tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post7057010744251800322..comments2023-11-10T04:17:00.492-05:00Comments on View From The Porch: It's in the dictionary, between "shirt" and "syphilis"...Tamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07285540310465422476noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-35536669911463250602011-02-20T21:45:58.220-05:002011-02-20T21:45:58.220-05:00Gotta love those MDs passing out sick slips for &q...Gotta love those MDs passing out sick slips for "Walker's Pneumonia"...Dranghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08082177597135236652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-52920840402489824992011-02-20T01:20:18.782-05:002011-02-20T01:20:18.782-05:00Forgot to say, even with everything I described ab...Forgot to say, even with everything I described above (pay cut, no raise, no OT, etc), I'm still DAMN GLAD to have a job! To those of you who have lost your jobs, my heart goes out to you, I've watched a lot of good people where I work get a pink slip, and you never know, I could be next too. Any gov worker that has to take a pay cut, or service cut, well, they can just join the rest of us in the private sector who have made the same or often much worse cuts years ago. Right now I make about the same as I did in the early 90's, when I could buy gas and milk at half the cost. Better than living under a bridge...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-82218235875773826642011-02-20T01:11:33.154-05:002011-02-20T01:11:33.154-05:00As a person who's been employed by the same co...As a person who's been employed by the same company for 25 years, and in the last 5 years haven't received a raise, have watched my health premiums go up 60% in the last 10 years, went on salary with no OT 2 years ago (with an average 50 hour work week), and took a 10% pay cut 1.5 years ago (not just me, but the all the employees) so our manufacturing business can stay afloat, the amount of compassion I have for anybody having to take any sort of pay cut right now is completely zero. I've sold everything unnecessary, have tightened every aspect of my budget, and the thought of even going out and buying something like a new car or TV is laughable at best. Welcome to the new world, isn't it grand???Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-77555625858238406972011-02-19T21:03:03.941-05:002011-02-19T21:03:03.941-05:00"You have school systems where the teachers a..."You have school systems where the teachers are not allowed by the administration to fail students. No matter what."<br /><br />Which require dishonest, lying teachers to function. <br /><br />And this "teaching to the test" whinge is silly. <br /><br />All training and learning is "teaching to the test", whether it's running so you can do a marathon or learning English so you can read books. <br /><br />First, there aren't "answers", the tests require skills. <br /><br />Second, isn't the purpose of education TEACHING STUFF? Make the test test for what you want taught.<br /><br />Educationist industry representatives seem to suggest that "teaching to the test" is worse than teaching nothing at all.staghoundshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05976667812875074135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-86182150644770734912011-02-19T20:18:09.950-05:002011-02-19T20:18:09.950-05:00Don't "doctors" of "J" who...Don't "doctors" of "J" who are counsel to or functionaries of gov bodies suck at the public teat a lot harder than teachers or most anybody else, both during and after their questionably productive years? <br /><br />I wonder what some of them think of the cuts and conflicts in Wis and Fla, and coming soon to a state near you...<br /><br />Al TeregoAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-31185457552378647052011-02-19T18:30:52.742-05:002011-02-19T18:30:52.742-05:00You have school systems where the teachers are not...You have school systems where the teachers are not allowed by the administration to fail students. No matter what. <br /><br />If you look at most 'standardized tests', they have no basis in a realistic curriculum and school funding is often based off of them. <br /><br />Avg. is not good enough so grades get inflated. <br /><br />Then you get illiterate college students who think that the 'deserve' good grades. <br /><br />Try 'dealing w/ just a few irate parents' and see how easy it is. "Why did my Johnny fail?" "He never turned in his homework. He failed every test and quiz and was disruptive in class". "So? You're supposed to be the teacher. Teach."Thirdpowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02886910076400873900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-15229118076708719552011-02-19T14:16:45.898-05:002011-02-19T14:16:45.898-05:00http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/sub/2220499545.h...http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/sub/2220499545.html<br /><br />Further commentary is quite unnecessary - there's no need to gild <b>this</b> lilly.<br /><br />gviglobal village idiothttp://www.alpharubicon.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-30067455137716478182011-02-19T14:11:53.832-05:002011-02-19T14:11:53.832-05:00"...but shouldn't the students be learnin..."