One of the hard things about being a former English teacher is that I hate it when I think I edit carefully and miss something. Thank you, Ron.
The teachers of the student I mentioned in point #4 yesterday talked with the school she visited after she left. All of us think her needs can be met locally. It will be interesting to see what happens.
This student's classroom teacher is brand spanking new, having graduated in December. She is learning that you gather information from as many sources as you can just by listening so that YOU can make the best decision possible. This helps because teachers often present vastly different information than administrators or parents. I haven't really figured out whether the differences are intentional or it is just that the administrators and parents have different agendas, but being as the case conferences are to determine the best educational setting for a child who already has at least one problem, wouldn't it be nice if we all had the SAME agenda, that being the child?
What I mean by different agendas is this: say little Johnny (or middle school Johnny), who already has a special ed plan because he needs speech therapy, starts acting up in class. Or maybe he HAS been acting up in elementary school, but now he is in middle school and the teachers won't tolerate his behavior. The parents are upset because Johnny doesn't get the grades he used to get and their first assumption is that the problem must be those mean teachers at the middle school. The middle school teachers are upset because they are teaching classes of 25 or more adolescents (some of whom tend to be hyper and flighty no matter what you do), and Johnny's behavior is hurting both himself and the class. The teachers have contacted the parents because that is the what you do if talking to the student doesn't work and besides, you dare not go to the level of a conference without having done so. The situation has not been resolved, so some of them are secretly thinking that Johnny's problem began at home. The administrators (this could be the building principal or someone higher up) want the problem solved because, of course, Johnny is NOT learning since he is busy acting out. But they are busy because positions are being eliminated so they are doing the jobs of three people when they used to do just theirs, and they sort of wonder why the parents and teacher(s) couldn't come to some sort of agreement before getting them involved. Does Johnny NEED a special placement? If he does, it MAY cost the school district more money. And while the administrator involved wants the best placement for Johnny, he or she does have to worry about how his evaluation by the superintendent will look if he costs the district more money.
Maybe none of these people are wrong. But they all are dealing with different pressures. Even if you don't agree with what they do, it helps to have some insight into their feelings. That is what this new teacher is learning. She has already said that while the people in our building are child-centered, she doesn't think that the higher-ups are. That has to be disallusioning.
I like to teach. I like the people I work with. And I like kids. But I hate the politics involved.
The teachers of the student I mentioned in point #4 yesterday talked with the school she visited after she left. All of us think her needs can be met locally. It will be interesting to see what happens.
This student's classroom teacher is brand spanking new, having graduated in December. She is learning that you gather information from as many sources as you can just by listening so that YOU can make the best decision possible. This helps because teachers often present vastly different information than administrators or parents. I haven't really figured out whether the differences are intentional or it is just that the administrators and parents have different agendas, but being as the case conferences are to determine the best educational setting for a child who already has at least one problem, wouldn't it be nice if we all had the SAME agenda, that being the child?
What I mean by different agendas is this: say little Johnny (or middle school Johnny), who already has a special ed plan because he needs speech therapy, starts acting up in class. Or maybe he HAS been acting up in elementary school, but now he is in middle school and the teachers won't tolerate his behavior. The parents are upset because Johnny doesn't get the grades he used to get and their first assumption is that the problem must be those mean teachers at the middle school. The middle school teachers are upset because they are teaching classes of 25 or more adolescents (some of whom tend to be hyper and flighty no matter what you do), and Johnny's behavior is hurting both himself and the class. The teachers have contacted the parents because that is the what you do if talking to the student doesn't work and besides, you dare not go to the level of a conference without having done so. The situation has not been resolved, so some of them are secretly thinking that Johnny's problem began at home. The administrators (this could be the building principal or someone higher up) want the problem solved because, of course, Johnny is NOT learning since he is busy acting out. But they are busy because positions are being eliminated so they are doing the jobs of three people when they used to do just theirs, and they sort of wonder why the parents and teacher(s) couldn't come to some sort of agreement before getting them involved. Does Johnny NEED a special placement? If he does, it MAY cost the school district more money. And while the administrator involved wants the best placement for Johnny, he or she does have to worry about how his evaluation by the superintendent will look if he costs the district more money.
Maybe none of these people are wrong. But they all are dealing with different pressures. Even if you don't agree with what they do, it helps to have some insight into their feelings. That is what this new teacher is learning. She has already said that while the people in our building are child-centered, she doesn't think that the higher-ups are. That has to be disallusioning.
I like to teach. I like the people I work with. And I like kids. But I hate the politics involved.
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