Teaching close
to an impossible job
A recent Arkansas Bureau of Legislative Research study reported one in three of the state's teachers quits after three years. Among their reasons were stress and workload.
Substitute teachers have said to me, "I don't know how you do your job -- the responsibilities are great, the level of respect is low, and recognition is little."
What causes teachers to have too much stress? The number of students in a classroom is now 25-30, despite research showing smaller class sizes to be more effective. The number of students in special education and 504s has grown. It can be overwhelming,
Attendance is a problem. Students miss school tired from playing video games the night before, or to get their hair done, and some go on vacations during the school year. Some just skip class. So, teachers spend hours preparing work and cajoling students to come get their make-up work, then many times it's turned back in incomplete or not done at all.
Balance must be brought back to this child-centered society in which the child is equal to and treated as an adult. Children now make choices for themselves that parents should be making for them. Perhaps the child is not being held accountable at home for their choices but teachers are being held accountable for them at school. It is demoralizing when teachers are held accountable for poor choices made by students/parents.
Ginny Blankenship at the Bureau of Legislative Research said many teachers complained about unnecessary meetings. It seems like every spare moment a teacher has is filled with meetings. Some are unnecessary, leaving very little time to grade assignments and prepare lessons.
Evaluations generate a lot of stress for teachers. I had a student who burned his leg and came to school the next day. His medication wore off and he couldn't get more for two hours. He asked if he could put his head down. No sooner had I given him permission than the principal came in to evaluate me. My evaluation showed not all students engaged, one sleeping.
Another time I worked with a student through most of my lunch. As I was finishing my apple, students and the principal came in to my class. One minute before the tardy bell rang I disposed of my apple and started class. My evaluation showed I was eating an apple. I asked about the evaluation and the principal reported the apple was evidence; evidence of what? There's relevant and there's irrelevant evidence.
It's too easy to say the problem will be solved by hiring better teachers. There are too many problems in society that influence the educational process. It's difficult to help students be successful when they don't attend school. When they come to class and are more interested in texting. When both parents are in prison and they are living with grandparents. When there is no support at home: socially, educationally or morally.
Ginny Blankenship said teachers feel they're being asked to do an impossible job without sufficient support. I tend to agree. Each year the teachers' job gets bigger and more complicated.
Terry Stewart
Springdale
Commentary on 05/03/2016