|
Post by justvote on Mar 23, 2009 14:26:04 GMT -5
I'd trade social security (which may or may not be ther when I'm 65) with a teacher's pension any day of the week. I'm sorry, but I agree with sportsmom on this one - teachers have a pretty good gig. Anyone receiving a pay raise in addition to their "automatic step increases" (which don't exist in the private sector) in this economy has got a pretty good thing going.
|
|
|
Post by rural on Mar 23, 2009 14:29:52 GMT -5
If I am not mistaken, I believe the other in service days are for workshops and training sessions that usually take up 3+ hour blocks. At least, that is my understanding.
|
|
|
Post by momto4 on Mar 23, 2009 14:37:51 GMT -5
that's pretty presumptuous - my mother-in-law is a retired teacher of many years - she's not rolling in the dough like you'd like to paint I NEVER said they'd be rolling in the dough! I'm talking about quaility of life issues: 1, Work days that allow less day care time for children of teachers. 2. Work year that allows less day care time for children. 3. Job security like you can't find any a lot of other fields. 4. Pay raises when others are out of work. 5. Sweet pensions that most other workers don't receive. 6. "retirement" and pension at an early age and then you can go work in the real world for better money when your kids are all grown, or do like Dr. Mac, and work in a district in Florida and earn another pension. I actually did acknowledge the pay wasn't great - hence the spouse would most likely have to work to fill the gap in the cost of living. Ask your mother-in-law: 1. How many hours a day/week/year did your spouse spend in day care? 2. Did she ever fear getting a "pink slip" or did she ever lose her teaching job (once she got tenure - 4 years or so?) 3. Did she not get a pay increase EVERY year she taught? 4. She retired at 65 - like most of us hope to - or did she get to retire 10 years sooner? 5.I would bet she lives a comfortable lifestyle now - but, yes, I don't know so I am being presumptuous. sportsmom - I agree with you for the most part on this. However, in many professional jobs these days people can have flexible schedules. With teaching there is pretty much no flexibility. You cannot go in later or leave earlier if there are other things in your life that would be made easier by it. There are days when kids are off and teachers are not. There are ongoing educational requirements for teachers. There is usually a lot of work that is done out of school hours, so their hours per week may wind up being quite a lot. There is the need to deal with many different types of students all at once and ever-increasing demands as well as curriculum changes.
|
|
Arwen
Master Member
Posts: 933
|
Post by Arwen on Mar 23, 2009 14:49:50 GMT -5
I don't quite get the uproar over this. People are very outraged that some of our schools are on the NCLB list for failure to make adequate yearly progress. They are blaming the administration for it and calling for action. The SB/Administration has heeded those cries and is taking steps to allow for specific attention each week to getting those left-behind kids over whatever hurdles they are facing. In return, we are inconvenienced by 10 to 20 minutes once a week. If we continue to fail to reach these kids, our school district faces some pretty dire consequences that may mean far more inconvenience than a once a week schedule change. These 10-20 minutes out of your kids' day may be more than returned if the teachers don't have to split their attention during the school day between the lesson for the majority and trying to figure out what to do with the minority who are struggling.
The teachers are also sacrificing something. They have to do far more rearranging of their schedules than we do. They are coming in 50 to 75 minutes early to focus on the lowest performers.
|
|
|
Post by asmodeus on Mar 23, 2009 15:59:45 GMT -5
No flexibility, other than being off three months every year...
The nine-month school year is something that WILL change within the next 20 years, if not sooner. It was created during a diferent time, for agricultural reasons that don't apply anymore, and is putting our students behind those of other countries.
|
|
|
Post by mommygator on Mar 23, 2009 17:09:48 GMT -5
Well, NCLB is a load of crap and was a huge mistake to put into place. There will always be some kids that simply fail and alot of times it isn't because they fell through cracks - its because the don't do the work and Mom and Dad aren't helping or don't care. Again, NCLB is for such a small sector of kids... and its unrealistic to think every student can pass. I don't feel bad for teachers... don't like it? Don't be one. Sorry to be crass, but being infront of my kids is still their #1 job. My taxes are WAY too high to be flexible - and give a big raise that I haven't seen in years myself much less in the near future. No sorry - I don't see how they get their cake and eat it too.
|
|
Arwen
Master Member
Posts: 933
|
Post by Arwen on Mar 23, 2009 18:06:56 GMT -5
Well, NCLB is a load of crap and was a huge mistake to put into place. There will always be some kids that simply fail and alot of times it isn't because they fell through cracks - its because the don't do the work and Mom and Dad aren't helping or don't care. Again, NCLB is for such a small sector of kids... and its unrealistic to think every student can pass. It doesn't really matter what you think about NCLB. It is the law and our and every other school district in the country is subject to it. It sure would be easier to ignore those kids that fail and to blame them for their failures. Sure, some kids won't ever meet the standards. Should we give up on all the kids failing because some won't meet our expectations? With that logic, we should give up on all kids because some won't succeed. Makes sense to me. Did you know that the rank-and-file teachers weren't aware that this was part of the negotiations until a tentative agreement had been reached? I'm sure there are plenty of teachers that would have preferred to keep the current schedule because they are wondering what they are going to do with their own children on Wednesday mornings next year. I am unhappy that the teachers got such a large raise this year too, but blaming them for agreeing to something that the Administration thought was necessary doesn't make sense. By and large, we have a great bunch of teachers in D204, and I am happy my kids get to have them.
|
|
|
Post by gatordog on Mar 24, 2009 7:36:01 GMT -5
I guess there is teacher pay and contract details involved but..... It sure would be nice if the entire burden of this was taken by the teachers. We shall see how "worth it" the added complexity of delayed start time is. two thoughts (on my own post!): with my kids at all levels-ES,MS,HS-, btw music, sports, study sessions, clubs....having different start times on diff days of the week is the norm at our house. I think we will adjust to the shifting schedule. If we try it and there problems with the later start, and problems with the lost instruction time (and as I put it "it would be nice if entire burden was taken by the teachers"), then we should pay the teachers for their extra time during this day. Maybe even make it some kind of "shift premium" for the early start. If we are getting good return on this investment, then its worth it to pay for it. This is just another idea, to have on the table. I think we should look at next year as an experiment, and see how it goes. If it is effective having these dedicated focus time for the teachers, maybe we can think of different ways to deliver it. (I just gave an example here).
|
|
|
Post by mommygator on Mar 24, 2009 11:23:45 GMT -5
I am not saying give up on kids. I am not at war with the teachers. I too think we have fantastic teachers and are truly blessed. My gripe is the approach the administration is taking to care for those that do fall under NCLB. There has to be a better way for the district to care for the kids who at risk without taking away from the kids that are working their butts off to get descent grades. Instead of teachers coming in early, why not have "clubs" with teachers or tutors for the at risk kids and have them come in early? Focus on them before school, so that during NORMAL school hours you can focus on the whole? I can accommodate a late start, I just don't think I should have too. As far as an experiment... give an inch and they'll take a mile... doubt they'll give it up.
|
|
|
Post by WeNeed3 on Mar 24, 2009 13:55:23 GMT -5
I know some schools have after-school homework clubs.
|
|