Photography course refused...

[mdparthum]

Originally Posted by Tapper

Years of education method based on "self esteem" psychology, "self-paced" instruction, political correctness, and plenty of other trendy memes in teaching resulted in a mostly failed system. Add to that the removal of corporal punishment, and the general loss of control of the classroom by teachers, and the outcome was plain for all to see. To compensate, schools simply dumbed down the curriculum, passed kids to avoid embarassing them, and accepted their failure by pretending it was success.

TAKS was certainly an imperfect solution, but given the severity of the failure, and the restrictions imposed on the situation by various political factions, and the momentum of the existing educational beauracracy, it was the best the Legislature could come up with. What is needed is a wholesale overhaul of the system, but accomplishing that would require total commitment by society in general - and that isn't going to happen in todays left/right world.

Most of what Brian is saying makes sense except one thing, I am a bit offended by the comment, but I am sure it wasn't meant to be hurtful; however, a "general loss of control of the classroom by teachers" isn't exactly true . I have never "dumbed down" my curriculum. I have been a teacher for 15 years and I have never lost control of my classroom. The kids have changed folks, that's the reality of this whole thread. No matter what test you put in front of the student, it will be criticized and talked about. We are too concerned about hurting feeling, telling kids that no matter what, they will always be number one, building false confidence, playing soccer games without keeping score. Kids need to lose a game to build character not this crap that everybody wins. Lets take sports out of schools, start teaching the three "R"s and quit worrying about what test they take. Parents need to raise their own kids not teachers and thats what they expect. Parents used to be on the side of the school, now the parents are against the teachers. My opinion, no matter what test they tell me to do, adapt to it but don't teach it, teach strategies for test taking not for taking the TAKS, and teach good old fashioned values. Build a relationship with the kid not a profile on paper. I am tired of being told that I have to do better every year when no one is telling the kids they have to be better each year. The teacher has to follow the rules like everything else in life and we have to do it differently every couple of years.

I invite anyone into my classroom and you can see exactly what goes on in schools now days. I had a major culture shock when I went back to teach after being out of school for 13 years.

[LSCSN.com]

The Teachers Union is always against anything that would add any sort of accountability, they're all about job security. I recall when there was a push to implement a competency test for teachers, and the teachers vehemently opposed it. You'd think a bunch of college graduates wouldn't be afraid of passing a basic test covering the subjects they intend to teach to other students.

If tests aren't the answer for students . . . and they aren't . . . then why would we want to waste time and money and effort on giving our teachers tests? That's what they did the entire time they went to school. Tests don't tell whether teachers "know" the material or not. All tests tell us is how well someone remembers something for a short amount of time and is able to regurgitate it back in the desired form. They are useless!

This is coming from someone that could cram the night before a test and sometimes 15-30 minutes before a test and do quite well. I passed high school with a 3.3 with minimal effort and was above a 3-point in college.

Heck I even passed a master's level course with an "A" that required 14 books and I never cracked a one of them.

On paper I would be a great candidate for a teacher. However because of the way I was taught. I was just an okay teacher.

You know it's quite funny that in all of our education classes that we had to take they all taught us how we were to teach, but there was only ONE class that I had in which the professor actually employed the techniques in his teaching style. It was one of my most favorite classes. It was How to Teach Social Studies. It was so much fun. But all the other education classes were lecture classes which we were taught adamantly that was NOT the way we were to do it :).

The education system is HORRIBLY broken. And no one "really" wants to fix it. Yes there are "some" teachers that want to, but they don't have the power to get the air turned on, much less "real" change in the "system."

[CCGamer]

They are canning the Photography classes in the AISD (Austin Idiocracy School System) because of the same reasons. This is not just a Texas problem - this is a problem with the education system as a whole throughout the country...

[amadjuster]

Check your Tax Statement and see how much you are paying for the Public Schools if you want to get depressed. Also, have you ever met a school board member that had any negative ideas about where this mess was going? They cannot let go of ANY money because the best idea would be to cut off the federal funds and stop all the BS that brings in.

