Jubbergun wrote:
Picture says it all. We're slowly heading into the future forecast in
Idiocracy.
Your Pal,
Jubber
With the addition of standardized tests into the public school system such as the MCAS standards have fallen big time. It is not about teaching the kids about anything anymore. Its now about teaching the kids the test and exactly how to pass it. This test is 75% Math and about 25% other, there is no longer time in the day for a teacher to teach anything else really. Cursiive handwriting is a 1 year optional thing now. History is pretty much pass/fail as with the other subjects. Especially when the school districs (at least in MA) use the pass fail ratio to determine how much money they get. More fails less money, More passes = More money = you now have a higher quota to make the next year to be able to get more money, but if you don't you lose what you just got plus some.
Also teachers are blamed for all of the problems, But what about the parents in the equation, they are Equally to blame if not more. The teacher can not go home with the kids to make them do their homework, or study, and if the teacher even tried to punish the kid now for acting out in class they get in trouble, and have to now take time away from the lesson plan and the kids who might want to learn.
This is all couples with the fact that more and more districts are moving to the inclusive classroom where all kids are now in it instead of the "normal" ones. This means the kid with Asperger's is in the class next to the kid who might want to learn, next to the mentally handicapped kids. This makes for a difficult teaching day. You now have to dumb it down to the handicapped, and watch out for the kid with Asperger's incase something he does not like is in the classroom. Candi had a kid once in class with Asperger's who kicked the shit out of another kid because he ad cheez-its and he did not like cheese. This behavior went Un-Punished because in out PC world he was just acting out and it was not his fault, it was just his disorder and since he was on an IEP it was ok. And it was ok because he was on an IEP which in the end gives the school district more money that they would not get otherwise. So why kick out easy money.
Now tell me how a public school teacher is supposed to deal with all that and still teach the small percentage of kids who Want to learn.
