Desperately seeking teachers

DPS is having a hard time filling positions in subjects like math, special education and bilingual education

By Nancy Mitchell, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Originally published 12:30 a.m., February 4, 2008
Updated 01:03 p.m., February 4, 2008

Photos By George Kochaniec Jr. © The Rocky

Dave Alex helps student Damien Cepero during a North High School geometry class Friday. DPS is seeking more teachers like Alex, who trained as an engineer and worked in the corporate world before becoming a teacher. "Every student I get, I want to see them graduate," Alex says.

North High teacher Dave Alex uses an overhead projector during class. Because of the teacher shortage, the math teachers at North banded together to cover classes for students with mild special needs, figuring a few familiar faces were better than many unfamiliar ones, Alex said.

Julio Rodriguez spent his fall semester in an advanced algebra class at Denver's Lincoln High School taught by a succession of substitute teachers.

Some knew math but most did not. On the days when a sub could not be found, an administrator or a teacher with a free hour would be pulled in to cover the class.

On the days when even they could not spare the time, the students would be sent to computer lab. Rodriguez, a junior, said that's where they ended up most days.

"It kind of sucks because you don't learn anything," he said. "It's not the same as having a teacher teach you; you're just typing on the computer."

Lincoln Principal Antonio Esquibel estimates 90 students were taught by rotating subs for an entire semester, from Aug. 20 to Dec. 21, after the school was unable to find a math teacher this past fall.

Students in algebra 1, geometry and algebra 2 often wound up working on computerized math programs overseen by subs or others with little math experience.

"They got minimal instruction at best," Esquibel said, adding, "It was very frustrating because there wasn't anybody out there."

A national shortage

For Denver principals, and for principals nationwide, some jobs are always hard to fill - math, special education and bilingual education continually top the list of federally designated teacher shortage areas.

At Lincoln, the math shortage was compounded because enrollment spiked by 320 students last fall, forcing Esquibel to hunt for teachers in September after most schools had begun classes.

Some principals in Denver Public Schools also say the teacher shortages are made worse by the district's substitute teacher deficit, triggered partly by a controversial pay cut for subs in 2004.

That means that students, rather than having one substitute when a full-time teacher cannot be found, may face many.

Consider Knapp Elementary in southwest Denver, where a group of second-grade English language learners had eight substitutes in eight weeks this fall.

Or Manual High School, where six students with intense special needs had three different substitutes last fall. Or North High School, where math teachers banded together to cover classes for students with mild special needs, figuring a few familiar faces - however harried - were better than many unfamiliar ones.

"We basically gave the kids a lot of work sheets to do," said North math teacher David Alex. "It was certainly not the ideal situation."

DPS leaders don't know how many classrooms in the district were staffed by rotating subs for long periods during the fall semester.

"The district simply has not been able to track grade, subject and school name for substitute teacher assignments to the extent that we would like to," spokesman Alex Sanchez said.

Luring, keeping staff

Data released by DPS, with a caution that it may be incomplete, highlights the district's sub shortage. It shows city schools requested 20,666 substitutes for most of the fall semester, from Aug. 20 to Dec. 10, and filled 17,458 of them.

That's a fill rate of 84 percent, leaving more than 3,200 instances where schools had to make do.

The ability to find subs varied widely by school. At the low end, a school in Montbello reported a fill rate of 56 percent. At North High, where subs were found 89 percent of the time they were requested, Principal JoAnn Trujillo-Hays admits to using incentives such as Starbucks cards.

"We nurture subs who come and do a nice job," she said.

2004 substitute pay cut

DPS angered many subs in fall 2004 when the district and the union agreed to cut sub pay by a third to fund a raise for regular classroom teachers.

Now they want to give back some of that money. DPS board members soon will vote on a plan to pay subs who work more than 60 days in the district up to $150 per day, a high in the metro area.

One goal with the increase is to avoid what happened at Knapp, when the regular classroom teacher left Oct. 10 - and a new teacher wasn't hired until Dec. 10.

In between came eight subs.

Rachel Bernard, a bilingual teacher with six years of experience who was hired in December, said it was clear when she arrived that the 20 7-year-olds had seen little consistency.

