(no subject)
Dear worst teacher I supervise ever,
My boss, the potato sack, hired you to work on our unit this year to cover me for three periods each day and to do the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE) administration. (The TABE is a really awesome test that has been normed on juvenile corrections which means we get more reliable results. It's also awesome because instead of being an assessment of academic achievement, it's an assessment of skills employers report to be needed to function in the workplace. It also includes a predictor for GED scores.)
Anyway, you don't know when not to say something. You want to go to all these meetings and stuff, but I don't want to let you because I don't know what you will say. Like, I'm really worried that 1. you're going to say or ask something totally out of line, 2. you're going to say something you shouldn't say in front of a bunch of people who don't need to know about it or 3. you're going to start talking and never shut up so people get angry with you. You constantly want to know the details of the kids' personal lives. That's fine, because I know a lot of it. I'm pretty open with sharing when it's appropriate. But you're constantly trying to get information from me. And when I tell you I don't know (which is usually true), you just keep pressing me and saying things like, "You do know and you just don't want to tell me." It's really obnoxious and inappropriate.
You're also upset because I won't let you help with the assessments we do on all of the new commits. But every time I try to talk to you about any of the kids, you just go on and on and on about all the disabilities the kids have and how you know about them because your son has a learning disability. Yes, you're one of those. So I was sitting there one afternoon working on an assessment and you walked over to see what i'm doing. And then you had the balls to say, "You should be teaching me to do those." I said, "My job is to write these assessments. Your job is to adminster the TABE and teach life skills." Is it wrong that I said that? I hate when I have to tell adults what to do.
Are you trying to steal my job!? I love my job and I'm good at it and nobody would be as good at writing these assessments as me. Especially you because I don't think you can keep your statements about the kids appropriate. Plus, all you ever say is, "These kids come from such traumatic backgrounds." No shit. Do you know why I won't let you work on the assessments? It's because all you ever talk about is what is wrong with these kids. Not once, not even one time have I heard you say something about how these kids can make progress. All you talk about is how much trouble these kids are going to have in school if they don't get their behavior under control and "how can they learn to control themselves when they've had such traumatic lives." Our job is not to feel sorry for them because they've had difficult lives. Our job is to figure out what we can give them to make school easier. You don't do that.
You also tried to tell me that someone from another program said I was trying to get the potato sack's job. I don't want that job! I hate supervising people. I HATE HAVING TO TELL ADULTS WHAT TO DO.
You also are never done with the stuff I tell you needs to be done by the end of the day. I keep having to check on you to make sure all of the TABE stuff is put away by the end of the day or assembled for the next day. I know you're irritated because I'm constantly on you about that kind of stuff, but shit needs to get finished before you hang out with the kids. I constantly have to be on top of you about making shit gets counted and put away at the end of the class including glue so none of the kids try to glue the locks on their doors. And I can tell you think I'm being a real bitch, but it's been the only thing that's worked. I don't think you understand that I'm looking out for your own safety and your job security. Not only does that shit come down on me, but I have to document it every time i talk to you about it. If I keep having to talk to you about it, it's not going to be on me, it's going to be on you. Especially when one of these kids stabs someone with one of the trillion color pencils you always have out.
You've got to count those pencils at the beginning and end of each class. You have to know where everything is so that when the group worker says at the end of each class, "Do you have all of your pencils and stuff?" you can say, "Yep" and it doesn't show up on the unit. You have to have everything in your classroom put away before the kids leave the room.
Also, you had the following conversation with a kid:
You: Do you have an IEP?
Him: What's that?
You: It's for special education.
Him: Why?
You: I think you might need to be in special education because you're having trouble remembering things you shouldn't be having trouble remembering.
Him: No, I'm okay.
My jaw just about hit the floor that you would say that. You don't say that sort of thing to kids! Do you have any interpersonal skills at all? Because you also asked one of the clinicians if she wanted a hair brush. Just out of the blue you said, "Do you want a hair brush?"
The absolute worst thing is when I have to do your monthly supervisions. When I do them I always include a section on strengths and needs. Under strengths I always put all the good things and under needs, always put the things the person needs to work on. Duh. And every time I go over it with you, you freak out about how you've never had a bad evaluation and try to justify everything and always ask if it's going to go in your file. You also always say you don't need to improve on the "needs," I just don't see it when you do well. And then every time I have to tell you, "This is what I saw during your observation. You are doing all these things right, but there are always areas in which you can improve." And then you keep freaking out about how you do all these things right. I have to observe you during the next week or so. I'm really not looking forward to it and it makes me not want to go to work.
In any case, I'm learning how to deal with a person who is a total pain in the ass and whose personality is just, uh, not good. I'm trying to be patient and I've been told that I have patience that last a mile. i'm just trying to keep it going for a few miles, right?
The good thing is that you're improving. The kids really, really, really dislike you because you're kind of an asshole to them. I had to put in one of your supervisions that you need to watch your tone (read: stop yelling at the kids) and decrease your sarcastic remarks (read: don't say "if you would clean out your ears you would hear me"). I've been told you are indeed improving in those areas. But still, all those other obnoxious things you are doing: cut it out.
