Some Teachers Have Done Horrible Things, They Shouldn't Be In the Rubber Room, They Should Be Fired

[krylyr]

This story, Act 1 of the week's This American Life (via Radio Diaries), absolutely fascinates and terrifies me:

"The true story of little-known rooms in New York City Board of Education buildings. Teachers are told to report there instead of their classrooms. Usually, no reason is given. When they arrive, they find they've been put on some kind of

Comments

[garunya]

Well that's certainly fucked up!

[krylyr]

Totally and completely.

[prusik]

I'm listening to the documentary right now.

It horrible how they keep the teachers hanging like that.

It's also amazing what happens to people when you force them to coop up together like that.

[krylyr]

It sounds like there's a bit of schism. I think it's fascinating that some teachers decided to continue teaching, albeit to other teachers (art, Spanish, Book Clubs). OTOH, there's sleep rooms. Weird.

The territorial thing is frightening -- it does sound like a voluntary prison for some. It's also interesting that in a different setting, teachers are the ones who rush to watch the fight, as opposed to the ones breaking them up.