"There was no structure, no routine, no homework, no reading groups," she said. "There was no sense of community in the room whatsoever. I started over."

Bernard worries about the time her students have lost. In some cases, she said, the children have special needs that have not been addressed. A regular classroom teacher likely would have identified them earlier.

"These are good kids; I love them already," she said. "The teachers at this school work really, really hard. I have been working my little tushy off. I definitely will bring them up."

Can she make up for time lost?

"I'm going to do everything I can," Bernard said.

Recruiting programs

DPS is tackling its teacher shortages in multiple ways.

One is through ProComp, the comprehensive merit pay system that rewards teachers for, among other things, working in hard-to- staff jobs.

That means Bernard, as a bilingual teacher working in the English Language Acquisition program, can earn an extra $1,067 this year.

DPS also has brought in Teach for America, the national recruiting program for recent college graduates. Started in fall 2007, it has placed 50 teachers in some of Denver's poorest schools. Three at North High teach science, another tough area to fill.

Most recently, the district announced the Denver Teaching Fellows program, with a goal of plugging in another 50 teachers in hard-to-fill subjects this fall. It targets all ages but emphasizes mid-career changers.

"We have had a lot of success in recruiting for math and other critical shortage areas across the country," said Layla Avila, with the Teaching Fellows program at The New Teacher Project.

The project, based in New York, won a federal grant to partner with school districts across the country, including Denver, over the next five years.

Avila points to success in New York as an example: Her program has recruited 23 percent of the math teachers now working in New York City schools.

As of Friday, the Denver Teaching Fellows program had received 226 applications for up to 50 slots.

Found: math teacher

Alex, the North math teacher, said reaching out to working professionals is a wise move.

"I think there are people out there who want to be teachers," he said.

He should know. He was one.

Originally trained as an engineer, Alex said teaching was always in the back of his mind. After two years in the corporate world, he was ready.

Yes, it's challenging, he said. And yes, it's worth it.

"Yesterday was a 15-hour day," he said on Thursday as he prepared for classes. "But I was doing stuff I loved."

He had planned on two years at North. He's been there five.

"I plan on coming back for a sixth year, a seventh year . . ." he said. "Every student I get, I want to see them graduate."

Alex expects to complete his master's degree in math this summer. It's the kind of credential that schools are hungry for.

Just ask Esquibel, the Lincoln principal who sought a math teacher for an entire semester.

After talking with candidates from as far as Florida, he finally found his math teacher across the city at South High School.

The teacher finished her student teaching in December and has been working at Lincoln for four weeks.

"She's teaching us something," Rodriguez said. "We're learning now."

Fill a need

Denver Public Schools is looking for substitute teachers and full-time teachers in key shortage areas such as math, special education and bilingual classes. Here's how to find out more:

BECOMING A SUB

* The process can take up to eight weeks or more so be patient, advises Katherine Johnson with DPS. She suggests first ordering at least two copies of your official college transcript. DPS subs must have a bachelor's degree.

* Log on to the Colorado Department of Education Web site at www.cde.state.co.us and click on "Educator Licensing." You can learn more and request an application online for a three-year substitute license. A fingerprint check is required and can be done at local police departments.

* Go to www.dpsk12.org and click on "Careers" to learn how to finish the process.

* Join the crowd: To highlight DPS' sub shortage, Superintendent Michael Bennet and other administrators have gone through sub training. Bennet, whose sub license hangs on his office wall, has scheduled his first sub day at East High School on Feb. 12.

TEACHING FULL TIME

* The Denver Teaching Fellows program is geared toward professionals but also accepts applicants from recent college graduates and retirees. Go to www.denverteachingfellows.org. An information session is scheduled Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at DPS headquarters, 900 Grant St. Others will follow. The program is looking for 50 applicants to teach in tough-to-fill areas such as math and bilingual education in fall 2008.

mitchelln@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5245

• February 4, 2008

  7:25 a.m.

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  Earl writes:

  wow I didnt know that they still taugh any kind of math in schools.
  here is the line I love the most in this story and why they cant get a sub.
  DPS angered many subs in fall 2004 when the district and the union agreed to cut sub pay by a third to fund a raise for regular classroom teachers.

  once again the true agenda of the union is exposed for what it it.

• February 4, 2008

  8:13 a.m.

