Deputy school superintendant Patricia Willis wrote in a letter to the editor; we must ensure that all of our students have an equal opportunity to learn and achieve, regardless of which schools they attend or where they reside. Later she also wrote about all the resources and access to electives that the turn around schools have. Well I think she must have forgotten one Westside school, and if they have forgotten one, the powers-that-be are bound to have forgotten others as well.
At Ed White hundreds of students lanquished in the auditorium for weeks before being passed from substitute to substitute as the school scrambled to hire several new reading teachers (after seven weeks they hired two but both lasted just a few days), gutting several elective classes in the process (so much for acess to a wide range electives). These studnets have lost eight weeks of academic insruction and counting. I wonder if Stanton and Paxon had an auditorium filled with kids recieveing no instruction, or numerous classes manned by substitutes?
Furthermore, disproving the district and Pat Willis’s claim that education wherever a student is, is a priority, is the fact that students in many of the other reading classes don’t have the books and the materials they need or are just recieving them now after eight weeks. How does the district expect teachers to teach and students to learn without the materials they need and just who do you think they are going to blame if the fine teachers at Ed White don’t meet this year’s arbitrary number for gains? You would think that at a school where only about a third of the kids read at grade level reading teachers and the books kids need would be a priority. Mrs. Willis are the kids on the westside not a priority?
We have serious problems in the county which are either exacerbated or ignored when those we have chosen to lead us out of them paint a rosy picture. Well friends this rose has lots of sharp thorns and children are paying the price.
Chris Guerrieri
Showing posts with label ed white high school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ed white high school. Show all posts
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Lunch Time Comes Early
I saw a commercial for gogurt the other day. In the commercial there was smiling, happy, children eating it like there was no tomorrow. Gogurt is seemingly a yogurt in a tube concoction and somebody’s million-dollar idea.
At the end of the commercial as the children were slurping down the last remnants of the neon pink goo an announcer came on. He said, specially designed to defrost by lunch time. Now let’s back up and examine what we have here. We have perhaps the greatest invention ever, edible neon pink goo in a tube that’s designed to defrost by lunch time so kids can take it to school. Then they can have the fun eating there as well. BRILLIANT!!!
Yep specially designed to defrost by lunch time, unless you go to Ed White high school that is, there it would still be frozen. You see lunch there starts at 9:36 in the morning. Not even two and a half hours after school began kids go to lunch, which wouldn’t be so much of a problem if school started at nine.
Lunch is no longer a natural mid day break instead it is breakfast. Kids show up exhausted because school starts at 7:10 and many I would imagine do so without breakfast, for those the start time might be fortuitous, though I am sure that is an unintended consequence. By the time they start to put it together they go to lunch, which naturally slows them down again. Furthermore kids that stay after school for tutoring or sports won’t have an opportunity to eat anything but junk food for way to long. Many of those that do leave wont’ eat again for seven or eight hours if not longer. I hope I am not the only one who sees a problem with this. These things all play a role on student performance.
We put kids in nearly impossible situations and then we scratch our heads when they don’t succeed, this is what society does.
It’s really kind of sad and not just sad because the gogurt doesn’t have time to defrost.
At the end of the commercial as the children were slurping down the last remnants of the neon pink goo an announcer came on. He said, specially designed to defrost by lunch time. Now let’s back up and examine what we have here. We have perhaps the greatest invention ever, edible neon pink goo in a tube that’s designed to defrost by lunch time so kids can take it to school. Then they can have the fun eating there as well. BRILLIANT!!!
Yep specially designed to defrost by lunch time, unless you go to Ed White high school that is, there it would still be frozen. You see lunch there starts at 9:36 in the morning. Not even two and a half hours after school began kids go to lunch, which wouldn’t be so much of a problem if school started at nine.