...but shouldn't the students be learning the skills assessed via the test anyway?"<br /><br />Of course they should, in a perfect world. The problem here is that we live in the real world, where kids go home and play video games, and get pregnant instead of doing homework. Many students in Florida do not speak English. Since so much of a child's learning is dependent on what the child and his parents do outside of the classroom, the teacher whose pay is based upon a test score will do whatever it takes to increase that score. When traditional methods fail, the teacher will resort to cramming for the test during class time.Divemedichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14583007051962299381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-4854447942318475042011-02-19T13:39:47.154-05:002011-02-19T13:39:47.154-05:00"...but shouldn't the students be learnin..."...but shouldn't the students be learning the skills assessed via the test anyway"<br /><br />Theoretically, yes.<br /><br />But, if your pay and job retention is based off of students being able to regurgitate correct answers, would you not simply drill them repeatedly in the correct answers rather than teach them to think enough to be able to come up with the correct answers?<br /><br />I agree that the assessing teachers based on student achievement is very difficult. It might be doable for some subjects - maths, concrete subjects. But music, art? Tennessee is trying to do a value added system, but is grading their band directors based on how well they perform in math class. How does that make sense?Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07799421256296958940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-18169066093515178542011-02-19T12:51:50.668-05:002011-02-19T12:51:50.668-05:00you get teachers who spend the year helping studen...<b>you get teachers who spend the year helping students cram for the test. </b><br /><br />...but shouldn't the students be learning the skills assessed via the test <i>anyway</i>? I don't ask to be confrontational; I'd really like to know. I know this "they have to teach to the test" thing is a popular answer to the question of why the state of pub-ed is so abysmal, but is it <i>really</i> that simple? What of, say, the education majors in my wife's creative writing class a couple of semesters ago who didn't have any favorite authors <i>because they didn't like to read</i>?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-81468856258628430192011-02-19T11:27:55.477-05:002011-02-19T11:27:55.477-05:00Just so everyone knows; teachers are actually not ...Just so everyone knows; teachers are actually not even impacted by this bill. The "big controversy" is actually that this would make it so State employees (teachers do not contract with the state) would be able to opt out of union membership w/o having to pay a "fair share" (read: pay dues anyways). Since the actual budget bill later this year will likely open up teahers to similar changes on the local level, the union bosses are freaking out about an end to the gravy train.<br /><br />For the record, Walker is NOT your average politician. Look back at his tenure in Milwaukee and see for yourself; he's the real deal. If he has run the numbers and found this will bring us back into the black, then he's telling the truth.Mike Gallohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14333382103025419480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-2069889826503942622011-02-19T11:00:01.707-05:002011-02-19T11:00:01.707-05:00There is a problem with basing teacher pay on stud...There is a problem with basing teacher pay on student outcome: how do you measure outcome?<br /><br />If you do it by the grades the teachers give, that is how we get illiterate college students.<br /><br />If you do it through standardized testing, you get teachers who spend the year helping students cram for the test. Florida's FCAT is a good example of testing FAIL.<br /><br />What do you do about teachers who teach non-english speaking or retarded students? They would do more work, but with fewer results. Do the lower results mean they should get paid less?<br /><br />Anon: Because YOUR employer screwed you, you feel the need to get revenge by screwing others?Divemedichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14583007051962299381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-88174954884011564362011-02-19T10:47:55.996-05:002011-02-19T10:47:55.996-05:00OK, how about the Governor pulls a PATCO and turns...OK, how about the Governor pulls a PATCO and turns loose all those teachers who called in "sick" or who can be shown to have been protesting when they should have been working (using various photos available). They are replaced by Teach-for-America volunteers. Then eliminate the strict seniority policies for teacher retention and base them on student achievement, with allowances for teachers in h-ll hole schools. <br /><br />Typing as someone who has paid her own insurance and retirement for the past 10+ years, and who has watched jobs in her field vanish like dew after sunrise, I find it difficult to have an overwhelming amount of sympathy for the members of public unions. Sorry, Pumice, I can't walk in and teach because although I am certified to teach college students and give flight instruction, I have never taken an ed class and thus am below the notice of a teachers' union.