I was fortunate to attend grammar school in Okemos. In that particular region at that particular time, Okemos Public schools were well regarded as a school system with better than average accreditation, and superior teaching staff. And though my earliest elementary (actually started at Okemos in 2nd grade) experiences and education in that school system were frequented by liberal lessons in social “correction,” I was at least able, with a little bit of reasoning to develop the core principles which guide me today.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED my teachers, and they truly wanted the best for their students. In fact some of what I experienced allows me to see a bit of all side on many issues. Looking back however, much of what I (even as a pre-adolescent) saw reminds me of what is one of the fundamental problems in today’s educational system.
The earliest vocabulary entry beyond Dick and Jane readers, would be the word “Tenure.” Though Okemos was literally overstocked with qualified teachers, there were some that.. well even in the fourth grade I couldn’t understand why they were.. uh.. there. In fact it was my question (much to the surprise of ms Crane, my teacher) about why a certain teacher who was soooo bad (and sorry.. though there are things I can remember, I cannot for the life of me remember WHY I thought so..) would still be here.
Ms. Crane Said “tenure.” It was a statement I asked her to explain, and after some prodding, came the response “he is protected, because he has been here too long they cant fire him.” That actually satisfied my curiosity, and I was done asking questions. Up until my kids were in school, I really had no need to think about it. And even then, Living in Traverse City (which has MANY fine teachers) My kids STILL had the benefit of a qualified education, even with the occasional lousy teacher in the mix.
Recently, we were reminded of how Detroit, and some other areas are having difficulty with low graduation rates. And I wonder, what effect does a protected status of an educator have on the effectiveness of their job when it becomes too hard to do that job? Are the classrooms a disaster? Do the teachers think the kids don’t want to learn or aren’t willing to try, and give up? Are they biding time till retirement? Short of making excuses, I realize that inner city life carries a different set of circumstances to be dealt with, but isn’t there a way to motivate those who CAN make a difference?
Akindele Akinyemi proposes more charter schools, and the failing public school systems fight it. For them, it has a two fold blow. First, it reduces the number of heads to be counted, which results in lower government funds. Secondly, the removal of the kids who WANT to learn will show up as an ever worsening percentage, further demonstrating the teaching ineffectiveness in the Detroit schools.
Marc Holley Proposes we look at compensation packages offered to teachers, and consider rewarding GOOD teaching, and paying less for those who are ineffective. Of course the MEA would have none of that, as long as it’s primary function is to protect the mediocre performance (at best) of Michigan teachers, who might alternately be relieved of their duties by a studious administration.
The bottom line for me is… Whew! I dodged THAT bullet, with the luck of the draw, I received a good education, and my Kids did as well. However, Michigan faces even tougher times, and the new generation of youngsters deserve a fighting chance. The new reporting laws regarding disclosure of UNION compensation reveals much, and should be looked at, as TENURE, and the MEA itself does little to help our kid’s learn.