Lunch is no longer a natural mid day break instead it is breakfast. Kids show up exhausted because school starts at 7:10 and many I would imagine do so without breakfast, for those the start time might be fortuitous, though I am sure that is an unintended consequence. By the time they start to put it together they go to lunch, which naturally slows them down again. Furthermore kids that stay after school for tutoring or sports won’t have an opportunity to eat anything but junk food for way to long. Many of those that do leave wont’ eat again for seven or eight hours if not longer. I hope I am not the only one who sees a problem with this. These things all play a role on student performance.
We put kids in nearly impossible situations and then we scratch our heads when they don’t succeed, this is what society does.
It’s really kind of sad and not just sad because the gogurt doesn’t have time to defrost.
Monday, August 16, 2010
The Empty Chair
The empty chair
Every year after summer break the first thing that happens when the teachers’ return is a welcome back breakfast and this year was no exception. As I looked for a seat I passed a colleague who was sitting next to an empty chair. I asked her if I could sit there and she politely said, no, I am saving this seat. I nodded and found another place to sit nearby.
As more people filtered in a few others asked her about the empty chair and she repeated the same thing, no, I am saving this seat. Eventually the entire staff showed up and the seat remained empty. Eventually we had breakfast and the seat remained empty. Eventually the principal introduced the new staff members and the seat remained empty. Eventually we were dismissed for lunch and all the time the seat remained empty.
I thought that was strange so I asked her, so who were you saving the seat for, did somebody miss the first day? She looked at me and said; I was saving it for Jessica.
Jessica was a teacher who was let go just a few days before; her f-cat scores weren’t high enough. I am sorry, make that her student’s f-cat scores weren’t high enough. This despite the fact she had earned the MAP bonus two years before as one of the counties outstanding teachers. This despite the fact that we were told when the school accepted a school improvement grant or SIG statistics were to be counted from that time forward.
I nodded to my colleague and forced a weak smile of understanding as I thought to myself there were probably a few empty seats saved for Jessica that morning.
In a lot of ways after ten years at Ed White Jessica was one of the most indispensable members of our community. Not only was she was in charge of Ms. Ed. White Pageant, Mr. Ugly contest and was one of the sponsors of student government but she was always volunteering for this, that or the other. Even more important is Jessica is one of those teachers that students will still be talking about years after they graduate and one of those teachers that many other teachers aspire to be like and sadly none of that mattered.
Despite her dedication, enthusiasm and years of service Jessica had become a line on a spreadsheet to be discarded because some of her students didn’t meet some arbitrary measurement. That’s why she was let go. What the powers-that-be don’t get, is that teachers and students aren’t just statistics or lines on a spreadsheet and education should be about more than just one test. What they also don’t get is my school and education is poorer for not having her walk the halls of the school she both loved and called home.
I wish my words could adequately describe the loss that my school will feel without her but they don’t. Maybe hers will, as the echo the grief that my school has experienced with her departure.
Hi Commander Family
This letter comes from me to you with great sadness. Unfortunately due to the reconstitution process the Dept of Education has decided that I am to be one of the family who has to leave. I am no Chris **** or Jordan **** with great words of wisdom, but I just want each of you to know that this is certainly not my choice nor do I really want to leave. The old saying you never know what you had till it was gone sums up my feelings toward each of you.
I went to work each day looking forward to seeing my family. Think about it, we are with the people we work with more than our children or spouses. I began teaching at Ed White when I was 23 years old and have grown up with many of you as my "parents." This family has seen me grow not only professionally but also personally - with the addition of a spouse and a child. This is my home and I always thought that I would be one of those teachers who would be there year after year.
As this is not the case, please know that I will miss each of you so deeply - (if you know me you know that I am crying at this point in the letter) It is hard to believe with all of the people transferring to other schools for one reason or another, there are people who truly want to stay yet cannot!
I will also deeply miss the kids! I think that this has to be the greatest part of my grief. These kids truly become your children and we the teachers their surrogate parents. I am saddened that on Monday I will not be there to greet them.
