I went to a teacher round table yesterday at UNF. There were about thirty teachers from all around the district and we met to discuss characteristics we would like to see in the new superintendent, spoiler alert, education experience was at the top of most of our lists and I will do a series on that next week.
There was one really amazing thing that all of these teachers, and mind you there were teachers from all grade levels and from all over town had in common. They all universally thought Vitti had done a poor job and the district was worse off for him. Now there may have been somebody in the crowd who thought he was okay or even did a good job but they sure as heck didn't speak up. Now I haven't done a study, I will leave those to Scott Shine but he doing a poor job is a nearly universal sentiment that I have heard.
Now I get it, people that loved Vitti probably aren't going to track me down and tell me so and who knows teachers that attend round tables may be predisposed to not like his performance but anecdotally the evidence seems clear and the message is loud. Vitti overall was terrible.
In my group our facilitator had to remind us several times that he was gone and we were there discuss what we wanted in the next super, but I think in a way we were comforting ourselves by talking about the damage he had wrought and found solace together that we had somehow survived him.
Here is the thing, when he left a lot of teachers breathed a sigh of relief and it rejuvenated teachers too as it gave them hope that what comes next will be better, now it is just up to us to make sure that is what happens.
You see there are two voices in Jacksonville, the business community and the so called city elite on one side and teachers on the other and I don't have to tell you which voice gets listened to and which one gets ignored.
It is both disheartening and amazing to me how the opinions of teachers on education issues goes consistently ignored and unsolicited. We have to change that. Not me, and not this poorly written dumb blog but we and we do so by making sure our voices are heard.
Right now we have the power, they need us more than they have ever needed us before because fewer and fewer of us are showing up, we have the power and now it is up to us to use it.
There was one really amazing thing that all of these teachers, and mind you there were teachers from all grade levels and from all over town had in common. They all universally thought Vitti had done a poor job and the district was worse off for him. Now there may have been somebody in the crowd who thought he was okay or even did a good job but they sure as heck didn't speak up. Now I haven't done a study, I will leave those to Scott Shine but he doing a poor job is a nearly universal sentiment that I have heard.
Now I get it, people that loved Vitti probably aren't going to track me down and tell me so and who knows teachers that attend round tables may be predisposed to not like his performance but anecdotally the evidence seems clear and the message is loud. Vitti overall was terrible.
In my group our facilitator had to remind us several times that he was gone and we were there discuss what we wanted in the next super, but I think in a way we were comforting ourselves by talking about the damage he had wrought and found solace together that we had somehow survived him.
Here is the thing, when he left a lot of teachers breathed a sigh of relief and it rejuvenated teachers too as it gave them hope that what comes next will be better, now it is just up to us to make sure that is what happens.
You see there are two voices in Jacksonville, the business community and the so called city elite on one side and teachers on the other and I don't have to tell you which voice gets listened to and which one gets ignored.
It is both disheartening and amazing to me how the opinions of teachers on education issues goes consistently ignored and unsolicited. We have to change that. Not me, and not this poorly written dumb blog but we and we do so by making sure our voices are heard.
Right now we have the power, they need us more than they have ever needed us before because fewer and fewer of us are showing up, we have the power and now it is up to us to use it.
I agree completely. This is st the local, state, and national level. Stop voting based on selfish interests, and start learning about the education agenda of the terrible fools you put into office, because in the end children are going to suffer and isn't that what should matter to us? We have the numbers. Education employs a great many people , yet politicians with anti- education issues keep getting put into office. Good grief the person in the White House likened teachers to Russian assembly line workers. WTFU
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