teachers, what needs to be done. Options

[sadolakced acid]

teacher quality has been declining in the US due to these reasons:

1. wages/ budget cuts


alright, only one i can think of.

my idea: raise education budget. i have seen my school system crumble because of budget cuts. i have seen good teachers be cut, or have to teach at 3 schools, exc.

[inlonelinessidie]

I agree. One of my favourite teachers got fired. Stupid students and staff didn't want him there. But yeah bugdet cuts are getting annoying especially when it comes to education. They shouldn't do that, this year in my former school they got rid of 10-20 teachers! That's just wrong.

[Spirited Away]

I was a good student k-12 but I can confidently say that a couple of my teachers were truly incompetent and not good enough to be call a teacher.

Mr. Acid, I'm not saying that we "rank" the teachers, because that would prove to be pointless, but I am suggesting that they improve teacher training and/or have 2-3 interviews (like some schools) before hiring a teacher AND keep some sort of supervision or review at least once a year. If students are tested on their knowledge, teachers should be tested on how well they teach or whether or not their style is effective, or else they'd do the same half assed job every year.

[sammi rules you]

I like the teachers at my school. They teach really well, actually..

[sadolakced acid]

the problem is, they're hiring the best teachers possible already.

if you want better teachers you need to pay them better. i have teachers that just don't want to teach cus they're broke.

and who would do these checks? the principal?

they aren't all trustworthy. the principal of a neiboring school in my city got arrested for crack coccaine. he'd been using for years.

there isn't enough money. this is our countries future, and we're taking money away from it every year. for what? to build a better america? a better america, yes, that will be inherited by idiots who weren't taught well.

[Spirited Away]

the problem is, they're hiring the best teachers possible already.

I don't think that's true. Most schools hire based on teaching licenses and/or degree, and I know very few in my area that actually make 2-3 interviews before hiring.

In Houston, all you need is 60 hours of college credit and a teaching training certification to be a substitute teacher. Did you know that sometimes, one substitute teacher can remain a sub for a long period of time (2 months +)?

if you want better teachers you need to pay them better.  i have teachers that just don't want to teach cus they're broke. 

I agree. However, to say that we need to pay ALL teachers a better wage is rather impulsive because you're basically grouping the bad teachers with the good. That's almost communistic, seeing how no matter how good you are, you'll still get the same pay as everyone else, even though they may not be as competent as you are. There isn't anything to encourage efficiency because everyone will get a good pay anyway, therefore, there's no point in trying to be a good teacher.

and who would do these checks?  the principal? 

Checks? *scratches head*, what checks?

they aren't all trustworthy.  the principal of a neiboring school in my city got arrested for crack coccaine.  he'd been using for years. 

What does the Principal has to do with it? I think, because of your example, the Principal should be reviewed as well.

there isn't enough money.  this is our countries future, and we're taking money away from it every year.  for what?  to build a better america?  a better america, yes, that will be inherited by idiots who weren't taught well.

Whether or not we are better educated depends on how educated our educators are. Hiring teachers with a high wage without testing their merits is just like spending your money on a piece of tech gadget without a warranty, or a refurbished computer, or even a car without insurance.

[sadolakced acid]

increase demand, and suppy will find a way to keep up.

if you pay teachers enough, then more people will want to be them, including people who make good teachers.

[Spirited Away]

increase demand, and suppy will find a way to keep up.

Hmm, I hope you realize that an increase in demand means a decrease in price. That's what the most basic model of economics shows.

if you pay teachers enough, then more people will want to be them, including people who make good teachers.

So how do we filter out the bad from the good? If we pay well, then there will be people who just want the money and not care about the students.

My Astronomy teacher had to teach our class only because it is required in order for my university to pay for his research. He sucked, and I only made a good grade in that class was because I read the whole text book, page by page.

Tell you what, how do you define a good teacher? As in, what are the qualities of a good teacher?

[sadolakced acid]

how do you filter them out? student reviews, like colleges have.
your idea of interviews and extended consideration is good- but it still needs more budget.

my idea of a good teacher varies from class to class.

english- teach, discuss. teach. class discussions are good.
science- lecture occasionally, and leave me alone when i don't take notes. i read the book, i remeber science lectures.
math- show me how it's done. explain it. leave me alone. if i need help, help me.
history- lecture. explain. leave me alone to sleep during movies (hopefully lots)

yes, i realize this is only good for me, not for other students.

a variety of teachers is nice.

[Spirited Away]

how do you filter them out?  student reviews, like colleges have. 
your idea of interviews and extended consideration is good-  but it still needs more budget.

Oh, of course an increase in budget would be needed, but so long as that budget is used to hire good teachers, than I have no qualms with it.

my idea of a good teacher varies from class to class. 

english-  teach, discuss.  teach.  class discussions are good. 
science-  lecture occasionally, and leave me alone when i don't take notes.  i read the book, i remeber science lectures. 
math-  show me how it's done.  explain it.  leave me alone.  if i need help, help me. 
history-  lecture.  explain.  leave me alone to sleep during movies (hopefully lots)

yes, i realize this is only good for me, not for other students. 

a variety of teachers is nice.

