Superintendent to Teachers: You're All Fired!

I'm sick of over paid pompus teachers who show up to work and collect a pay check for doing nothing. They soak up enough benifits to choke a ATM and then retire at twenty to start working on thieir second pension leaving tax payers on the hook to foot their fat cat lifestyle and pay their medicare cuz their all overweight fat high blood pressure lifestyle has led them to chronic illness for the rest of their remaining years on the public tit..

Dear Jim,

You should have ended your comment after the first sentence. It was the only one that makes a valid point.

While I'm not a fan of featuredplayer's comment, I must point out the rest your comment was less than useful. Specifically, pointing out errors in grammar, spelling and punctuation does not refute featuredplayer's statement. In fact, it makes you look like a pompous ass. If that's the effect you were going for, congratulations.

That being said, in regards to the article, sometimes drastic improvement requires drastic changes. Is the Superintendent right in doing this? I don't know. I don't have to walk in her shoes and can only guess at the situation.

@Mihir

You're right of course. Besides the fact that I make my own typos quite frequently, it is also very rude to belittle someone; even faceless people on the internet.

That said, I am starting to get annoyed with people who bash teachers for not educating students when it seems they themselves lack even the most basic of educations.

We cannot be blaming teachers as a whole for students not learning. Teachers are but one variable in the equation. They are not miracle workers. Most public schools today are overfilled and understaffed. Even in Suburbia the schools are filled with an enormous amount of latch-key kids who lack any meaningful support at home. And what does it say about the education system in places like California where the correctional system (prisons) receive more money than the education system?!

I think the real measure for a teacher should be whether or not ANY of the students learned. If in a class of 30, five students are pulling A's or B's and can demonstrate a working knowledge of the course, then the teacher is clearly doing a good job. My reasoning is that if one can do it, the other CAN as well. If the rest of students are failing, then look elsewhere for the solution.

Personally, I place the blame squarely on the parents for not instilling in their kids a sense of responsibility and the basic understanding that if you want a good life you need an education... and for that, it takes hard work. The latter being the direct culprit.

Anybody who knows a teacher can tell you they work damn hard. They also are required to increase their own learning through professional development. Most teachers end up with at least one graduate degree (Masters) during their tenure. They don't get paid for the time they are taking classes. Many districts don't even fund their mandated continued education. This backlash against teachers is just plain way off base.

@Jim

I agree with you to some extent. Teachers are not miracle workers and the teacher bashing does need to be toned down. Parents do need to accept some responsibility for providing their children a good atmosphere to learn. However, as my own friends who are teachers have pointed out, getting a consistently poor performing teacher fired takes an act of God. Especially if said teacher has seniority/tenure.

Just like any other profession, there does need to be accountability. Statements like this can get people pretty riled up:

“There’s some good reasons for our existing salary schedule. I think it’s one that has stood the test of time. It’s a clear, transparent, predictable way of paying school employees and I think by and large they’re pretty receptive to the current system. I don’t see a lot of need from inside the education community to change that.” -- Mary Lindquist, President WEA (WA state teacher's union)

Nowhere in her statement does she ever address teacher performance and that's what really irks me. A salary shouldn't be on a "schedule". It should be earned.

Hey Featuredplayer

You must be one of the many "ill informed parents" that treat teachers as if they provide a day care "service", not an education commitment.

Fat cats? what other job demands a college degree and state testing/licencing/certifications, but only pays 28 grand annually? $12.50 right out of college? That's a salary and does not include the 5 hours teachers spend after work grading papers, doing lesson plans etc. You must be mistaken for a job that you must have, say, gas station attendant? $12.50 might be high for that position, I don't know.

When was the last time you took any time to sit down with your children and had the patience to WORK WITH THEM?

Teachers can only lead you children to the water, they can not force them to drink. Get you head out of the clouds and take some responsibility for your childrens education.

fire them all , and get rid of the union and ALL union teachers . the union is the runination of education , and liberalism and political correctness are to fault for " changeing " history or at least attempting to . get rid of education czars , and only hire competent educators NOT indoctrinators !!!!

You are correct-parents need to be more proactive in their children's education--what about the techers union? They agree that something needs to be done but wont agree to the plan because they aren't getting paid?? Most teachers (myself included) are on salary--we are paid the same salary whether we work 30 or 60 hours each week. This is a shameful response

no no no teachers are our heros, give them anything they want there sooo important we cant live without them.

