Re: Schools Trimming Short July 2, 2012 (Click date to read article in paper)
I am not a political person. Even being asked to write to representatives about current education bills made me uneasy.
What do I really know about the down and dirty of these issues? What I do know is, as a teacher, I pour my heart and soul out for my students everyday. My students are not a product that passes through an assembly line where the bad parts get tossed out. They are individuals and I am responsible for them all.
The politics that have overshadowed the Michigan education system saddens me. Some of the ways in which the state is "giving" money back to schools was outlined in the article: attaching student achievement to evaluations, changing retirement and healthcare, and outsourcing.
It's important for everyone looking at these reforms to know that the result is this: I feel devalued. These changes might save schools money, but those who are pouring out their heart and souls every day for every student are losing.
The changes are directly affecting the livelihood (financially and in spirit/morale) of those on the front line, in the trenches with the students regardless of what is going on with negotiations, pensions,insurance, or paychecks.
I am asking our communities, schoolboards and government leaders to look at the bottom line. What is the system really doing to the front line fighters in education? How will these changes, cuts, negotiations, and bills affect the people that they are directly responsible for our children?
Do we value teachers?
What do I really know about the down and dirty of these issues? What I do know is, as a teacher, I pour my heart and soul out for my students everyday. My students are not a product that passes through an assembly line where the bad parts get tossed out. They are individuals and I am responsible for them all.
The politics that have overshadowed the Michigan education system saddens me. Some of the ways in which the state is "giving" money back to schools was outlined in the article: attaching student achievement to evaluations, changing retirement and healthcare, and outsourcing.
It's important for everyone looking at these reforms to know that the result is this: I feel devalued. These changes might save schools money, but those who are pouring out their heart and souls every day for every student are losing.
The changes are directly affecting the livelihood (financially and in spirit/morale) of those on the front line, in the trenches with the students regardless of what is going on with negotiations, pensions,insurance, or paychecks.
I am asking our communities, schoolboards and government leaders to look at the bottom line. What is the system really doing to the front line fighters in education? How will these changes, cuts, negotiations, and bills affect the people that they are directly responsible for our children?
Do we value teachers?
