ms_teacher

On being accused of racism . . .

2012-01-23T19:08:00.000-08:00

From this day forward let's all commit to calling every person a racist who uses race to explain teacher failure, every time, everywhere.

Using race, family & poverty as excuses for your limitations is, among other things, racist. If you can't get results get a new job.

I'm tired of teachers who deflect responsibility & make themselves victims. If you can't get results it's not parents' fault it's yours.

The above are all quotes from a well-known African American educator who is routinely featured on a national news program. These were recent tweets.

I'm submitting them to my readers without comment. Curious as to what others think.

the earring . . .

2012-01-16T11:43:00.000-08:00

Artist Girl got her first piercing when she was in 8th grade. Guitar Teen, I believe, was probably around the same age when he wanted his first earring. Last week, Wrestling Fan, asked if he could get his ear pierced. He is going to be sixteen in a few months & I'm quite surprised that he hadn't asked before now.

Wrestling Fan has been working really hard in school and is proving to be a very responsible teen. When he first texted me his request, I told him that we would need to have a conversation with dad. The next day, I had a lunch date with my husband, so I brought it up in conversation with him. He was fine with it.

Last Friday, we took him to get his ear pierced & he's now sporting some nice bling (well, what under $40 in bling will get you anyway!) in his left year.

He got quite the kick out of the young woman who was doing the piercing. She asked him if he was over or under 18.

It stoked his ego, just a bit.

more happy

2012-01-14T13:34:00.000-08:00

Tonight, my husband, my parents and I are going to go see a band play. We are then going to spend the night at my parents house.

The laptop is staying here.

I'm not going to check my work and/or union e-mail until Monday.

The thought alone puts me in my happy place.

I could handle my supe . . .

2012-01-14T11:15:00.000-08:00

if I felt like I had more support from the leadership group for my union.

We have twenty people on this leadership team. Of those, I can count on maybe five or six (if I'm being generous) to do anything for the organization.

Granted, they are volunteers with full-time teaching positions. I know they are overworked & stressed out. However in order to become part of the leadership team, you have to be elected for a position. This means that you should realize that once you decide to put your name out there, you are committed to actually DO something.

I cannot stand when people run for positions, simply for the title.

I get annoyed when plans are made, people commit to those plans & then decide at the last minute to not go or not do anything.

I get frustrated when people bitch & moan at our meetings about how they think things should be and aren't willing to work hard to make sure that things we value can actually BE!

I get pissed when something is calendared for five months, then someone emails a week away from a major event that now they can't go & oh, yeah, don't you remember I mentioned it to you TWO MONTHS ago?!!

Seriously, folks, I've been consistently told from a lot of people that I'm one of the hardest working presidents in recent memory for my union. That is because of my high work ethic & level of integrity.

I wish that others would feel the same.

(from ms_teacher who wishes it wasn't so early so that she could go have a large martini somewhere.)

I'm having a dilemma

2012-01-11T07:54:00.000-08:00

I'm supposed to go speak today on behalf of my new superintendent. If I truly believed in the vision, this would be a no brainer. However, because this new superintendent is clearly making things personal & I don't believe that this superintendent likes or trusts teachers, I am sitting here writing a blog post instead of getting ready.

This superintendent is expecting me to speak about what a wonderful job he is doing & how I trust in his vision for my district in order to prevent funding to stop for one of our programs.

Something came up over the week-end that I needed to speak to our board members about. The three that I have decent relationships with, I called. That afternoon, I contacted our superintendent to find out if he was going to complete the letter I need okaying my attending the doctorate program. This program requires me to miss one day a month.

The Superintendent said that we needed to talk because he has concerns. Concerns that were not brought up when I spoke to him previously.

I know for certain that if I don't go & do the rah-rah that he expects me to do, my fate is sealed.

This year has been one of the worst ever.

I've made the decision not to compromise my integrity. I need to live with myself. I fully understand the consequences of my actions & know that this may very well postpone my ability to attend a doctoral program.

OMFG

2012-01-09T18:42:00.000-08:00

I very rarely use profanity. My frustration level is pretty high right now at the people I have been elected to represent. I was at a meeting today & this teacher started to ask me questions. She was very friendly - almost too friendly, kind of the sickly sweet friendliness that should have made me question her friendliness.