Go by your local ISD office and see how many cars are parked in the lot. How many of those people have anything to do with teaching? I also didn't see any mention of "Robin Hood" - that lovely thing that takes money away from the districts that are successful and gives it to the producers of total under-achievers. Success begets success - Just like scores or grades. If you want your kids to get a better education, move to the best district by doing something my parents did - sacrifice. We are so into being "FAIR", we have raised a group of "FAIRLY" stupid kids who think everything is owed to them. In the 1960's the easiest way to get a degree was to major in Education. Theory, not substance, from people who had trouble walking and chewing gum. The reason the "Professional" educators want to do away with homeschooling and put "supervision" into private schools is because they produce a better product.

Boy, I feel better now.

[mdparthum]

Robin Hood is meant to help small districts educate their kids at the same level as larger districts. Please read why Robin Hood Legislation was put into place. Also, the opinions expressed here about teachers help me realize that the problem is not solely within the school system. People who are not teachers shouldn't make comments about how easy it is to be a teacher. But, I am guessing those people never really were any good at school anyway. I am proud to be a teacher, I worked damn hard to become a teacher, I earned a second degree to be a teacher, and I like being around kids and making a difference in their lives. I also enjoy teaching them to be respectful of others even though they don't agree with them and to never attack others choices they have made in their lives.

Please, if you want a change, then go vote, go to your school board meetings, see were your money is going, and become a part of your city's kid's lives.

Done! Over and out!

[LSCSN.com]

Please, if you want a change, then go vote, go to your school board meetings

Sorry, but voting hasn't worked in how many years - yeah it's never worked. This problem is WAY beyond voting at this point.

[mdparthum]

Well, if that's the excuse then everyone who doesn't vote should quit complaining.

[amadjuster]

Originally Posted by mdparthum

People who are not teachers shouldn't make comments about how easy it is to be a teacher. But, I am guessing those people never really were any good at school anyway. I am proud to be a teacher, I worked damn hard to become a teacher, I earned a second degree to be a teacher, and I like being around kids and making a difference in their lives. I also enjoy teaching them to be respectful of others even though they don't agree with them and to never attack others choices they have made in their lives.

The first thought in this paragraph is incongruous with the second thought.

[mdparthum]

Well, whatever your opinions are that's fine. If you aren't a teacher you would never understand. And the first part of the paragraph is congruous to the second part from my point of view. Thanks!

[amadjuster]

Originally Posted by mdparthum

Well, whatever your opinions are that's fine. God forbid I ever have to resort to peddling insurance.

Just because someone has a different idea about things, you don't have to resort to personal attacks.

[LSCSN.com]

Well, if that's the excuse then everyone who doesn't vote should quit complaining.

Why does refusing to do something that obviously doesn't work constitute the notion that one can't continue to point out the problem?

Voting isn't solving any problems, so let's just stick our heads in the sand and continue down the road? Right? Of course not.

Voting is not the answer. Again no one that "really" matters is interested in having the problem fixed. There's too much money being made the way things are done as it is.

The only answer is either find a school system that is still half way decent or homeschool your kids. There are still some private/Christian schools that are doing a decent job, but some of those are as big a joke as the public school system unfortunately.

You want to light a fire . . . then we need to be homeschooling our kids, but no one wants to or can afford to do that these days. So as long as there are kids that are going to these schools things will continue as is. That's just the way secular politics works.

How many times have you seen an empire/nation stop and "fix" something? They don't. They just continue to implode on themselves until they are all but worthless.

EDIT: I've got to take time to proof read my stuff ;).

[mdparthum]

Originally Posted by amadjuster

In the 1960's the easiest way to get a degree was to major in Education. Theory, not substance, from people who had trouble walking and chewing gum.

I didn't start the personal attacks my friend. My family has been in Education since the 1930s. Thanks for the conversation and suggestions. I have said what I wanted to say and I am done. Thank you and have a great day!

[Scott...yer crazy]

Originally Posted by DeannaD

I'm not a huge fan, but the TAKS is a very easy test and the schools give umpteen opportunities for help if you need it. I can't imagine any reason for any senior not to pass unless they have a learning disability or just plain aren't interested (not maligning your customer, just my thoughts).

We are fortunate in FBISD since our schools and teachers are excellent! I'm sure other districts aren't so lucky.

feel lucky that the majority of the parents are involved and families act as a unit still. Most ISD's that are having the majority of the problems also have a large "absent parent" problem. I mean absent from helping their children.