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  vudumom writes:

  My 5th grader had a sub last friday afternoon. She rushed them through a spelling test where they had to write sentences ,then she didn't even know how to do the math they were doing!Were talking fith grade fractions !
  I think when hiring subs the should ask them,Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?

• February 4, 2008

  8:17 a.m.

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  rattlesnake writes:

  Usually when you cannot fill positions the top reasons on the list are money, location of school, and track record of admin. If the money is close they may want to look at the other two areas to add incentives to draw more applicants.

• February 4, 2008

  8:34 a.m.

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  Scott writes:

  Back in 1994 I thought that I may want to move from electrical engineering into teaching high school mathematics and industrial arts (electronics). I started investigating what it would take to make this career move.

  I taught an electronics course, via an "emergency" license for one year at an Adams county high school. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In parallel I checked out the licensing requirements. Twenty some semester credits of the "Why Johnny is a loser" courses and an absurd teacher's test, PLACE. No thank you. I already knew "Why Johnny is a loser" and I did not need to prove to a bunch of liberal arts majors that "I'z kood reed, rite, an cifer them numbers". I ended up taking the "basic" portion of the test, passed it, and realized that the PLACE test is a joke. It is nothing more than a revenue stream for the company that B.S.ed Colorado into using it.

  Oh, and the Colorado Department of Education, CDE? Ah yes, a chemistry teacher at the same high school went to get a mathematics endorsement on her license. The fools down at CDE first initially refused her the endorsement because she had not taken college Algebra! It was beyond the comprehension level of these government employees that for scientists and engineers, college algebra is a remedial math course. All scientists and engineers are required to take calculus, differential equation and a whole host of other higher level math courses in college. So much for the "intelligence" of CDE.

  What I then realized is that I could (and still do) fulfill my desire to teach by teaching at the various Community Colleges. These institutions' requirement is that you know your material and can teach it. What a novel concept!

  Scott E. Farleigh

• February 4, 2008

  8:48 a.m.

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  kathyM writes:

  The problem isn't a lack of teachers, nor is it that teachers don't care. The problem is the job itself. Teachers are micromanaged from every angle--from the administration, the government, their union, the community, the parents. They get harangued for daring to teach outside the box or asserting discipline in the classroom. They're expected to follow Byzantine rules from the administration and their union, no matter how much time it takes from teaching. Frankly, teaching in public schools makes Dilbert's job look like fun. Is it any wonder the attrition rate for teachers is so high?

• February 4, 2008

  9:04 a.m.

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  Scott writes:

  kathyM,

  Your comment "Frankly, teaching in public schools makes Dilbert's job look like fun." is the other half of the reason I stayed in engineering! Would you believe that in 1994 Skyview High School's administration was actually trying to use TQM to improve the students test scores! TQM , Total Quality Management, was meant to be used as a way to increase quality in a manufacturing environment. I wonder what loser came up with TQM in education for their education doctorate thesis.

  Scott

• February 4, 2008

  9:28 a.m.

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  psu96 writes:

  PajamaPulitzer
  you are uninformed. NCLB requires teachers to be highly qualified in their area they teach, it also requires sub teachers to meet strict requirements as well. Those who work in smaller districts (i.e. me) start out at 28,000 and after 25 years I can expect to make 35,000
  Private schools can "kick" anybody out Public schools take all kinds. Your comments are biased and not founded.

• February 4, 2008

  9:30 a.m.

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  psu96 writes:

  vudumom,
  I guess your innocent child told you all of this and you just believe it. Please, it's parents lke you who make the teachers jobs so stressful. Did you call the sub to follow up?

• February 4, 2008

  9:48 a.m.

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  groovygrrl writes:

  PajamaPulitzer, your comments show your lack of respect for teachers in general. You want a low cost for the education of your children, and show that low cost as proof that a private school can give it to you. What do you think they are paying their teachers? Obviously the teachers don't deserve a decent wage, in your mind.

  Furthermore, I would like someone to show me the "numerous" teachers who make more than $60,000 per year. They aren't working in DPS, I can tell you that!

  Why do you think the contract states that teachers will have a desk, chair, and computer to work on? Maybe because they were denied these very basic pieces of work equipment at some point? Of course! Why give teachers what they need to do their jobs?