<br /><br />LittleRed1Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-4226034267384844402011-02-19T10:25:40.281-05:002011-02-19T10:25:40.281-05:00We are having some *fascinating* discussions among...We are having some *fascinating* discussions among the staff at school these days.Donhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15824445546892392815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-68707057192872409042011-02-19T09:36:57.218-05:002011-02-19T09:36:57.218-05:00And, seriously, a three per cent pay cut? An actua...And, seriously, a three per cent pay cut? An actual decrease in pay, not just an undelivered raise?<br /><br />I'm calling "trust but verify" on that one. <br /><br />Prove it.<br /><br />Holy f@ck, the captcha is <br /><br />YOUSTRUstaghoundshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05976667812875074135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-46766647973759893102011-02-19T09:34:25.085-05:002011-02-19T09:34:25.085-05:00Pumice, if I felt that way about my job I'd qu...Pumice, if I felt that way about my job I'd quit.<br /><br /><br />"I have 7th graders who can't read and don't care. This is my fault?"<br /><br />Yes, it is. They have had seven years of your cohorts. Are you failing the illiterates? Tracking down who failed to teach them and trying to get them fired? Refusing to accept them as students?<br /><br />And dare I say it, are you teaching them to read?<br /><br />"You think just anyone can walk into a classroom and deal with...<br /><br />It appears from your illiterate seventh graders that is exactly what happened.<br /><br />"If you think it is so easy, you are welcome to give it a try. "<br /><br />No, my History BA and JD are insufficient credentials to teach six year olds the alphabet. I'd have to buy another degree from some teachers.<br /><br />"cheapest babysitting you will ever find"?<br /><br />No, I'm child free. I can find a baby sitter for zero.<br /><br /><br /><br />"If parents would start raising their kids instead of expecting the state to do it..."<br /><br />The Educationist industry has been demanding more and more authority over children since it began. Who do you think wanted compulsory education in the first place?staghoundshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05976667812875074135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-34788583312219395272011-02-19T08:54:09.124-05:002011-02-19T08:54:09.124-05:00The cuts to employee benefits are not being done t...The cuts to employee benefits are not being done to save money. The state of Florida for example, is asking its employees to take a huge tax cut, claiming that they are broke. <br /><br />Yet, the same politicians are building new sports arenas in Orlando and Miami, so billionaire team owners can have a free building in which their multi-millionaire employees can work.<br /><br />I have said it before, and I say it again here: there is no functional difference between Dems and Republicans. The only real difference is in who they give the government cheese that they stole from someone else.Divemedichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14583007051962299381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-6865124846333103752011-02-19T08:39:40.823-05:002011-02-19T08:39:40.823-05:00Pumice: I nor likely anyone here would disagree wi...Pumice: I nor likely anyone here would disagree with anything you have said...I know for sure there are many very qualified, dedicated, struggling, and frustrated teachers out there...my daughter is one of them.<br /><br />The problems, as you have noted, are systemic. And the money is there; as you say, do the math. Take the entire public education budget of Cali and divide by the number of students in the system. That is an amount, if there were not interminable layers of bureaucracy, waste, greed, stupidity, and outright larceny, to support a quality education for every child.<br /><br />And the answer is for instructors like you to enter the field of private education and join the effort to allow the money taken by gov for schooling to be used at the discretion and choice of the families themselves. I hope that will be your choice as opposed to quitting in anger, exhaustion, and defeat; the children and this country need you.