[Tapper]

Originally Posted by mdparthum

Most of what Brian is saying makes sense except one thing, I am a bit offended by the comment, but I am sure it wasn't meant to be hurtful; however, a "general loss of control of the classroom by teachers" isn't exactly true . I have never "dumbed down" my curriculum. I have been a teacher for 15 years and I have never lost control of my classroom. The kids have changed folks, that's the reality of this whole thread. No matter what test you put in front of the student, it will be criticized and talked about. We are too concerned about hurting feeling, telling kids that no matter what, they will always be number one, building false confidence, playing soccer games without keeping score. Kids need to lose a game to build character not this crap that everybody wins. Lets take sports out of schools, start teaching the three "R"s and quit worrying about what test they take. Parents need to raise their own kids not teachers and thats what they expect. Parents used to be on the side of the school, now the parents are against the teachers. My opinion, no matter what test they tell me to do, adapt to it but don't teach it, teach strategies for test taking not for taking the TAKS, and teach good old fashioned values. Build a relationship with the kid not a profile on paper. I am tired of being told that I have to do better every year when no one is telling the kids they have to be better each year. The teacher has to follow the rules like everything else in life and we have to do it differently every couple of years.

Michael,

First, my sincerest apologies if you were personally offended in any way by my comments, as such was not my desire. I do respect the commitment teachers make towards the betterment of all our children, and the sacrifices so many of them make to pursue what is, and should be considered, a lofty profession. Likewise, having read your follow-ons, I believe we do not disagree on the fundamental problems. I recognize that teachers have little choice other than to comply with policies which are, themselves, the source of the problem.

There are so many factors that have led us to this sad place in American education.

Modern Psychology, a fledgling science, which has fallen into the trap of permitting supposition and wishful thinking to replace the scientific method, convinced us that negative reinforcement is damaging to children, that self-esteem could be given instead of earned, that achievement must be universal (and thus not exist), and that indulgence is a virtue, rather than a vice.

Modern Educational Theory, which cast aside thousands of years of human experience, methods that worked, structure which produced excellence (and failures), and embraced experimentation - often without a willingness to say "This isn't working, we went the wrong way". The simple fact is, most children are lazy, not all children are meant for college, that trades are enormously valuable and important social resources that should not be ignored. Not everyone can do Calculus. Neither can everyone make wonderful things from raw materials like wood and steel, nor repair a broken car, nor take a simple camera and produce magic, emotion, and memories.

Modern Educational Institutions, which have embraced the goals of empire, the collection of money, and the promotion of attendance for attendances sake. The only goal of a school is to produce adults capable of contributing to society at large - not bigger and better schools, with more computers, football fields, and marching bands.

Modern Journalism, which turns every conflict into Angels versus Devils, and always sides with an individual over any government organization, the truth be damned. Panic and fear are their stock in trade, and the reaction they produce has turned school administrators into hyper-reactionary fools, who hide from the onslaught behind zero-tolerance policies, and feelgood political correctness.

Modern Adults, who see all this and do nothing, who infantalize children, and clutch at them to stave off adulthood, and who shield them from all experience in the name of protecting them. Parents no longer seek to produce functional adults that contribute to society - they produce weaklings who hang from society like suckling ticks on a dog's back.

So many places to lay blame, and so few solutions. But, human society has a way of returning to moderation over time. Right now, schools are riding on the glut of property taxes, and the willingness of yuppies to vote for bond elections that they know absolutely nothing about. But lows follow highs, and austerity follows profligacy. Somewhere in the middle, folks will return to reason and common sense, and demand change, which they enforce by drying up the money spigot. I'm so sorry for the children caught by the boom times, and denied a real education. I'll be sorry for those caught by the bust as well, though they may fare better in the long run.

[mdparthum]

Hey Tapper, I thank you for your last response and only wish I could have said it as respectful and meaningful as you did. I tend to get very passionate about my kids and my profession and sometimes run off at the mouth in defense of things that are out of my control. A very good friend of mine, and fellow teacher, once gave me good advice..."Keep your mouth shut and keep a low profile". I shall endeavor to do that as best I can.

And you are right, we do agree on many things. Thanks again!