Jodie
My boss, the potato sack, hired you to work on our unit this year to cover me for three periods each day and to do the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE) administration. (The TABE is a really awesome test that has been normed on juvenile corrections which means we get more reliable results. It's also awesome because instead of being an assessment of academic achievement, it's an assessment of skills employers report to be needed to function in the workplace. It also includes a predictor for GED scores.)
Anyway, you don't know when not to say something. You want to go to all these meetings and stuff, but I don't want to let you because I don't know what you will say. Like, I'm really worried that 1. you're going to say or ask something totally out of line, 2. you're going to say something you shouldn't say in front of a bunch of people who don't need to know about it or 3. you're going to start talking and never shut up so people get angry with you. You constantly want to know the details of the kids' personal lives. That's fine, because I know a lot of it. I'm pretty open with sharing when it's appropriate. But you're constantly trying to get information from me. And when I tell you I don't know (which is usually true), you just keep pressing me and saying things like, "You do know and you just don't want to tell me." It's really obnoxious and inappropriate.
You're also upset because I won't let you help with the assessments we do on all of the new commits. But every time I try to talk to you about any of the kids, you just go on and on and on about all the disabilities the kids have and how you know about them because your son has a learning disability. Yes, you're one of those. So I was sitting there one afternoon working on an assessment and you walked over to see what i'm doing. And then you had the balls to say, "You should be teaching me to do those." I said, "My job is to write these assessments. Your job is to adminster the TABE and teach life skills." Is it wrong that I said that? I hate when I have to tell adults what to do.
Are you trying to steal my job!? I love my job and I'm good at it and nobody would be as good at writing these assessments as me. Especially you because I don't think you can keep your statements about the kids appropriate. Plus, all you ever say is, "These kids come from such traumatic backgrounds." No shit. Do you know why I won't let you work on the assessments? It's because all you ever talk about is what is wrong with these kids. Not once, not even one time have I heard you say something about how these kids can make progress. All you talk about is how much trouble these kids are going to have in school if they don't get their behavior under control and "how can they learn to control themselves when they've had such traumatic lives." Our job is not to feel sorry for them because they've had difficult lives. Our job is to figure out what we can give them to make school easier. You don't do that.
You also tried to tell me that someone from another program said I was trying to get the potato sack's job. I don't want that job! I hate supervising people. I HATE HAVING TO TELL ADULTS WHAT TO DO.
You also are never done with the stuff I tell you needs to be done by the end of the day. I keep having to check on you to make sure all of the TABE stuff is put away by the end of the day or assembled for the next day. I know you're irritated because I'm constantly on you about that kind of stuff, but shit needs to get finished before you hang out with the kids. I constantly have to be on top of you about making shit gets counted and put away at the end of the class including glue so none of the kids try to glue the locks on their doors. And I can tell you think I'm being a real bitch, but it's been the only thing that's worked. I don't think you understand that I'm looking out for your own safety and your job security. Not only does that shit come down on me, but I have to document it every time i talk to you about it. If I keep having to talk to you about it, it's not going to be on me, it's going to be on you. Especially when one of these kids stabs someone with one of the trillion color pencils you always have out.
You've got to count those pencils at the beginning and end of each class. You have to know where everything is so that when the group worker says at the end of each class, "Do you have all of your pencils and stuff?" you can say, "Yep" and it doesn't show up on the unit. You have to have everything in your classroom put away before the kids leave the room.
Also, you had the following conversation with a kid:
You: Do you have an IEP?
Him: What's that?
You: It's for special education.
Him: Why?
You: I think you might need to be in special education because you're having trouble remembering things you shouldn't be having trouble remembering.
Him: No, I'm okay.
My jaw just about hit the floor that you would say that. You don't say that sort of thing to kids! Do you have any interpersonal skills at all? Because you also asked one of the clinicians if she wanted a hair brush. Just out of the blue you said, "Do you want a hair brush?"
The absolute worst thing is when I have to do your monthly supervisions. When I do them I always include a section on strengths and needs. Under strengths I always put all the good things and under needs, always put the things the person needs to work on. Duh. And every time I go over it with you, you freak out about how you've never had a bad evaluation and try to justify everything and always ask if it's going to go in your file. You also always say you don't need to improve on the "needs," I just don't see it when you do well. And then every time I have to tell you, "This is what I saw during your observation. You are doing all these things right, but there are always areas in which you can improve." And then you keep freaking out about how you do all these things right. I have to observe you during the next week or so. I'm really not looking forward to it and it makes me not want to go to work.
In any case, I'm learning how to deal with a person who is a total pain in the ass and whose personality is just, uh, not good. I'm trying to be patient and I've been told that I have patience that last a mile. i'm just trying to keep it going for a few miles, right?
The good thing is that you're improving. The kids really, really, really dislike you because you're kind of an asshole to them. I had to put in one of your supervisions that you need to watch your tone (read: stop yelling at the kids) and decrease your sarcastic remarks (read: don't say "if you would clean out your ears you would hear me"). I've been told you are indeed improving in those areas. But still, all those other obnoxious things you are doing: cut it out.
Jodie