  The reason there is a shortage of teachers in DPS is because they refuse to pay their teachers what they deserve, refuse to give them raises that are meaningful (1%? 1.5%??), and treat them badly.

  One more thing: I ask you to show me the "developmentally disabled" children in these private schools. They aren't there, because private schools don't have to take them. They don't have to accommodate for them. They don't have to do one thing for them. That's the law. Public schools, however, DO have to serve these students. Private schools do NOT have the challenges of meeting the special needs of students. By definition, they are not required to.

• February 4, 2008

  10:07 a.m.

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  EastVail writes:

  Time to raise wages to attract teachers.

  Supply and demand.

• February 4, 2008

  10:56 a.m.

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  junglegymco writes:

  PajamaPulitzer -

  Did you get paid by the private school to write such BLATANTLY FALSE LIES? Wow - I think you should invest some of your kids' tuition and take some classes yourself. Or stop reading "Public School Information - Produced by the Society of Private Schools . . ."

  Teachers' Unions are the SOLUTION to self-serving hypocrites like you who want education for their kids to be the best, but only for THEIR kids, and not any one else's. Groovygrrl is right - if it wasn't for the union, teacher's wouldn't even get a chair to sit on. How often do YOU pay for your own office supplies at your work, Pajama? I'm betting NEVER. Teacher's do it ALL THE TIME.

  $60,000 a year to a public school teacher? LOL - I love it when people pull make-believe statistics out of their a**. SHOW me the "numerous" teachers making that kind of money. The RARE FEW that do not only have a master's degree, but also likely have better than 20 years of teaching under their belts.

  It's time to stop ragging on the teacher's, their union, and the attempt by both to simply get a decent wage for teaching your whiny kids, and instead focus on how to make the classroom less like a 3rd world environment and more like a place indicative of the wealthiest country in the world.

• February 4, 2008

  11:48 a.m.

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  vudumom writes:

  psu96,You seem to think I am one of these parents that don't know what is going on in my children's school.It wasn't just my child who told me what happened Friday afternoon. One other child in her class who happened to be spending the night over the weekend,brought it up. I was grading the spelling and sentence papers for the teacher. I volunteer alot at my children's school.
  I was seeing a pattern of high performing children getting spelling words wrong. I also noticed the quality of their sentences where not what they usually are.So I was wondering what happened with the spelling tests and sentences this week. I asked both girls and that's when they told me about the sub.I know all the children in my 5th grader's class. I know what they are capable of and I know the high performer's.I felt something wasn't right as I was grading the papers.That's how I know and my innocent child is not a liar and is one of only 2 children in her class of 27 that are Super Honor Roll.That's how I know.I am one of those parents that will fight to get her children educated at their level . If I don't they will be stuck on stupid their whole lives.

  It's the school system. They tell the teacher's what to teach how to teach it and micromanage everything they do.I help good teachers out.Even if they are not my children's teacher's.My 5th grader's teacher told me she is told what spelling words to give every week.That is the out of the box education,the one size fits all that every kid is getting.It isn't working!My 5th grader is getting spelling words like ample and closet.I forced the school to teach my 2nd grader at her level She gets spelling words like peninsula and convenient,she is in 2nd grade.I know what is going on and I have to teach my kids alot at home just to keep them from being bored out of their minds.

  I don't need to ask a sub anything ,my child tells me what is going on.i also knew something was not right.I'm one of those parents that will hold the school and teacher's feet to the fire if needed. I damn proud of it too.You may want your kids SOS , stuck on stupid,but I certainly won't allow the school to do that to my children.

• February 4, 2008

  11:49 a.m.

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  ColoNative writes:

  The rant against public education continues. When unions release their monopoly and allow vouchers and allow competition, when the schools are once again safe and drug free, when greater attention is paid to academic issues over liberal social issues, when discipline and maturity are valued over inane "self expression", public education will improve. But as long as there is a better environment for education in the private sector in the form of private institutions and homeschooling which only those who can afford it attend, public education will continue its disservice to the future of Ameirca.

• February 4, 2008

  12:12 p.m.

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  Alive writes:

  Who in their right mind would want to try to teach anything to the kind of kids that fill public schools today?

