Escapism Begins

I am out of town for a week in Las Vegas! we have tickets to see Ka, the Cirque de Soleil show at the MGM, and will be meeting friends down there. Hope your Spring Break goes well, and I’ll talk to y’all later! Wish me luck!

Here’s a picture of where we’re staying: (original pic here)

Obama Wants the Bad Teachers Out

Obama wants to see “bad teachers” moved out of the classroom, as reported in a recent article. The reporter notes, “If the nation’s schools are going to see improvement, President Barack Obama says there has to be a way to ease bad teachers out of the classroom.”

Further, “Obama said some people just aren’t meant to be teachers.” I think he’s right on this charge. I don’t think there’s a panacea for solving all the ills in education, but I do see people in my own building who are not there to be better teachers.

However, I also feel that administrators need to take some of this on their shoulders to do one of two things to help the situation: 1) go through the lengthy steps to oust poor teachers or 2) become teachers of teachers and make those deemed “poor” improve.

As a teacher, I’m limited in what I can do to help; peer pressure only goes so far. I really think the easiest way to see improvement is to get help from building and district leadership (better and more authentic professional development, help for struggling teachers, paid time to observe other teachers, and so on).

What do you think?

College Visits High School

What do you think about this idea from a central Washington high school? From the article my only criticism is that I wonder if all disciplines were given equal representation, or did the whiz-bang demonstrations get all the buzz?

Regardless, I like that colleges are reaching out and inspiring kids. Although this is absolutely a recruiting campaign, I still like it. Maybe other colleges should get to the high school, too, and make it a more well-rounded representative group of offerings.

How many dreams were created this day?

Break the NEA?

There seems to be quite a bit of support for busting the NEA, a national teachers’ union. In my own state, support seems to be growing to break through the WEA (Washington Education Association). I really like my local and so far have decent feelings about my state representation but don’t have much feeling for the national union.

I wonder if teachers need to become a force in the a part of the reforms spoken about throughout the nation. Maybe we can take charge of the evaluation reforms, the funding solutions, and the merit pay debate.

When do we take charge of our profession in politics? Should we?

Education Pays the Bills

A Spokane newspaper article details the value of education by the numbers. Take a look at this:

The U.S. unemployment rate was 8.1 percent in February, the highest in about 25 years. A closer look reveals that the jobless rate is an alarming 12.6 percent for people who lack a high school diploma. It’s considerably lower, 8.3 percent, for high school graduates, and only 4.1 percent for college graduates.

A nationwide Census Bureau survey showed these estimated annual median incomes for 2007 for workers 25 and older at varying levels of education:

•$19,405, less than high school graduate.

•$26,894, high school graduate (includes equivalency certification).

•$32,874, some college or an associate (community college) degree.

•$46,805, bachelor’s degree.

•$61,287, graduate or professional degree.

Maybe students will be impacted by this dose of reality.