Originlcin: you are absolutely, damn-straight, right on! I'm not a teacher, but I can see plainly that the fault lies with uninvolved, uncaring, self-absorbed parents who are more concerned with showing their own "parental powers" ("you're not gonna make MY kid do that!") than getting their kids properly educated. These people are not doing thier kids any favors. My wife and I put our kids through a good school system, where parents actually gave a damn about the education thier kids received. During parent-teacher events, the school was JAMMED with parents, people who cared enough. And kids in those schools were expected by educators, parents, and even school mates to tow the line! This system (Oakwood School system in Ohio) is one of the best in the state! And it's ALL due to good teachers and administrators and (most importantly) caring and involved parents! And did you ever notice, nobody ever mentions that problem schools just may be the fault of parents and lazy students? And why do we expect teachers to take on so many parental roles and then deny them the authority to do the job? Teachers are now expected to be therapists, sex-educators, keepers-of-the-peace, discipline administrators, and baby sitters in addition to having the full-time, thankless job of educating these damn kids. Good comments Originlcin! Way to go!!

So, wouldn't you want to help the children who have uninvolved parents more? If the parents don't give a crap and you don't give a crap because they don't, then who cares about the kid? Who gives them an education? Last I checked, that was your job. We all have things that don't go the way they should in our jobs. But like everyone else, you need to suck it up. Do your job and give 150% to your students, otherwise, get another job.

Bravo!!!! I agree with you!

trash parents??????????? You must be the DEVINE on to make such a statement. I hope the superintendent makes good on her threats and get RID of all teachers that don't comply to her suggestions.There are too many teachers who only goal is to collect a PAY CHECK

FEATUREDPLAYER - I am sad to say you do not know what you are talking about. My husband has been a teacher for 10 years, he must coach 3 sports to get his pay up to a whoopping 50k. He leaves the house at 6am and get home at 6pm. He teaches an extra class and does not have a planning period. THEN he brings home papers home to grade. Plus he works over the summer for min pay. I would LOVE to hear your attitude after 1 year as a teacher working 10 1/2 hours in the school and working a min of 2 hours at home, on your own time. YOU WOULD BE ONE OF THOSE YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT, you could not handle it!

we dont pay the parent but we do pay the slacking teachers. if their not doing their jobs then fire their butts

Teachers are powerless over the parents.

Originlcin, I hate to burst your bubble, but parents can not all be blamed for why some kids care less for school. True, there are those who do not care less about their kids education and view the school as a free babysitting service. However, there are parents, such as myself, who do care about their kids getting a good education. Parents that work a lot or parents that may not know how to help their kids with homework and such get blame for not caring for their kids education. I have troubles just helping my kids with math homework and that is because math has always been a very hard subject for me. There are some kids regardless what the parent does and the school does that do not like school and deliberately will fail because they care less for learning. All the pushing that most of us parents and schools do on our children to work hard in school makes some of them rebel against their parents and school, thus they get in trouble by acting out and refuse to even try to do well in school. Teachers are not to blame either on why some kids do this. It is the way the State's set up school policies and curriculum coupled with the bureaucracy and red tape put on teachers that makes education to be more less a way to gain high scores for the schools so the Government will provide those districts with money each year. Teachers are not able to teach like they should because their main goal is make sure students learn how to pass the State Curriculum tests and by the scores on those tests in each school determines if the teacher keeps their job and if that school will be provided with Federal Government aid for the next upcoming school year. Kids get bored learning how to just pass a test and a lot of material that should be taught is not because most of the school time is learning material that will be on the state test. Education should be fun and not so over done that it makes kids sick to their stomachs; therefore, making them hate school even more so than we did when we were kids in school.

Of course nothing will be said about the parents who will not be responsible for their children and will not work with teachers to help the child. As usual, let's make the system become the parent. Maybe we should keep the kids all day.

By the way, Ms. Superintendent, why don't you get your butt in the classroom and provide help to these students who don't give a crap.Show us the way.

Why doesnt she fire the parents? How about getting rid of the apathetic culture that students are born into? What about the students role in all the mess? Why arent they held acountable? This is nothing more than another bureaucrat trying to cover her a-- .

Thank you Daniel 13655. As for you Sieben, please take a moment to proofread your work before you post it. You came dangerously close to proving my point.