  Teachers are afforded no respect or authority in the classroom, and the feel-good politically correct nonsense that they are forced use as a curriculum is Orwellian at best, a daily fostering of victimhood at worst.

  The atmosphere of chaos, frustration, and violence is not going to draw people to the field.

  How can a teacher be effective when the PARENTS have such a child like mentality, that they ALWAYS blame the teacher first whenever they are told of the latest outburst by their little brat?

  We have become a society devoid of adults. Adults are those who understand the logic of sacrifice, delay of gratification, principals, strength and honesty. There are so few of these kinds of people and they are highly valued by employers. Why would these folks want to take a pay cut to try teaching the children of millions of dysfunctional "semi-adults"?

  We all know in our hearts that unless morality is taught at home, those who we entrust with schooling our children will always be wasting precious time trying to fill that gap. Therefore practical, wage earning, knowledge will always take a back seat to having to remind Billy daily why he shouldn’t join a gang. What a nightmare.

• February 4, 2008

  12:28 p.m.

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  kirbysfriend22 writes:

  God forbid the union try and secure better pay and keep ACTUAL TRAINED CLASSROOM TEACHERS in the district. The union bashers always make me laugh because they generally don't know what they're talking about.

  You think they have a hard time keeping teachers with the union around? I can't imagine how many teachers would stick around that district if the pay was even worse and the working conditions were even worse.

  Why do so many people expect teachers to work for free? It's a career, a profession and just like so many other professionals out there, teachers desrve to be compensated appropriately.

  With the crap teachers have to deal with at this day in age and the continuing retirement of the baby boomer generation these shortages are only going to get worse......and who in their right mind is going to fill those gaps?

• February 4, 2008

  12:41 p.m.

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  Shaupeen writes:

  vudumom--you just proved psu96's point! Nice work. Thanks for the good laugh--I needed it today!

• February 4, 2008

  1:04 p.m.

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  junglegymco writes:

  Uh-oh. The "voucher" argument has surfaced again . . . BAD idea. The problem with vouchers is that it is not only elitist, but also forces the poor to subsidize the rich. Why would we allow those with money the ability to get a "voucher" for say, $1,000 and send THEIR kids to a private school that costs, say $3,000, when the poor kids can't afford the $3,000, so they get to go to the $1,000 public school?! Why should we subsidize private schools, that only those with the funds can afford?! HORRIBLE IDEA. Once again, it's the wealthy wanting the subsidies for themselves. Have we not seen enough of this for corporate America and the Bush tax cuts?!

  Education should NOT be about making the most money possible; it should be about giving ALL students (not just the wealthy ones) the opportunity for an excellent education. The day we allow vouchers to suck funds from the public schools, is the day we might as well kiss public education good-bye and just hand out wallets over to those already rich.

  If anything, there should be a "private school tax." The solution is MORE kids in public school, not less. Until parents realize that society functions when EVERYONE is given the opportunity for a good education, there can be no educational parity for all kids.

• February 4, 2008

  1:09 p.m.

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  Scott writes:

  So kirbysfriend22, by your reasoning (unions are good) the dispute between the teachers at Randolph and union capo Ursetta, http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news... isn't happening. Right?

  In this case the union IS the problem. In most cases a combination of the "my darling wouldn't do it" parents, ignorant admin types, lard butt teachers, meddling state politicians, idiot CDE employees and self-serving union goons are the problem.

  Until parents start taking responsibility by blistering junior's butt when he screws up in school, principals are allowed to summarily expel worthless meat a.k.a. student, teachers actually teach, politician stick to what they know (graft), CDE starts to perform a real service, and the unions start listening to their members (e.g. Randolph) the current problems will continue.

  To all of you teachers, principals, etc., that are trying to teach in spite of the afore mentioned self-serving trash, you have my deepest respect. Fourteen years ago I had a taste of what you have to tolerate and it is a lot worse that my worst day out here in industry.

  Scott

• February 4, 2008

  1:13 p.m.

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  psu96 writes:

  thanks for making my point clearer vudumom.

• February 4, 2008

  1:17 p.m.