After the meeting was over, I was asked to stay to discuss a major development in our district. After the discussion was over, the super friendly teacher came to talk to me.

She was a black widow in disguise.

She immediately started attacking me and questioning my due diligence to the people I represent. This wasn't criticism. Believe me, over the past two years, I've been privy to plenty of criticism. This was a full on attack.

Here's the funny point in all of this.

This member? I've yet to see her once show up for any union action, any Board meeting, anything that might show that she at least supports the work of her union & the work we do on her behalf.

So yeah, I suck & you? You don't have to do a goddamn thing to make it better.

Feel better now?

Another corporation racks up billions in profits . . .

2011-11-22T17:33:00.000-08:00

and expect its workers to give up more of their hard earned benefits.

This story matters to me. I'm battling with Kaiser to provide coverage for my daughter who is currently living out of state.

Here's the twist to our story. If Artist Girl were to stay at home or live anywere in Northern California, she would be covered under my plan through Kaiser. This is regardless of whether or not she is a student, works full time or if she were to get married.

However, because she doesn't live within the Northern California area, she qualifies for a "guest member" program which means they drop her after 90 days. If she were a student, it wouldn't matter where in the US she lives - they would provide her coverage under my health plan.

This seems to be in direct conflict with the guidelines that were set forth in the health care plan set forth by the Obama administration.

My daughter has asthma, which gets very severe, very quickly.

She shouldn't have to worry until she's 26. Thanks to Kaiser, we are both worried.

hating to disappoint . . .

2011-11-11T12:22:00.000-08:00

Today is Veteran's Day, which I knew when I agreed to meet with some teachers today to talk about some issues at their school site.

This week has been extremely busy with a meeting every night this week. This has meant not getting home until after 7 most nights and leaving by 9 in the morning.

I've also been battling a cold, took a trip out of state, and basically have tried to accomplish way too much in the space of two weeks & trying to meet the needs of a lot of people without taking into account my own needs.

Today, I decided to be selfish which is what I should have done to begin with. However, I think that as women we hate to disappoint anyone who we believe is "counting on us."

I called the person hosting the meeting moments ago & told him I wouldn't be able to make it. I was very honest in my explanation as to why and asked him to ask some specific questions and report back to me. I know that the people attending will be disappointed that I'm not there, but I also know that sometimes I have to be selfish.

I don't think men have this problem - do you?

My district's dirty little secret . . .

2011-10-22T10:34:00.000-07:00

I've written a lot about evaluations recently. One of the arguments administrators have made to me when I would talk about evaluations for a teacher, some would become very indignant and proclaim that they are evaluated every single year.

Except they weren't.

In fact, many have not been evaluated for years, some not even since the 1990's! I'll say this about the new superintendent is that he is unearthing a lot of the dysfunction and lack of accountability across the board. There have been rumors and whispers that administrators (hopefully some of the worst, like the one who has been caught routinely sleeping at her desk w/pictures to prove it, instead of doing her job) will be out of a job within the next year or so.

I can't remember when the last administrator has been let go for incompetence. A huge reason for this is because there have been no evaluations and no documentation, which an attorney would have a field day with. It makes all the sense in the world now why things are so very messed up in this district.

I'm glad that the very bright light on past incompetence is happening and that the focus isn't just on so-called "bad teachers."

I think some of our kids have lost hope . . .

2011-10-21T18:56:00.000-07:00

Last week-end my daughter received word that one of her friends was shot & killed in a random act of violence. Two days ago, she found out that another friend (another young man) committed suicide.

I can count on one hand the number of friends & acquaintances that have died since I've become an adult. She has experienced at least twice that since she was in high school. Not all of them have died at the hands of strangers, some of them have died due to their own choices, and I believe that this is the second friend that she knows who has committed suicide.

I was talking to a group of people recently and the topic of the economy came up. My two older kids have not wanted to pursue college degrees at this time. Although I've had conversations with them about this choice and the ramification it can mean for them down the road, there is the other part that is also reluctant to have them straddled with enormous student debt that they may or may not be able to repay, especially if this economy fails to improve.

When young men and women with very little job experience are having to compete with older workers with more experience for the few minimum wage jobs, something is seriously wrong.