<br /><br />ATAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-31984340390718543652011-02-19T00:06:17.118-05:002011-02-19T00:06:17.118-05:00I am a teacher of 23 years. I have not received a...I am a teacher of 23 years. I have not received a pay raise in years and this year because of the California budget crisis I was handed about a 3% cut. When I look at the unemployment I am grateful to still have a job. <br /><br />I would suggest that you not allow the elite media to portray the teachers of the country as the scapegoats for the poor economy. I have paid into my retirement plan the same amounts that non-public employees have paid. I have had large chunks taken out of my check for health insurance since I started teaching. Just because a bunch of spoiled brats in a lefty state have a tantrum does not mean that everyone in a classroom is a parasite. <br /><br />You think just anyone can walk into a classroom and deal with a bunch of kids who have welfare mentalities and think you are supposed to do everything for them? I have 7th graders who can't read and don't care. This is my fault? <br /><br />If parents would start raising their kids instead of expecting the state to do it a lot of the problems would go away. As it is, public education is the cheapest babysitting you will ever find. Do the math. Divide the number of kids and the number of hours a teacher deals with them and it is less expensive than the kid down the block.<br /><br />If you think it is so easy, you are welcome to give it a try. The dropout rate is high enough that I am sure you can get a position. As for the three months off in the summer, many teachers work other jobs to try and pay their bills.<br /><br />Is this a great country, or what?Pumicehttp://www.medleyofworship.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-43446622197782719092011-02-18T23:28:33.098-05:002011-02-18T23:28:33.098-05:00I have always been entirely unsurprised that garba...I have always been entirely unsurprised that garbagemen make more than teachers. They have dirty jobs in unpleasant conditions, with difficult hours and in all weather.<br /><br />Teachers have to deal with angry parents - that's about it.Ian Argenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03704336044732061128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-24257921627831160602011-02-18T22:32:17.925-05:002011-02-18T22:32:17.925-05:00I wonder if the laws in Wisconsin mirrored my nati...I wonder if the laws in Wisconsin mirrored my native Nevada's with regards to the mandatory number of days the school must be open? If so, any time the school shuts down for any reason, such as for a snow day or other emergency, it must be made up for at the end of the school year. So if the school shut down for a week for whatever reason, summer vacation would be postponed for a week in order to make up for it.<br /><br />If that is so, perhaps someone should let the kids in on it. I would guess that instead of joining the teachers, they'd organize a counter-demonstration.Robnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-54707005567479024692011-02-18T22:31:59.376-05:002011-02-18T22:31:59.376-05:00"There was a time when you took a state or go..."There was a time when you took a state or gov job not for the pay but for the bennies. Somewhere down the line that has changed."<br /><br />Not only that, but public sector jobs were pretty much secure: regardless of how the economy went, taxes never went down. If there was a "budget shortfall", the gubmint just borrowed more, banking on better times to bring more revenues....<br /><br />The problem is that now, the private sector folks without the huge bennies are having to take pay cuts (if they have a job at all!) to pay these sinecured fat cats's pensions and medical bennies.... and tax revenues are falling. We as a country are broke, and the public sector employees have been used to having the political clout to set the rules..... the game is over, now: either they give in, or the system collapses. As brutal as that prospect would be for me and mine, it would almost be worth it to see professional voters go hungry....jimbob86noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-27696933765356643332011-02-18T20:26:32.726-05:002011-02-18T20:26:32.726-05:00Saw it pointed out elsewhere that the US Constitut...Saw it pointed out elsewhere that the US Constitution guarantees the states a republican form of government, and that, by running of to Illinois, the Democrats in Wisconsin's state congress have denied the people of the Badger State that form of government.Dranghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08082177597135236652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-70880047762264147482011-02-18T18:36:14.105-05:002011-02-18T18:36:14.105-05:00"Based on the level of intelligence I've ...<i>"Based on the level of intelligence I've encountered among those just entering the job force I would suggest that a great many of these teachers have failed to perform their duties in a satisfactory manner."</i><br /><br /><a href="http://cursesfoiledagain2.wordpress.com/2011/02/18/modern-education/" rel="nofollow">I'd have to agree with you on that.</a>Jake (formerly Riposte3)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02976718318892210404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15907727.post-35391821605629348932011-02-18T18:31:30.505-05:002011-02-18T18:31:30.505-05:00Based on the level of intelligence I've encoun...Based on the level of intelligence I've encountered among those just entering the job force I would suggest that a great many of these teachers have failed to perform their duties in a satisfactory manner.<br /><br />Quit churning out morons and I'll happily sign off on a raise.<br /><br />WV: tatas (I swear before God and three responsible witnesses it is) Some may get their tatas in a twist at my take on this, or any, situation.BGMillernoreply@blogger.com