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  bookwerm writes:

  There are too many arbitrary obstacles in Colorado for most Professionals to reasonably consider pursuing teaching in the State of Colorado. I AM a "rocket scientist" with a Master in Mech. Eng. (Univ. Of Mich), and use high level math, science and other fields daily in my work. With an interest in moving into teaching, I also looked into it, like Scott above.

  I was shocked at the amount of "new school" I would have to do to get "credentialed" in areas that I see as little to no PROVEN value. I know my field (math, chemistry, physics etc), and have made enough bank to have some put away, a house and the like, so my "monthly nut" is small enough that I could consider teaching, AND walk away from a 6 fig job.

  However, that pretty much flies out the window when you look at all the courses one would have to take, and the opaque and lengthy process to even GET credentialed.

  For "emergency credential" teachers, there MUST be a MUCH more reasonable way to get teachers into the pipeline WITHOUT requiring SO MUCH NEW SCHOOL! What about "life experience" value"?... There are so so many "education" courses arbitrarily required that, as said above, to produce "educators" but I have found NO study or any evidence that those courses help teaching effectiveness.. they are just another arbitrary gate put up as that was the training they were USED to getting with teachers, and now they expect all to have it to BE teachers. That simply is NOT reasonable.

  A reasonable knowledge test, and abbreviated training course, THAT is all that should be needed. THEN you can judge effectiveness NOT by what silly courses are required, but by whether or not the KIDS LEARN! Surely can't be WORSE off than "shuffling subs" or admin baby sitters! So what is the down side?? jeez they are dense.

  The biggest thing you NEED to Teach is great knowledge of the field of study, an interest IN teaching, and the ability to be effective AT teaching.

  NOT a bunch of lame ass courses, complicated process to even GET into teaching, and substandard pay.

  Reasonable starting pay would be mid to uppper 40s in this day and age. Seriously, someone with a masters in Math can make near 6 figs in a few years.

• February 4, 2008

  1:37 p.m.

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  kirbysfriend22 writes:

  Scott, you can't pick and choose which parts of a contract to honor. And i don't believe that you're well enough informed about the situation at Randolph to make the guesses you do.

  Yes, by my reasoning, unions are good. I'm not going to bother to go and list the many reasons that people in a wide range of industry benefit from the existance of organized labor. I'd like to see how much you enjoy working in your union-free shop if labor unions had never existed. Save the free market argument. I know the history of this country's general labor conditions.

  Teachers Unions ensure appropriate pay and benefits on an equitable and consistant basis. They ensure that educators who have dedicated years of hard work can't be dismissed without just cause. They fight to ensure that legislators, who know NOTHING about the realm of education don't create unnecessary and uninformed mandates which are often not in the best interest of all children. I could go on and on....

• February 4, 2008

  1:51 p.m.

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  vudumom writes:

  psu96,you have no point except to call my child a liar.I would take the word of my 5th grader than a subsitute teacher.However if it was my 2nd grader I would look deeper into it and ask the sub.So I have 2 very different children. I know when to pick my battles with the school.I'm actually quite respected there because of my long experience with children and raising them.The children that I come in contact with are wonderful kids that deserve better than what they are getting in schools today.Teachers hands are tied with so many rules and regulations that they can't teach anything outside the box they are given every year.They have to get special permission from the principal and he or she then has to okay it with the administation if they want to do a special project that is not in the itinerary that is given them every year.
  Teachers can't teach they are told what to do ,when to do it and the administration is right and knows everything.I have the utmost respect for teachers and realize their hands are tied,that is why I help out,make sure my kids are actually being educated and lighten the load for some of the teachers as much as I can.If you have children and are just sending them to a public school without knowing what is really going on and how much they are not learning,that's you choice. My husband and I have chosen since we can't afford private school to make sure our kids are being educated through public school.They are well behaved and are often given awards at school. I don't tolerate any disrespect for teachers especially from children and my kids know it's not acceptable.It sounds to me you have some issues with school. I'm making the most out of it and so are my kids.

  so unless you have children,do alot of volunteering,help teachers in school,make sure your kids are not problem kids and make sure your kids are actually getting an education, I suggest you sit down at the back of the class.One tip for parents who actually give a damn , "A's " do not mean that child is being properly educated.

• February 4, 2008

  2 p.m.

