Now, as an adult, reflect upon all the other teachers that you likely don’t remember because they didn’t suck. Just like Yelp reviews, we tend to focus on the negative when reflecting on our experiences. For me, it was 6th grade periods 1 and 2 ELA. I LOVE to read and write, and this was my very first class in middle…

Is this the actual test, or just a practice? Don’t get me started on computer based testing and the issues with that. What grade do you teach? How is it going?

Especially with Danielson framework, or in a state like New York with APPR.

Elementary school teacher here. Think back to your time in education. You remember a few bad teachers you had as a kid? A couple? Yep. Now think of the many OTHERS who DON’T stand out. Who didn’t suck. Yes, tenure, unfortunately, sometimes makes it difficult to fire teachers who maybe aren’t great. Take any…

And what is the cost of living? Factor that in.

Tenure for professors in higher education is a different situation compared to tenure in elementary schools and public schools.

I can speak for NYS, but many of the “easier” schools are in wealthier areas. They pay a shit ton in taxes, and they can afford to pay their teachers more. You do less work for a substantial difference. If I taught in a different area of NY where I’m from instead of NYC, I would be making $20,000 more.

Exactly. Where are you from?

Yep. There’s another problem, too, here. Most of my students speak Russian at home. While they’re no longer technically classified as ELLs (English Language Learners now, not English as a Second Language because sometimes it’s not their second, and they just changed it to ENL, damn the acroynms!), they pretty much…

You don’t need to tell me that it’s still bullshit :) I just gave the NYS Math exam today (Day 3!).

I AM SO SICK OF THE WORD RIGOR! Sorry ;) I wish I could go through life without hearing the word “rigorous” ever again.

I live in the NYC metro area. I have my Masters plus 30 (30 graduate credits beyond my teaching certification). A Masters degree is mandatory in order to gain professional teaching certification in New York State. 45-60k in an area like this with our cost of living is NOT a reasonable wage. My school does not even…

People were and are not opposed to the idea behind Common Core itself, rather, the botched rollout and implementation of the standards.

We just posted the same exact John Oliver clip.

I NEVER said that testing as a concept doesn’t work. Please re-read all of my posts. Assessment happens all of the time in the classroom. I am not against testing or assessing my students. I AM, however, concerned with standardized tests that are narrowing the curriculum. I am against merit based pay that is tied to…

It’s even harder to assess reading comprehension when the Common Core tests are testing kids with passages that are numerous grade levels above their grade.

The problem with these high stakes tests too is that Common Core and the tests have streamlined the curriculum. All that matters now is ELA and Math. For ELA,…

I really hope you don’t bring up the PISA in your next argument. The United States has the largest rate of childhood poverty out of any industrialized nation. The biggest predictor of how a child performs on a standardized test? Socioeconomic status and whether or not they live above the poverty line. Merit pay will…

It’s so upsetting. I feel absolutely defeated. In NY, we had a huge amount of parents opting their kids out of the state test. The state’s response? Oh, your kids are stressed? We won’t give them a time limit! I had students taking the ELA from 9 am til 2:00...and they didn’t have IEPs. I don’t know how anyone who…

Or who don’t have interest in privatizing education and making a shit ton of money while doing it.

We could tell you about merit pay already based on standardized state tests and grades; it DOESN’T work. They’ve tried it in NYC already and in many other states. Not to mention the fact that state tests aren’t really valid measures of assessment. The livable wage, however, I can absolutely get behind.
Signed, a NY…