She is coming home for few days next week. I will be glad to have her home and I will hug her for a very long time. Undoubtedly being home will bring back a rush of memories for the friends she has lost. We were excited to have her home & the plans had been made a couple of weeks before the death of these two friends occurred.

Now it will be a healing visit. I hope that it will be enough.

A different time . . .

2011-10-16T15:20:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons that I believe that my daughter has had a hard time in life is because of the tremendous losses she has faced since her junior year in high school.

About eight of her friends over the years has died.

In the past month, two of her friends have been murdered. By all appearances, both young men were not doing anything illegal. One was in his home when he was shot & killed by an acquaintance, the other was in the wrong place at the wrong time, shot & killed in Oakland.

Both of these young men were African American.

It brings to light for me when people discuss the pathway for our African American boys - prison or death.

We have got to change something in our society. The violence and apparent disregard for human life is a symptom of a disease called poverty. Until we address that, the killings will continue.

I wanted to add:
@HappyChyck - a lot of points of conversation. We are a middle class white family, but we live in a community that has become more urban over the past 15 or 20 years. My daughter has a wide-range group of friends, some of whom have died because of their own bad decisions (driving drunk). However, three of her friends have been murdered - these past two, like I said, in the space of a month. All three of these friends were young men of color, two Black & one Hispanic.

The reality for me is that my own two sons do not run the same risk of being murdered as their friends of color. The people who chose to murder these three men were also men of color. I believe that because poverty & racism are so inextricably linked in our society that the young men who who chose to use a gun really saw no other path in their lives.

There is a message here . . .

2011-10-14T11:35:00.000-07:00

Things aren't getting better in my district as I've written earlier. While many of our teachers complain about increasingly worse working conditions, lack of respect for their professionalism, and a constant threat of pay-cut days (aka furlough days), very few seem to understand that there are more of us than them.

The sense I get is that they expect the president (not just me, but any person in this role) do solve all of the problems and to always fight the battles. A general is only as strong as the soldiers standing behind her.

Guess what, the grasshoppers will continue to win and get the fruits of labor done by the ants.

It cannot be explained any better than this.

it's not only the teachers . . .

2011-10-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

I don't understand the adversarial role that too many of the administrators in our district seem to have embraced over the past few years.

As I showed in my last post, evaluations are becoming highly contentious in my district. A big part of this is because administrators (I believe) are being directed to use it as a weapon to "get teachers" as opposed to its intent, which is a tool to help teachers improve their practice.

The former is going to be met with great resistance. Many of our older teachers believe they are being targeted & I believe that this may very well be the case. Most teachers, regardless of age, want to embrace practical guidance that will help them become better in order to best meet the needs of their students. I've yet met a teacher in my district or any other district who went into teaching to damage kids.

Part of the reason teachers get burnt out is because of this constant beating down on them by those above. I don't understand the mentality. School site leaders roles should be one of helping their staff improve as individuals. They should be the ones setting the tone and providing examples of good instructional practice & support. If it were done in this manner, then perhaps our teachers wouldn't fear evaluations & would embrace the concept of using evaluations to help them become better in the classroom.

Instead, we have a battle of wills and the only ones I see losing in this kerfuffle are teachers many of whom are teaching in incredibly tough situations with very little support.

Sorry not gonna do it . . .

2011-09-30T17:26:00.000-07:00

Interesting conversation with a teacher today who is outraged that she is being evaluated this year.

She lied to me & told me that she had been evaluated last year, so contractually she shouldn't be evaluated this year.

However, she wasn't really evaluated and hasn't been evaluated for more than a few years. She's upset because of the deal that she thought she had with her previous principal.

The deal has kind of fallen through & the new principal really doesn't care about the deal.

She's out of luck & wanted me go to battle for her.

I had to tell her that there was nothing contractually that I could do. There is no violation of the contract. She has to be evaluated this year.

She wasn't happy.

I told her that I'm just doing my job. My job is to protect her rights under the contract. The contract calls for an evaluation every other year.

Despite what some may think, the contract protects both the teacher and the district.

It's a good thing . . .

2011-09-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

that even after being together with my husband for over 25 years, that I still find him incredibly sexy.

yes, I'm a lucky girl.

it's not the gifts . . .

2011-09-24T14:51:00.000-07:00

that matter to me. It's why it's always hard for me to give my husband a list of things that I want for my birthday.

My birthday is a week from today. I sent him this list in a message on facebook.

