Thread: Revival ?

I have an idea, but it obviously didn't play out last week, anyway.

Here in the U.S., the job has changed, and is changing. Longer hours, more duties, more responsibilities, more mandates, less respect, less professional discretion...all amounts to teachers who have spent too long on the job already, and don't want to spend more time chatting.

And there is less to say. When your district is busy scripting and mandating your every second and breath, what are you going to talk about? What the script said today?

The only real conversations I've been interested in having revolve around acting to take my profession back from destructive politics. This isn't a political forum, so I haven't spent time here doing that.

I do have plenty of current topics to discuss, but all of them revolve right back to current legislation, mind-set, mandates, and lack of resources.

All of my attention, energy, and focus is directed on trying to make something positive happen in my classroom each day, which is becoming more and more challenging as more and more mandates and budget cuts come down. And I just will not "chat" about the mandated scripted programs/curriculums that make me want to gag, scream, or kick something.

The focus of conversation in the staff lounge yesterday? A group of veteran teachers who all unanimously agreed; they would not recommend teaching to any young person looking for a career.

Perhaps the way to breathe life back into these forums would be to breathe life, and hope, back into the profession.

The only real conversations I've been interested in having revolve around acting to take my profession back from destructive politics. This isn't a political forum, so I haven't spent time here doing that.

I do have plenty of current topics to discuss, but all of them revolve right back to current legislation, mind-set, mandates, and lack of resources.

I feel the same. As a teacher with politics as a hobby and a politician with teaching as a living I find it difficult to keep the two sides apart.(You probably knew this from the content of my 241 messages)
I wonder what Lucy would say here ..after all ..politics and the effects thereof have become a part of our daily life in school -

The focus of conversation in the staff lounge yesterday? A group of veteran teachers who all unanimously agreed; they would not recommend teaching to any young person looking for a career.

Politics again....

Perhaps the way to breathe life back into these forums would be to breathe life, and hope, back into the profession.

Absolutely - and to do this - we need a new crew on the bridge !
(Politics)
Olav

Well, Olav, you and I can agree on that one. :wink:

Meanwhile, today's staff meeting was consumed with heated discussion on how to solve the discipline problems. The teaching staff doesn't want to spend instructional time dealing with infractions that occurred when we were not on duty, that we did not witness. We don't want more unpaid extra hours doing special punishment or incentive programs. We want more supervision, and some support outside the classroom. The bottom line is that we are overcrowded and understaffed, and there is no more money anywhere for more staffing. Our principal fully agreed, and just said, "Give me ideas; tell me what else we can do to make it better that is legal and doesn't cost money out of a non-existent budget." We need some big shifts to get the budget moving.