Public schools have been hit hard in the last few years, especially here in California. They are chronically underfunded. Teachers are asked to do more and more with less and less. The disparity between have and have not districts grows ever larger, but even the haves are suffering.
In the face of all of this, it would be easy to give up on public schools altogether (and I have no doubt there are those who would love to see just that). I could say that I am going to put my kid in private school or homeschool him (I do not have any quarrel with those who make those choices; everyone should have the option to choose what is best for their child) or decide that I will teach at a private school (which I have done before and did not like for many reasons) or leave teaching all together. My particular district is in program improvement; you could call us a tweener...not really a have district, but not entirely a have not. We have challenges that need to be addressed and there is little money to do it.
Down the road a bit, there is the school my son attends. He's in a definite have district largely because concerned parents formed an educational foundation in the 80's to fund programs the state had just cut: music, libraries, and PE. At present, the foundation raises $800,000 to $1,000,000 a year for those programs and this year added funding class-size reduction in grades 3 to 5 to the list. Yet, his district will be increasing class sizes in K-2 and laying off teachers as well. My community also just passed a parcel tax for the schools in our town.
Down the road a bit, there is the school my son attends. He's in a definite have district largely because concerned parents formed an educational foundation in the 80's to fund programs the state had just cut: music, libraries, and PE. At present, the foundation raises $800,000 to $1,000,000 a year for those programs and this year added funding class-size reduction in grades 3 to 5 to the list. Yet, his district will be increasing class sizes in K-2 and laying off teachers as well. My community also just passed a parcel tax for the schools in our town.
The school board of my district voted last week to pink slip 50 teachers and not ask back 15 teachers who were on year to year contracts. They may be able to rescind many of those lay-offs, but the fact remains that teachers are going to lose their jobs at a time when teachers are needed more than ever.
Research shows that lower class sizes improve student achievement, especially in the lower grades. Teachers can do their jobs more effectively when there are fewer children in the room because we can get to each child, teach them their grade-level standards, and differentiate where needed. That is what I want to do; it's what all of my colleagues want to do. We want to do the best job possible for our students. But it seems dollars trump research in education (although that doesn't seem to be an issue in education alone)
The fact of the matter is we will do the best we can no matter what happens with the budget. I will teach my butt off day in and day out even though there are 36 kids in some of my language arts class. Yes, you read that right. I'm lucky, though, some of my colleagues who teach math, social studies, and science have 40 kids in their classes. 6th grade core classes can be that large as well.
Nothing-not insane class sizes, nor budget cuts-can take away the power of an effective teacher. And I know MANY effective teachers. I would be remiss if I didn't sing the praises of the group of teachers I work with. They are truly some of the most talented and dedicated people I know. The 7th and 8th grade language arts team of which I am a member is solid, hard-working, innovative and caring (and they even let me be a part of their group!). Each of us has strengths and we make each other better even though most of the time we spend collaborating is time for which we get no compensation. Wait, that's not entirely true. We get to see our classes succeed.
You should see the curriculum developed by the art teacher at my school. She was given nothing to start with and has developed an art program that teaches children principles of art in multiple modalities, art history, and ties many of her art lessons in to what is going on in other classes. She also does this with almost no budget with which to speak. One of my 6th grade language arts colleagues is a single mother and quite possibly one of the best teachers of English language learners I have ever seen. She teaches the kids grade level curriculum in English and is able to move students to English proficiency. She gives up her lunch hour three days a week to work with the kids that are falling behind in their classes. And she does it all between 8:30 and 4:30 because she has to go get her own child. Another colleague is one of the smartest, most accomplished people I know. Her intellect and fundamental belief that every student can and will learn in her class makes her a great teacher. I have been able to tell which students had her in 6th grade since I came to my school three years ago, because they are the most amazing writers when they arrive in my class. A third of my language arts colleagues is a creative and bold in his approach to teaching students who need extra support. He moves kids along toward grade-level standard and makes it seem so easy. Yet another of my colleagues, who also happens to be a single mother, teaches literature and social studies together in a truly creative way that acknowledges children's learning styles. And that acknowledges just seven of my colleagues. The rest of the language arts department, indeed the rest of the staff- whom I do not have the pleasure of collaborating with so closely- are just as bright and committed to their profession as those I mentioned above.
You should see the curriculum developed by the art teacher at my school. She was given nothing to start with and has developed an art program that teaches children principles of art in multiple modalities, art history, and ties many of her art lessons in to what is going on in other classes. She also does this with almost no budget with which to speak. One of my 6th grade language arts colleagues is a single mother and quite possibly one of the best teachers of English language learners I have ever seen. She teaches the kids grade level curriculum in English and is able to move students to English proficiency. She gives up her lunch hour three days a week to work with the kids that are falling behind in their classes. And she does it all between 8:30 and 4:30 because she has to go get her own child. Another colleague is one of the smartest, most accomplished people I know. Her intellect and fundamental belief that every student can and will learn in her class makes her a great teacher. I have been able to tell which students had her in 6th grade since I came to my school three years ago, because they are the most amazing writers when they arrive in my class. A third of my language arts colleagues is a creative and bold in his approach to teaching students who need extra support. He moves kids along toward grade-level standard and makes it seem so easy. Yet another of my colleagues, who also happens to be a single mother, teaches literature and social studies together in a truly creative way that acknowledges children's learning styles. And that acknowledges just seven of my colleagues. The rest of the language arts department, indeed the rest of the staff- whom I do not have the pleasure of collaborating with so closely- are just as bright and committed to their profession as those I mentioned above.
I said that my district is in program improvement, but my school is not. We have consistently met and exceeded our targets for API (California's academic rating) and AYP (the federal standard). It is due, in large part, to the quality of the teachers at my site. We do all of this in a toxic environment. The budget is forever being cut, the district office makes stupid decisions, and the federal targets for AYP are climbing unrealistically higher and higher. I can tell you with great confidence that the staff to which I belong and the teachers to whom I entrust my own child are world-class, highly-qualified individuals who care about children, their minds, and their futures.
So I wore green today. I wore green for the kids who walk into my classroom so that the funding for their learning is maintained. I wore green for my son who is being educated in the free and public school that my tax dollars support. I wore green for Cait and Laurie, Rachel and Jeff, Marilyn and Madeline, colleagues and friends who deserve better than our state gives them. And I wore green for me. I hope some of you did, too.
So I wore green today. I wore green for the kids who walk into my classroom so that the funding for their learning is maintained. I wore green for my son who is being educated in the free and public school that my tax dollars support. I wore green for Cait and Laurie, Rachel and Jeff, Marilyn and Madeline, colleagues and friends who deserve better than our state gives them. And I wore green for me. I hope some of you did, too.
Great points, exceptionally written.
ReplyDeleteGood posts- but you just gave the reasons why my Mom worked for public schools and sent me to private schools back in the 80's. The interesting thing is, if we bailed out the schools, we wouldn't need to bail out banks and foreign countries.
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