Stop the Insanity !

In the Sunday New York Times last week, there was an article about the Texas state legislature passing a law to allow guns on state college campuses. On the same day in an interview on CNN, a member of the gun lobby suggested that if students at Umpqua Community College were permitted to have guns on campus, someone would have been able to stop Christopher Harper-Mercer. According to reports, there have been thirteen mass shootings in the United States since the massacre at Columbine High School in Colorado, and to my knowledge, no one had a gun to be able to stop the perpetrator.

There has been this disconnect between those who hold the Second Amendment sacred and those who want to protect our children. Schools (and colleges for that matter) are supposed to be safe places. They provide a nurturing environment. They offer free lunch to students who cannot afford it. They offer health care and psychological services to those who need them. Students often turn to schools when things are not so safe at home. It’s no wonder that an increasing number of parents want to home school their children. But even with that extra cautionary step, it did not stop Jared Loughner in Arizona (2011) from killing a child and severely injuring former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Nor did it stop James Eagan Holmes in a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado in 2012.

A graphic posted on a national news program last week indicated that during the last ten years about 300 Americans were killed from acts of terrorism and over 300,00 were killed by gun violence. As long as we continue to do nothing and as long as we continue to cave in to the likes of the NRA, these tragedies unfortunately will continue. I encourage all readers to contact their state and federal legislators and help stop the insanity.

Let Girls Learn!

For the past four years this blog has been a forum for current issues in American public education. We have looked a federal education laws, curriculum development, changes in technology, teacher professional development and social issue in education. There is one issue, of a more global nature, that we have not discussed, until now. Recent statistics indicate that are over 62 million girls, worldwide who are presently being denied the right to an education merely because they are female. “ When girls aren’t given the chance to realize their potential, the whole world loses out.”  In 2012, the World Bank reckoned that Kenya’s illiterate girls, if educated, could boost that country’s economy by $27 billion in the course of a lifetime. (From a Washington Post article I March 2013)

 Now in an effort supported by First Lady Michelle Obama and the Peace Corp, a new initiative called Let Girls Learn is being promoted in places like Columbia, Rwanda, and elsewhere, to give young women the opportunity to receive an education and achieve their aspirations.

Let Girls Learn strives to expand access to education for adolescent girls around the world. The program is based on three pillars:

1 Empowering Leaders

   Working Hand in Hand with Communities

   Increase impact of the Peace Corps volunteers

Public attention was drawn to this issue with the 2013 publication of the book “ I am Malala,” written by a then 15 year old Milala Yousafzai who was shot by the Taliban for standing up for her rights to receive an education. Now with the endorsement of both President Obama and the First Lady, this issue is receiving more attention here in the United States.

For more information about this project or find our how you can participate check out these web sites. www.letgirlslearn.peacecorps.gov or www.62milliongirls.com.

C.2015 J. Margolis

How Do Our Children Acquire Knowledge?

While the general model of public education in this country was developed during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the way in which school children acquire knowledge has changed dramatically. When was the last time that you used an encyclopedia? What about a card catalogue in the library?  When was the last time that students took a standardized math test without a computer or calculator? The list goes on. Classrooms have gone from having one computer in each class to laptops or Ipads for everyone. When you think about this revolution, there is a disconnect. Here in the twenty-first century, schools are still organized much as they were in last century, paralleling the assembly line factories that fueled the Industrial Revolution. There are twelve grades, the school year lasts about 180 days, student must have a certain number of credits to graduate from high school, and so on.( And-as I previously wrote about- the nature and design of homework.)

Paralleling the acquisition of knowledge is the curriculum- the “what” that is being taught. According to the proponents of E.D Hirsch’s Cultural Literacy, there is a specific body of knowledge that every American school student should know. Hirsch developed a dictionary of some 5000 items that encompass a broad range of topics from mathematics and civics, to art, music and literature. One of the problems with this theory is that it assumes that students have been exposed to a variety of cultural experiences that enhance their vocabulary and general fund of knowledge. This places many minority students at a distinct disadvantage. Other educators will note that they are teaching whatever needs to be taught for “THE TEST.”

At some point the logistics of school curriculum and structure must come up to speed with the technology, so our students can be successful in both the classroom and in life.

c.2015 J. Margolis

Teachers Wanted !

Are you still looking for a teaching position? Apparently the opportunities are still out there even as the 2015-16 school year has begun. What has been occurring recently is a result of the change in the economy. During the recession, many teachers were laid off due to budget cuts. Those teacher candidates in the pipeline at that time decided to either delay entry into the profession or change careers completely. Couple that with the teacher bashing and union busting tactics employed by a number of high profile politicians and you get a recipe for a teacher shortage.

The areas throughout the United States traverse the continent. They include California, Las Vegas, Tampa, and towns in Indiana, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Georgia. If you are a serious teacher candidate looking for a position, be sure the contact that state’s departments of education for information and requirements for certification. Prospective applicants should be aware of the fact that teacher preparation programs in colleges and universities throughout the country differ greatly and a candidate might find that they are missing a class or classes required for certification in a particular state. That being said, since the school years has already started, some districts may be willing to temporarily waive missing requirements and establish a timeframe for becoming fully certified.

One other important item to note is that teacher salaries can vary from state to state as the cost of living also varies. For example, it is more expensive to live in California than in North Dakota.

Below are a few web sites to help you get started in your job search. You can also target a state or two and contact the district human resources office.

www.teachers-teachers.cpm

www.schoolspring.com

jobs.monster.com

c.2015 J. Margolis

Book Review- The Teacher Wars: A History of America’s Most Embattled Profession

Book Review- The Teacher Wars: A History of America’s Most Embattled Profession

By Dana Goldstein

C.2014 Anchor Books (Available in hardbound and paperback)

Coming from a family of educators, you would think that author would not be so critical of the “family business.” But a candid view of the history of American Public education brings out all of the warts and deformities.  For the most part, America’s public school teachers do not come from this country’s best universities, nor do they come to the classroom with the highest GPA’s.

The plight of the American public school teacher has become the fodder for politicians. It is understandable to want to get rid of poor teachers, a process that is time consuming and expensive, but voices from both the left and right have trashed tenure laws, challenged collective bargaining and have tied teacher performance evaluations to student performance on questionable standardized tests. Several teachers in Atlanta have gone to prison for changing students answers. But the notion of reviling the teaching profession is not new, as the public’s demands on the profession have outstripped many of the capabilities of teachers. Americans- especially those living in poverty- have great hopes for their children and view their children’s teachers as the lifeboat out of the sinking ship of poverty. It is supposed to be THE solution for social inequality in this country. Only it isn’t and for many reasons.

There is another side of the coin that needs to be discussed. How do we attract the best college graduates into teaching profession, if entrants know that they will be continually under the gun from parents, administrators and politicians from the very first day they enter the classroom? They will also know that their salaries will not be commensurate with the private sector and that if they decide to stay in the classroom, they will never be promoted. This is one area where there a public disconnect.

Goldstein’s look at education starts with the nineteenth century and progresses forward reviewing issue of unionization, immigration issues, and the like.

Apparently, Goldstein’s’ analysis struck a nerve as the book rose to the New York Times bestseller list. This is a recommended reading for current teachers, future teachers, school board members and the general public.

Those teachers who work in Jew Jersey will have an opportunity to hear Ms. Goldstein speak at the NJEA Convention in Atlantic City in November.

C.2015 J. Margolis