if that retirement loophole was closed, or if we were allowed to continue to contribute to SS.
 

Kathy813

Well-Known Member
Staff member
I have deliberately stayed away from this thread as it was a thread like this that made me leave the board once before. I just can't stop myself though . . .

"three hours a day and have three months off and make too much and have too much job security."

Nancy ~ What planet does this woman live on? My school day lasts from 6:30 - 3:30 at a minimum and I am busy every minute of the day. Then I go home and grade papers at night and on the weekends (in fact, I just finished grading two sets of tests this morning). I spend my time off during the summer teaching summer school and online classes so that I can make a decent salary.

EW ~ I feel your pain! The teachers here in Georgia that went through National Board Certification were promised a 10% raise for 10 years. This year, the governor and legislature decided it was too expensive and cut it effectively immediately no matter how many years were left in the original ten for the teachers that had worked so hard to obtain their NBC. We don't have unions (another common misconception especially if you listen to talk radio hosts) so there was nothing those teachers could do. A good friend of mine and his wife are both teachers with NBC and they lost 10,000 of their family income with a stroke of a pen. There is now talk of trying to get back at least 10% of a STARTING teachers pay for teachers with NB certification but it doesn't look good in the big budget picture.

There is also a proposal of changing the pay structure for teachers to merit pay "just like those in the corporate world." The problem with that is that we don't work in the corporate world. I would happily work for merit pay if you give me the right to hire and fire my students. Just like a manager in the corporate world, I would only take the best and brightest and make sure that I didn't take those with low IQ's and attendance or behavior issues. I could guarantee you good test scores under those conditions. However, that is not how education works so judging teachers solely on their students' test scores is simply not fair. Students that only come to school 20% of the time will not do well no matter how hard I work to teach them Algebra 2. Period. What will end up happening is that teachers with seniority will all demand to teach the gifted and honors classes or transfer to high performing schools and new teachers like Nancy's daughter and my easy child will get the low level classes or be placed in the low performing schools. So those students that need experienced successful teachers the most will be the ones that get the new inexperienced teachers. My easy child is already talking about changing her major from math education to actuarial science. My advice was to stay out of the classroom.

What is really sad is that I love what I do and have had a very happy and fulfilling career. I just don't see a bright future for young people coming into the profession.

~Kathy
 

Lothlorien

Active Member
Kathy, I thought of you when this thread popped up. You bring up a good point about the pay structure. I just hate the whole tenure thing. It makes it next to impossible to get the bad teachers out. There has to be a way of rewarding good teachers though. The administrators have to know which teachers extend their day. They know which teachers who give extra help to students. They know which teachers grade papers at home and do extra work. I don't know what the answer is, but like I said earlier, the system is not working the way it is. Good teachers, like yourself, should be rewarded and the bad ones should be weeded out.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
Kathy, I couldnt agree more.

I think we have all lost focus on what is the goal. Educating kids.

Teaching tests isnt the goal. Learning material is what is needed. Who cares if someone is force fed the answer to question A long enough to answer it correctly on test day but they dont understand why the answer is correct? That is meaningless.

Good teachers shouldnt be forced to force feed kids the tests. They want to educate kids. Its why they chose teaching.

I dont know what the answer is but I dont think all these end of grade tests do a bit of good. They dont tell what a kid really knows. They just tell how well a kid takes a test. I can take a test in anything and pass it because I know how to test well. I just do well on those standardized tests and see patterns on them. It is unfair to base a teachers performance on how well students do on these tests. You have kids like me and my kids and then others who know the material but bomb on standardize tests because they just dont get them.
 
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