Our Teachers' Association negotiation team has been traveling around to each building asking what things we might want to work towards getting as part of our contract.
I talked to the staffs of three schools. Surprise...NO ONE MENTIONED SALARY!!!
The most common complaint was that we are so bogged down with paperwork, test prep, public relations activities, and babysitting duties (recess, cafeteria, bus duty, etc) that we're unable to meet the needs of our students. There just aren't enough minutes in the day to do all the things we're required to do and still have time to teach.
- “Our current ‘scientific’ method focuses almost exclusively on identifying what works best generally, [but] children differ. Therein lies what worries me about ‘evidence-based’ policy making in education. Good teaching, effective teaching, is not just about using whatever science says ‘usually’ works best. It is all about finding out what works best for the individual child and the group of children in front of you.” -- Richard Allington
