Teachers have been in the news a lot lately. NBC hosts Education Nation and there has been a lot of discussion about the so called "failing schools" and the new Trigger Law. We've seen video of picket lines and heard people "bashing" schools and teachers. Frankly, I'm sick of it and I need to vent.
In 2001 the No Child Left Behind Act was passed. It was proposed by then President George Bush. Here is a summary of what it's about. (If you can read and understand it - thank an elementary teacher that busted her butt to teach you reading comprehension).
No Child Left Behind Act
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, also known as “NCLB” is a US federal law that was originally proposed by President George W. Bush in 2001. The legislation funds a number of federal programs aiming at improving the performance of U.S. schools by increasing the standards of accountability for states, school districts, and schools, as well as providing parents more flexibility in choosing which schools their children will attend. Additionally, it promotes an increased focus on reading and math.
The intent of NCLB is that all children will meet state academic achievement standards to reach their full potential through improved programs. The funding is divided into several areas, known as titles. In 2008, OCVTS received funding in support of these titles:
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Title I, Part A supports programs and resources for disadvantaged students. Title 1A funding is designed to aid districts in closing the achievement gap by placing highly qualified teachers in classrooms.
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Title 1, Part D is designed to serve delinquent and neglected youth in institutions, day programs, and correctional facilities to assure they attain high academic levels of achievement.
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Title II, Part A provides resources for improving teacher and principal quality. It focuses on preparing, training, and recruiting high-quality teachers and principals.
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Title II, Part D facilitates improved student academic achievement through the use of technology in the schools.
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Title IV, Part A provides resources for fostering a safe and drug-free learning environment that supports academic achievement.
To read more about NCLB including a complete description of all titles, please visit the NJ Department of Education at http://www.state.nj.us/education/grants/nclb/ or view the US Department of Education’s parent’s guide at http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/involve/nclbguide/parentsguide.pdf.
Title I
No Child Left Behind Act
Title I ("Title One") of the Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (now known as No Child Left Behind Act) is a set of programs set up by the United States Department of Education to distribute funding to schools and school districts with students from low-income families.
Title 1, Part A funds enable schools to provide opportunities, programs, and resources for disadvantaged students to help them achieve state academic achievement standards. Some services funded through Title 1, Part A include:
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Placing a highly qualified teacher in every classroom
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Improving the qualifications of paraprofessionals
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Develop effective instructional practices and materials
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Professional development for teachers
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Parent involvement activities
It also allows military recruiters access to 11th and 12th grade students' names, addresses, and telephone listings when requested.
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This act mandates that teachers teach to a set of standards, both national and state, and some schools even create their own set. The students then are tested yearly over these standards. The bar gets raised each year so it is more difficult to meet the standards. Why? The entire student population is tested - those with developmental issues, learning disabled, students that English is their second language and so on.
The standards are broad. My seventh grade standards have 135 learner expectations and the 8th graders 130. That' s a lot of material to cover each year. Do we master all of them? No. It isn't possible to master that much at this grade level. It is simply put "a flawed system."
Teachers take the standards and we create curriculum guides and pacing guides. We have vertical alignment teams to ensure that no standard is overlooked K-12. We try to choose lessons and assignments that cover more than one standard at a time. We do every thing that we can to make sure the students get what they need to be successful.
And it's not just the teacher's "job" to teach children - you have to have parental support and involvement. When parents complain that the teachers are assigning too much homework and that it's too hard, the message is being sent to the students that you don't have to work hard to achieve. Many times parents don't understand that school districts have policies that dictate how much homework is to be assigned. Or you may have an administrator that feels 3-5 assignments per week is required. Homework is reinforcement for what the child learned in class. It's also a gauge for the teacher to determine if the class can move on or needs to stay on the topic for another day or so. Teachers don't like grading homework any more than students like completing it. I grade every night for 2 to 3 hours and on weekends. I make lesson plans, type tests, lab reports, etc. at home. There's no time during the school day. Teachers have hall duty, bus duty, study hall duty, teachers meetings, parent conferences, club meetings.....during their "spare time."
Teachers also give up their time before and after school and weekends to sponsor clubs. I get paid the whopping sum of $200 per year to sponsor the Junior High Science Club. We stay after school 4 days a month for Junk Box Wars, 2 days a year we have a trash pickup (after school), we stay after school to prepare for the Science Olympiad, which is held 100 miles away on a Saturday, we hold fund raisers, and on and on. My point is - it's certainly not the money. It's the teachers' commitment to the students and the school. Last Saturday I saw a teacher (friend and former classmate) with her students picking up the trash at Turkey Trot. Do you think that's how she wanted to spend her day? No - she did it for the kids and the school.
And let's talk about money. I teach in one of the lowest paying schools in Missouri and probably the nation. I don't do this for the money, obviously, I do it because I love the kids. Teachers spend hundreds of dollars out of their own pockets each year for school supplies. I never go to Walmart that I don't have school "stuff" in my cart. Today it will be vinegar and spaghetti for a lab, post it notes, cookies and koolaid for my Science Club students to have when they stay after school this week. We get a paltry $400 deduction on our taxes for this - but that isn't a "drop in the bucket." We spend many $$$ on workshops registration fees and online classes to fulfill the professional development requirements mandated by the NCLB act. Arkansas teachers now have to pay $100 to renew their teaching certificats, that we spent $1000s of dollars on college to achieve. We use our own money to buy some kid's lunches, pay their admission to plays, pay for a club tee shirt. We stay after to school to stuff backpacks with nonperishable food for kids who don't get proper meals at home. We humble ourselves to ask for donations from the local businesses to help with funding.
Another thing that many parents don't realized. Teachers are observed by their administrators and evaluated yearly. The principals know how effective the teachers are. Our observations in Missouri are video taped and put on file with the state department of education. The principals sit down with the teachers and review the tapes noting both your strong and weak areas. Our principals also do unannounced 5 minute walk throughs to monitor teachers. We are not free to "do as we please" in the classroom.
Teachers post grades online and most every school has some type of Parent Portal that allows parents to go online and check the child's grade and see if all assignments are turned in. We post our daily assignments on line (many times attaching a copy of the worksheet) so parents can see what their child's assignment is. We attach online books so that they have a book to use if they forget their textbook at school We post test dates and attach study guides to our webpages for both parents and students. We offer a workshop each year to teach parents how to use the Parent Portal and the teacher webpages, but attendance is usually low. It's too easy to send the teacher a snarky e-mail or note demanding to know why their child's grade is low.
We will have parent teacher conferences next week and if the past trend continues, I will have about 20% turnout, usually the parents of the children who are doing well.
The bottom line is this. If your child isn't performing well, come to school and talk to the teachers. Ask what you can do as a parent to help because I assure you, the teachers and the school are already doing their part.
Respectfully,
A very tired and stressed out junior high teacher.