A variety of teachers is nice, but a variety of GOOD teachers is BETTER.

In my opinion, when a teacher cares for his/her students' sucess he/she will strive to be a good educator and deserves a better pay.

[ComradeRed]

1. wages/ budget cuts

That's not true. Most private schools pay LESS than their surrounding public school districts, yet have higher quality teachers.

Wages are just one factor of many.

[sadolakced acid]

pay less, but have a higher teacher/studen ratio,

and the private school has good books and stuff, not one that says the accereration of gravity is 9.8 feet per second/per second.

the have the budget to buy the teaching tools, no? they can afford the tools that the teachers need to teach.

and sight your source for this, please.

[ComradeRed]

Um Cato Institute says that Washington, DC public school district recieves $11,000 per student per year.

I go to a Catholci school that's tuition is $6,000 per student. That is just over half.

We clearly have better teachers.

I'm sure you could find it somewhere -- higher pay does not always correspond with better schools.

[sadolakced acid]

really now. well, washington DC school are lucky.

my school recives the same as every other high school, although we have 1.5 times the students. yet we still manage to be almost 30% higher on graduation rates for the state. well, it's alabama, but still.

we have a city tax to support our schools. the state payment for our school is reduced, because 'we have enough money already'

so half our budget goes to schools in the southern part of the state. we beat magnet schools for dance, math, science, and theater almost always. and yet we get paid less.

why is this? well, there are theories. most say it's the school zone is populated with mostly engineers from the nearby army/ NASA base.

but we have great teachers- and good students.
the way i see it, at my school there's a feedback system.

if a teacher is bad, the students complain. other teacher hear. they pass it along. the bad teachers are eliminated.

some cases, the complaints are direct to the pricipal, which results in a replacement.

feedback creates better teachers, but they also need budget for materials.

[aud_chua]

i think that like.. my school gets $40 for every student that comes to class.. lolz..! that's really cheap.. but yea.. i think that the budget on education should be increased.. not only to get better teachers but to have better resources.... children these days don't have decent things to work with in school (well.. my old high school anyway..)!
with regards to getting "better" teachers, i guess it's just a matter of how dedicated the teachers are.. in my old high school, most of the teachers i've been under have been nothing but wonderful. considering that it's lowly financed and that things aren't in real good shape, there still are "good" teachers.. with the budget cuts, though, some of these teachers may be layed off..
of course, it's this general idea that the "best" teachers would go to schools that pay them higher wages.. but there are exceptions.. people who are genuinely eager to teach and help students will go to any school and stay there. just like my english teacher. she's probably the most dedicated and over-qualified teacher in my school and yet, she chooses to remain here even when other schools offer her higher pay and benefits.
yes, wages are a factor but i still believe in human goodness so.. i think that ultimately, it's the teacher's morals and values.

[inlonelinessidie]

and who would do these checks?  the principal?

I believe that the district gives that teachers their payroll not the principal.

[ComradeRed]

It was a rhetorical question...

[Justingamemaster]

It was a rhetorical question...

Well at my school we have like 01293810981509185 543895728979483712 billion teachers so i don't really know

[XxBeExOHxX]

teachers shouls start correcting homework cos im not learning from my mistakes.

[Spirited Away]

teachers shouls start correcting homework cos im not learning from my mistakes.

I can tell...

But I know what you mean because my professors are the same way. I just turn in my homework and don't know how well/poorly I did until the end of the semester, except in English classes.

[grapplefan]

well i dont know where you guys are at, but im in brooklyn new york another reason the quality of teachers suck here is, because the students here liek to give the teachers a hard time, and punch em in thier faces and yell at the teachers, and threaten to pass em etc, so yeah none of the good teachers wanna come here lol

[sadolakced acid]

so you're saying it's as much the student's fault as the teachers?

yea, that makes sense.

[grapplefan]

im not talkin fall all places, but i know in the schools where i live theres good teachers WHO REFUSE TO TEACH HERE and go teach at schools almost 3 hours away

[sadolakced acid]

yea, so the richer school districts get better teachers because the teachers would rather teach there.

[Spirited Away]

If good teachers stay and try to teach those that do not want to learn only because of a high wage... I mean, how do you teach someone something, when they don't care to be taught?

[sadolakced acid]

you don't

[Spirited Away]

you don't

Then paying good wages to teachers who don't teach yields to money lost to a failing cause.

[sadolakced acid]

the education system is flawed.

[Spirited Away]

the education system is flawed.

Agreed.

But money can't fix it much either, unless a vast amount is available to ALL schools. If a teacher can't teach, a student can still learn, if he/she wants to, with the right resources (i.e text books, internet research) that can be provided with money.

Incompetent teachers are expendable, a variety of learning resources are not.

[sadolakced acid]

we should all quit school.

[Spirited Away]

we should all quit school.

Haha, I only got 3-6 more years to go... there's no way I'm giving up all the hard work I've done.

[sadolakced acid]

school taugh me to like single sentence responses (not really).

[EmeraldKnight]

school taugh me to like single sentence responses (not really).

Apparently school hasn't taught you how to spell.

[sadolakced acid]

they learned me grammar by makin` me reed huck finn with da odda chilllen.