What to look out for when listening to school board candidates
I have been listening to the school board candidates and for the most part they speak in flowery rhetoric but offer little in the way of ideas and solutions. Friends we desperately need ideas and solutions. When listening to the candidates be sure to be wary of the following.
Professional development: no amount of professional development will matter as long as the county continues to ignore student accountability. When teachers can’t discipline their students (or get any back up from their admins) and they can’t fail kids, teaching is reduced to crossing ones fingers and hoping.
Mine the data: my last year at Ed White when I went to my evaluation I brought my 500-page data notebook monstrosity with me. It even had colored tabs but my assistant principal didn’t even open it. Do you know what all that data told me? It told me the same thing I learned from my kids after working with them for a few days. Data is important but so are experience, intuition and teachers leaving at a decent hour instead of staying to work on a data notebook that nobody really cares about.
We need mentors: yes we do need mentors and I wish every kid had a mentor but on our list of needs mentors is way down it and there are already dozens of programs in place. You know what we need? Buses, so if a kid acts up we can keep them after or if they need help we can keep them after. We need buses more than we need mentors.
All kids deserve a first class education or any variation of this: yes but how?
Chris Guerrieri
School Teacher
Now, now Chris.
ReplyDeleteI have been attending school board meetings for over 6 years. No one has ever accussed me of giving a flowery speech. Often times I am the only conservative in the room that dares to speak out about the failed polcies of the school board.
Likewise, in doing so, I give solutions on how to fix problems. All you have to do is watch public comments during the school board meeting to know I am telling the truth.
Chris, our number one problem is the same as it has been for over 30 years and the solution is still the same. Jacksonville has a reading problem and the programs that the school board and non-profits groups are pushing on our children is only making the problem worse.
Sadly, they know full well what they are doing is wrong but there is so much money to be made from failing schools instead of successful schools.
With the current crop of school board candidates I see little hope in turning around that evil business model. Sadly, that is exactly how the good ole boys want it.
Just imagine if just one true conservative was elected to the school board? Oh, the possibilities.
JT