So, whatcha gonna do?

Yesterday I attended an Administrator's Academy focused on poor teacher performance. Now, in all sincerity, there isn't an administrator worth his or her salt who hasn't played the "I can't wait until this one retires" game. I personally, went home and had a huge glass of wine when one in particular moved on. However, I think the time for waiting is over.

As Dr. Voltz informed all of us yesterday, "the times they are a changin". If we don't change first we likely will be swept away by the tide of educational reform focused on the blame game. Just like Jim Broadway told us this morning in his State School News Service, the have gots are focused on doing it their way, and that includes charter schools and vouchers. That should leave the public schools with students unable, for one reason or another, to either be admitted or be successful in the particular charter school environment.

Those of us here in Cornfed County likely will not face the charter/voucher choice anytime too soon, but you know what they say about that stuff that rolls down hill. These edicts and changes caused by the public school panic will most definitely affect us eventually (and that eventuality will come sooner rather than later). The concept of tenure is like the old rooster; it has served its purpose and now it will be served up to feed the already fat cats. It's one more distraction to keep the rest of the barnyard on their toes and in their respective coops.

The issue of poor job performance is, of course, monumentally important and poor teaching should not be tolerated, but let's really see the issue for what it is. We see it day in and day out here in Cornfed, parents who desperately want their children to be successful and achieve, living in communities that have been societally marginalized by the loss of jobs and human services. Families unable to afford their own homes living with relatives in order to make ends meet. Our educational failings are most assuredly the responsibility of a flawed system, but it is not the schools alone who must bear the blame. Blame won't fix anything anyway, working together just might. Tell you what, make my school a charter; give my little country kids the breaks and services kids in charter schools get. The union wont' complain, I promise.

Dear Readers,

I will go see one more movie regarding the failure of our school systems to educate our children, and then I believe I will proceed to have my own march on Hollywood. I'll listen to one more individual who made and makes embarrassingly outrageous amounts of money from either prescription drugs, or computer software and hardware tell me that Charter Schools are the only answer to our educational woes, and I'll invite them to Roodhouse where they will never visit. They'll continue to go to New York, and LA, and Chicago and preach from their high spots, and they'll never get to see a staff like the one I have or Kristy has, or Debby is part of, work their collective asses off to provide the best education dedicated individuals can provide.

Oh, the movie shows several dedicated professionals, but it never tells the whole story. It doesn't show how mothers in small communities give up precious time with their own families to attempt to work magic with children for whom the politicians in this nation could care less. We are torn apart by "too much government" being touted by the Republican party, and continued regulation thrust on those of us who are hamsters running in the spinning cage as fast as we can. We beg and scrimp for stimulus money and then have to spend so much time being trained to teach, and to account for that money, that we are out of our classrooms for days at a time.

Our children in our small communities are hungry. They hunger for supplies, and the arts, and experiences that enrich their lives, but our local agencies besot by our state government can't even provide the promised funding without robbing Peter to pay Paul. And who are the losers?

Our children are physically hungry. There are no jobs for the parents of our kids, and when there are, they are blasted by the talking heads as entitlement programs. We are not eligible for the free fruits and vegetables program because we forgot to fill out a form, or we are not quite poor enough for free breakfast or lunch.

I don't need to see another movie that will net some billionaire another chunk of change, that will provide him the vacations, and toys that he needs to live a quality life. I'll go to work tomorrow, as will most of us in education, and I'll laugh and I'll work as hard as I can to make it a great day for "my kids". I'll make sure they all get at least one decent meal tomorrow, and they all have a pair of shoes to wear, and .....will Bill? I doubt it.

Have a nice day!

Cindy