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  kirbysfriend22 writes:

  vudumom----it's definitely a benefit to have parents like you who value education and raise your children to do likewise. Spending as much time as you do in the classroom, you likely have good relationships with those teachers and are indeed well versed in how much teachers are truely forced into a box. I have many friends and family members who are educators who would agree.

• February 4, 2008

  2:31 p.m.

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  Colorado127 writes:

  Complain, complain, complain. The ignorant comments on here are usually made people that only have one connection to the education system, that they at one time attended school. They seem to think they know everything about teachers, schools, and students yet don't. They never ask teachers' opinions either. I laugh at their lack of intelligence. When I have medical problems, I go to a doctor. When I have tax issues, I see my accountant. When you have concerns about education, you should ask a teacher. By the way, I have taught in public schools for 16 years, so ask me.

• February 4, 2008

  2:31 p.m.

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  vudumom writes:

  Thank You, kirbysfriend22.People attack when they don't know what's going on in the schools. I have made it my goal in life to raise properly behaved children and get them educated.Schools cannot do it all. Parents have to be involved.I taught my now 5th grader multiplication and cursive handwriting after her 3rd grade year. I thought it was something she should have been taught.I recieved a letter from her 4th grade teacher thanking me for teaching her multiplication,she was the only kid in the class that knew it.I volunteer for her 4th grade teacher. This teacher is an Engineer and taught my daughter more in a year than in the previous 2 years of school.After 4th grade,my husband and I taught her pre-algebra over the summer.She went into 5th grade and had some knowledge of that. the teacher gave everyone at the beginning of the year a simple pre-algebra paper to see if how many kids could do simple pre-algebra.She gave the class 10 problems. No one got passed the second problem and no on even got one of them correct except my daughter who shocked the teacher by handing in a comepleted paper with every problem correct.That is where parenting comes in. The teachers can't do it all. They have 25 kids and up in their classes. Parents have to help our kids ,our teachers and our schools succeed.If we don't and parents don't want to parent and leave it up to the schools to make sure their child is being educated on their child's level not what the school is putting out ,we are going to have what we are seeing now in Colleges and Universities,students that are not prepared for college.

  When I walk out of that school from volunteering,I often feel helpless and sad, I see so many children who are not where they should be. It breaks my heart to see what is going on in our schools.I have always been involved with kids,since high school when I signed up for work study one year.It was a program where you learned a half day of school and volunteered the other half. I volunteered at a elementary school as a kindergarten teacher's aide.That is when I dedicated my life to making as many children as I could grow up being good people and good learners.Then I started my family and am dedicated to my children.They will succeed at whatever they choose to be. It's the way they are being raised.

  If psu96 and others don't like what I say,it doesn't bother me. As Pat Benatar used to sing,Hit me with your best shot!

  I know what I'm talking about people who knock me don't.

• February 4, 2008

  2:47 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Alive writes:

  Ok Colorado127, I'll bite.

  Tell us where we are all wrong. Tell us how public schools work in 2008.

• February 4, 2008

  2:48 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  psu96 writes:

  Vudumom,
  "My 5th grader had a sub last friday afternoon. She rushed them through a spelling test where they had to write sentences ,then she didn't even know how to do the math they were doing!Were talking fith grade fractions !
  I think when hiring subs the should ask them,Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?"

  So this is how you respect teachers? you critize the poor sub who probably received a call at 630 am and asked to come in and sub?

  My bad, your kids get awards.

• February 4, 2008

  3:08 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  vudumom writes:

  A sub was called in for 2 hrs,not the whole day. She had two assignments.I talked to the teacher. One was give a spelling test in which the students needed time to write a sentence for that word. Are you following me here?The 2nd assignment she had to do was a math paper with fractions. She could not explain to the students who needed help how to do it. Are you following me here?
  You must be a subsitute teacher, because you just don't know what your talking about.Did you read the RMN story up top that said the subsitute teachers couldn't teach and the school system couldn't find a actual teacher to teach the subject?Are you following me here?Or are you a stupid subsitute with your feelings hurt?

• February 4, 2008

  3:17 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Scott writes:

  vudumom,

  That explains it! Right now I'm teaching a class for CCD. The first night of class I had to (re)teach my students (all working adults) how to add, subtract, multiply and divide negative numbers ... along with absolute value, and a bunch of other math stuff.