Gifts I wouldn't mind having:
a new camera
a class with my honey at Ramekins
a day at the beach
a visit to Berkeley
a picture of our three kids
getting my nails done
going to Apple Hill(?) with my parents & the boys
amazon gift card for Kindle books
a visit to that Italian restaurant with you & the youngest (the place you went to as a boy)
a phone call or skyping with Artist Girl while I'm blowing out the candles

For myself, it really is all about my kids & my husband. Anytime that we do stuff together is icing on the cake - so to speak.

Continued to be "punished" . . .

2011-09-23T08:18:00.000-07:00

for doing my job as prez of my local.

My mom surmises that the new superintendent might be intimidated. If that's the case, then I don't think he has learned how to be an effective leader. Over the past two years, whenever I have found myself intimidated by anyone, I didn't run away from them. Instead, I took it as a personal challenge to overcome that fear because once you move past that fear, you find that we are all "just" people after all.

That being said, I wish our school board members actually had the ability to be intimidating. It would seem that they want to play nicey-nice to our new superintendent, rather than holding him accountable to one of the things he was specifically hired to do - fix the relationship between the district and the union.

It ain't happening and I know that I've done all that I can at this point in time. Ball is now in his court, so to speak.

In other news, I'm looking at two doctoral programs that are relatively close to my home & doesn't require me to cross over any bridges that require paying toll. I missed one of the informational meetings on one of the programs because I was stuck in sucky traffic. Once normally a 45 minute drive, ended up being an hour and a half. By the time I ended up on the campus, I was already 15 minutes late. I drove around looking for parking & a stupid parking kiosk for ten minutes before deciding to turn back around & come home.

Their next meeting is scheduled for November, so I'm not worried. It was just excruciatingly frustrating!!

Well Happy Friday to all. Enjoy the week-end!

Let him die (Part 2)

2011-09-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

This is about Troy Davis, who is just a day away from being executed by the fine state of Georgia. As a white teacher who teaches in a community of color, situations like this do not make my job any easier.

I love all three of my kids & the worst thing that could happen would be to lose them to a violent crime. The emotional part of me would probably want to seek the death penalty (as is the case with the monster who killed Polly Klaas). I don't fault those who believe that the death penalty needs to be in force for those who commit the most heinous of crimes.

However, there seems to be a high level of doubt as to the guilt of Mr. Davis. Due to this doubt, at the very least, his sentence should be commuted to a life sentence.

In the United States, we continue to struggle with racism. When more black men are incarcerated than any other group, that should say something about our society. When we are more willing to spend more on prisons than we are on education, that also says something.

I'm all for holding people accountable for their behavior. People make mistakes that can have deadly consequences. However, when are we going to hold our society accountable for ensuring that we eradicate poverty, injustice, and the racism that are so inextricably linked with the other two?

If a guilty man in Texas can have his execution stayed because race was used as a factor in his trial, then it would seem to me that a potentially innocent man in Georgia should also have his execution stayed as well.

As a citizen of this nation, one that prides itself on justice for all, this is the least we can do.

From the Jose Vilson
If you haven’t already, please send a letter to Georgia’s Clemency Parole Board and the Georgia State Board using Amnesty International’s nifty website here. Also, I was told that the DA can’t withdraw the death warrant. Only Judge Penny Freesemann can. Call 912-652-7252 or e-mail pfreesemann@chathamcounty.org

Let him die

2011-09-17T15:16:00.000-07:00

it means nothing . . .

2011-09-14T18:58:00.000-07:00

once it is born.

I'll never understand that the party that pretends to care so much for the fetus, cares so little for it once its born.

Honestly, cheering about a question on a 30 year old man dying who has no health insurance?

Unwilling to tax the wealthiest while in the meantime our poverty rates soar?

Spending billions of dollars for a never ending war while unwilling to make sure that our schools are adequately funded?

Cheering when a candidate boasts about the execution of 234 prisoners, but not asking about what we as a society can do to reduce crime, eradicate poverty, and boost the middle class?

Disgusted & appalled.

I think it's the way I'm wired . . .

2011-09-11T18:00:00.000-07:00

or something like that.

For those who don't know, I am studying the GRE, which is a test that is required to be admitted into many colleges at the graduate level. A few years ago, I earned my Masters in Education. Now, I'm going for my Doctorate in Education Leadership, most likely with a focus on Urban Schools.

