Quote:
Originally Posted by Bend it like Bourgeois
I sincerely appreciate your perspectives.
I’m not a teacher. I’m not really sympathetic to teachers even though I have several in education very close.
My observation is a big problem is that unions administration and advocates all constantly cry wolf and sometimes it’s just life. There is a constant barrage of negativity to rally the troops and at some point by itself that’s exhausting. It’s not actually awful all the time, but if you’re fed that constantly it becomes the rote. Don’t know if you care to comment.
I also think the biggest gap is in leadership at a school and regional level. Parties and unions don’t help but often the leadership is a teacher who got a Masters from Gonzaga and while they might be ambitious educators their job is to be administrators and parent councillors - and there is huge variation school to school based on whether the leadership is a teacher with a pay raise or someone who can lead. The latter is not rewarded but boy seems to make all the difference.
Finally, congrats on being the kind of teacher I hope my kids have.
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I’m pretty indifferent to the union. Like most public awareness campaigns, I feel like it’s easier to pick understandable topics like class sizes as points to rally around. “Decrease class sizes” is easier to understand than “provide more support for increasing complexities in the classroom.” I like the security it provides for me and my family, but dislike how difficult it is to move a subpar teacher out. I also feel like the union gives a voice to counter some voices that vilify my profession, stuff like indoctrination, etc.
I used to work in a very complex school that was very unsafe to be in, kids in the hallways with weapons kind of unsafe. It was very difficult and when I get home from work and hearing narratives that vilify my profession makes it even harder. I could see why people in my profession can become very negative out of that.
My current school is the only one where I’ve enjoyed working with admin, and I totally agree, makes a huge difference. I think a lot of it was their views on students aligns well with mine and I feel supported when disciplinary action must be taken.
Thanks for your kind words!