Education News and Follies

Chicago teachers won at least this round regarding a longer school day.

The district would have to hire more teachers because if they didn't, these teachers would leave in droves.

Moron "reformers" have this notion that teachers should "work" 9-5 year round, and never mind the fact the job isn't like parking one's ass in front of a computer all day. It is extremely labor intensive, with little of it being delegated because of state laws prohibiting nonteachers from teaching, and with high burnout.

Not to mention teachers are PAID for seven hours, but they put in far more UNPAID hours than that.

Not that "reformers" know or give a shit.
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Of course Gates money and as well Arne's blackmail scheme have gutted teacher morale in Tennessee. Hell, there are so many teachers out of work and schools continue churning out teachers, these districts can AFFORD to treat current teachers like shit:

Tennessee overhauled its teacher evaluation system last year to win a grant from the federal Race to the Top program. Now many teachers say they are struggling to shine, and that's torpedoing morale.

For Janna Beth Hunt, who teaches first grade at Norman Binkley Elementary in Nashville, it's been a disappointing process. Tennessee's new observations grade teachers on a scale of 1 to 5. Many are scoring what feels like a C, which under the system isn't enough to get the job security of tenure.

"I definitely feel like I'm better than an average teacher. I'm not happy with a 3, but I told my principal that, and he knows that I'm a perfectionist and that I want a 5. It's just extremely difficult to get a 5," Hunt says.

Some teachers say it feels impossible. To score at the highest levels, students must demonstrate a mastery of the day's lesson. But the four-page checklist used to grade teachers is incredibly detailed, down to how handouts are passed around. That kind of nitpicking is new for every teacher in Tennessee, but especially for veteran educators, who may not have had anyone watching them in years.

Unbelievable shit. Of course the principals will use this as an excuse to get rid of teachers they don't like.