  NOTE! My students are very motivated to succeed. No one can blame them for being a product of a U.S. K-12 "education."

  Scott

• February 4, 2008

  3:23 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  mytwosense writes:

  vudumom, keep making sure your voice is heard, because the squeaky wheel does eventually gets the oil. That's what makes real progress happen, and for us parents who either for financial and/or idealogical reasons send our kids to public schools, we need voices like your own to make them safe, effective places of learning.

  I too have the utmost respect for teachers; I know several, and they all genuinely love what they do and the children they are entrusted with. But, for a true range of reasons, there are gaps and problems that teachers and admins alone can't fix. Public participation from both parents and anyone who cares about this country's future is the missing piece of the puzzle.

• February 4, 2008

  3:30 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  psu96 writes:

  name calling vudu, be careful your true colors are showing. people tend to resort to name calling when there feelings are hurt or when they are in their emotional mind.

• February 4, 2008

  3:34 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  kirbysfriend22 writes:

  Scott-you're a fool if you think all those people in your class, however hard working NOW, were working hard to learn those things while they were students. Now they are adults and they realize that all those years that teachers were trying to teach them to add and saying "you'll need to know this when you're an adult and have a job" the teachers were right. It's hard to teach someone who doesn't want to learn. Get a clue. They (and their parents who didn't stress the importance of their education) are the real ones who failed themselves. One of the greatest problems with education today is accountability....on the part of the parents and students.

• February 4, 2008

  3:48 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Shaupeen writes:

  Because my 11 year old said so! And screw you if you disagree!!

  That's what I hear when I read vudumom's posts. She sounds like a 5th grader herself. What's next? "Guess what Susie told me at lunch about Obama?" Yikes. You scare me.

  And puh-lease, vudu, at least teach those children the proper spelling of "a lot." Is "a little" two words? (Answer-yes it is, regardless of what your 5th grader says.) A lot. Two words. Please write this over ten times until you get it correct!

  And also, I hate to tell you this, but 5th graders might not be the most reliable source for information. It's too bad your emotions are overwhelming your judgement. Hopefully you're not giving out important information--who knows where a 5th grader's grand views on life might take someone! And save the "My child is an angel who is always right" hysterics. I don't care. But thanks for volunteering all the same.

  Seriously though, a lot, two words.

• February 4, 2008

  4:03 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Scott writes:

  kirbysfriend22:

  Nope, I tain't no fool. Some of my current students fill the scenario that you describe to a T. The rest are "product[s] of a U.S. K-12 'education'."

  My statement also rests upon tutoring high school kids back in the early 90's. When I taught an electronics class at Skyview I told the students that we would be using logarithms to calculate decibels. I immediately got the deer-in-the-headlights look from every student. I then took the entire period to give them a crash course in logarithms. The next morning one of my top students told me that he had told his Algebra 2 teacher what I had taught. The response from the Algebra teacher was pathetic, "We don't need logarithms anymore since we have calculators." I darn near puked.

  Scott

• February 4, 2008

  5:17 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  grammargirl writes:

  I try to do what I can in my daily life for the sake of education. Our children read and hear what we write and say. So, I try to use proper grammar.

  That said, the correct way to refer to a person is "who" and not "that". If someone has something, it's "his" or "hers" and not "theirs". And that person is "he" or "she", or "him" or "her", and not "them".

• February 4, 2008

  7:03 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  beentheredonethat writes:

  Vudumom,
  When you get a chance, try to learn how to use the apostrophe. It's always a challenge to be evaluated by parents who think they know it all but have (perhaps) a few things left to learn.
  Regarding the school autonomy plans:
  Nothing would please DPS more than to allow schools to take the full blame for the failure of the students. Their tactic is as old as the hills, Brer Rabbit: Let the teachers at each school think that they have actually thought this up all by themselves when, in fact, DPS is all about manipulating people and their opinions, the better to keep the money right where they want it, at 900 Grant Street. Bureaucracies have only their own preservation at the heart of their interests, and DPS is nothing but an enormous bureaucracy.

• February 6, 2008

  8:58 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  BetterEducated writes:

  beentheredonethat:

  RIGHT ON. Thank you for saying it better than I could have.