My husband noted about a week ago that he felt I needed something to focus on. This is because he is well aware that I have no plans on running again for president of my local when my term is up.

Knowing that I have two years left, he suggested that I set a new goal for myself. He further suggested looking into doctorate programs. He knows that I like to be mentally challenged & busy. When either one is missing, I tend to be cranky & depressed.

Like I said, I think it's the way I'm wired.

I've found two programs that are close to where I live.

My husband said not to worry about the tuition.

That's further along down the road, so I won't worry.

What's got me worried is the GRE.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Sixth Year (reposted - first appeared here on 9/11/2007)

2011-09-11T06:47:00.000-07:00

It was my first year of teaching and it's a day, I'll truly never forget. It's one of those moments in our history where like the JFK assassination people remember exactly where they were when they heard the news.

For me, I was on my way to work when the news came over the radio. The radio station I listened at the time to is well known for their morning show and the banter that flowed between the two co-hosts. The banter was gone, replaced with disbelief and shock as they read the news feeds. I was stuck in stop and go traffic, torn by an urge to return home to my family. Of course, as a teacher it is a little bit tougher to not show up, especially when you know you are responsible for some thirty students. I also knew that for some of my students, this moment of extreme instability, needed to be met with the stability of knowing that their teacher would be there.

It wasn't an easy choice to make, but I also knew that my own three children had the good fortune of being in a cohesive, dependable family. All three undoubtedly knew that when they got home from school, we would talk of the events that had transpired with the guidance that comes from being caring parents. This could not be said for quite a few of my students. They would need an adult who could talk about these tragic events, assure them that they were safe, and get on with the regular procedures of the day.

I'm comfortable in my messiness . . .

2011-09-10T12:21:00.000-07:00

how about you?

I am having some friends over tomorrow.

You would have thought I was having the President of the United States over the way my beloved husband reacted.

We are a messy family.

That means that sometimes the floors don't get mopped as often as they should or the dusting either for that matter.

That being said, I cannot worry anymore about having a perfect house in order to have people over.

I'm not a hoarder - just in case you were wondering.

Just messy (& I'm kind of busy during the week).

I'm sure my friends will understand.

And yes, I did dust yesterday & I am mopping.

My friends are worth it.

Even better? My family benefits!

it's always amusing . . .

2011-09-08T08:55:00.000-07:00

when someone bashes the union comes running to the union for help.

There is a young teacher in our district who has gone out of his way to bash the union. I've seen his posting on different online newspapers who utilize the facebook plug in for comments.

He always makes comments on how he trusts his employer to protect his rights & that the union does nothing to help protect him.

Um okay . . .

So imagine my surprise when I get an e-mail from this young teacher who has a question about his permanent status. Apparently he was told that he had earned it but now the district can't find the paperwork. And, now he wants my help.

This is also funny to me as I've also seen him bashing "tenure" (aka permanent status). Why should it matter to you so much if you post everywhere that you don't think people should get tenure & you trust that your employer will do the right thing?

Amusing, I tell ya!

it ain't easy . . .

2011-09-03T15:52:00.000-07:00

being married to a public school teacher and this man speaks so eloquently & passionately about his wife, it brought tears to my eyes and a lump in my throat.

This is the reality for many of the teachers that I proudly represent in my local. It is why I get so frustrated with those in the district office who demand more & more without very little acknowledgement for the work we do.

Many seem to be clueless about what it means to be a teacher today. They claim to know what it takes because by golly, they once were students, therefore they know all about teaching!

Or those who get brought in to a district, whether that be a new superintendent or some other high level district position, with their own ideas about what is wrong and don't even bother to talk to those in the classrooms.

In my district, we have had six superintendents in 11 years. Each one with their own ideas and plans. Each one have gone out to the community to talk to business groups, faith organizations, and other community groups. NONE of them have bothered to do the same with their teachers. Instead, they talk at us.

It's why I've become cynical with this new superintendent. His talk is good the community, but guess what, buddy, teachers in this district know that talk is cheap and chances are you'll move on to the next best thing. Meanwhile those who truly care about "the kids" will be those who have us who continue to stay, despite the obstacles, low pay, crappy benefits and bad working conditions.