Just remember that I do love each of you and that I am only an email or phone call away. With any hope, I will find myself back at Ed White next school year.
Not everyone is lucky enough to say that they have worked with the best and brightest...I am one of those who can!
Love and hugs - Jessica
Not only will she will be missed but she will also be impossible to replace. Welcome to education 2010 where teachers and students no longer matter, just statistics do.
Every year after summer break the first thing that happens when the teachers’ return is a welcome back breakfast and this year was no exception. As I looked for a seat I passed a colleague who was sitting next to an empty chair. I asked her if I could sit there and she politely said, no, I am saving this seat. I nodded and found another place to sit nearby.
As more people filtered in a few others asked her about the empty chair and she repeated the same thing, no, I am saving this seat. Eventually the entire staff showed up and the seat remained empty. Eventually we had breakfast and the seat remained empty. Eventually the principal introduced the new staff members and the seat remained empty. Eventually we were dismissed for lunch and all the time the seat remained empty.
I thought that was strange so I asked her, so who were you saving the seat for, did somebody miss the first day? She looked at me and said; I was saving it for Jessica.
Jessica was a teacher who was let go just a few days before; her f-cat scores weren’t high enough. I am sorry, make that her student’s f-cat scores weren’t high enough. This despite the fact she had earned the MAP bonus two years before as one of the counties outstanding teachers. This despite the fact that we were told when the school accepted a school improvement grant or SIG statistics were to be counted from that time forward.
I nodded to my colleague and forced a weak smile of understanding as I thought to myself there were probably a few empty seats saved for Jessica that morning.
In a lot of ways after ten years at Ed White Jessica was one of the most indispensable members of our community. Not only was she was in charge of Ms. Ed. White Pageant, Mr. Ugly contest and was one of the sponsors of student government but she was always volunteering for this, that or the other. Even more important is Jessica is one of those teachers that students will still be talking about years after they graduate and one of those teachers that many other teachers aspire to be like and sadly none of that mattered.
Despite her dedication, enthusiasm and years of service Jessica had become a line on a spreadsheet to be discarded because some of her students didn’t meet some arbitrary measurement. That’s why she was let go. What the powers-that-be don’t get, is that teachers and students aren’t just statistics or lines on a spreadsheet and education should be about more than just one test. What they also don’t get is my school and education is poorer for not having her walk the halls of the school she both loved and called home.
I wish my words could adequately describe the loss that my school will feel without her but they don’t. Maybe hers will, as the echo the grief that my school has experienced with her departure.
Hi Commander Family
This letter comes from me to you with great sadness. Unfortunately due to the reconstitution process the Dept of Education has decided that I am to be one of the family who has to leave. I am no Chris **** or Jordan **** with great words of wisdom, but I just want each of you to know that this is certainly not my choice nor do I really want to leave. The old saying you never know what you had till it was gone sums up my feelings toward each of you.
I went to work each day looking forward to seeing my family. Think about it, we are with the people we work with more than our children or spouses. I began teaching at Ed White when I was 23 years old and have grown up with many of you as my "parents." This family has seen me grow not only professionally but also personally - with the addition of a spouse and a child. This is my home and I always thought that I would be one of those teachers who would be there year after year.
As this is not the case, please know that I will miss each of you so deeply - (if you know me you know that I am crying at this point in the letter) It is hard to believe with all of the people transferring to other schools for one reason or another, there are people who truly want to stay yet cannot!
I will also deeply miss the kids! I think that this has to be the greatest part of my grief. These kids truly become your children and we the teachers their surrogate parents. I am saddened that on Monday I will not be there to greet them.
Just remember that I do love each of you and that I am only an email or phone call away. With any hope, I will find myself back at Ed White next school year.
Not everyone is lucky enough to say that they have worked with the best and brightest...I am one of those who can!
Love and hugs - Jessica
Not only will she will be missed but she will also be impossible to replace. Welcome to education 2010 where teachers and students no longer matter, just statistics do.
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