Here's What Teachers Tell Me

Stories abound in newspapers, film documentaries, educational periodicals, television programs and the like concerning student achievement, school reform, and/or the perceived failure of schools.

The range of information carried through these various sources varies from truth to partial truth to out and out fiction. The result is often confusing and too often lead many to jump to conclusions about the quality of schools, teachers and instruction.

Many teachers tell me about their daily teaching, giving me a sense of some activities and events which are either harmful to their instruction, out of their control, and limits their effectiveness with their students.

What follows are some inhibitors to teaching and learning:

'Too many disruptions in the school day'

'We have to make all kinds of curriculum adjustments in our instruction because we have so many inclusion and educational service students, often to the detriment of the other students'

'Way too many late starts'

'It takes more than an hour just to respond to my emails each day. It leaves too little time to grade or lesson plan'

'With so many different learners, there are times when I have to have three different lessons for the same class'

'There are too many AP classes and the students face too much pressure'

'Too few five day weeks and that makes it difficult to develop a rhythm'

'There still is too much teaching to the test (state testing)'

The above are real struggles that often impede or impair the work of teachers. These teachers state that fewer of these impediments would increase the likelihood of improved classroom performance. I'm certain that if administrators would hear these concerns then improvements would result.

Thanks,
Dick