(Untitled)

[zinniazayda]

Mostly, a very pleasant day: Steph slept over and we lounged about all morning, and then Rob called me up wanting to have a picnic in the cemetery a few blocks from my apartment. We enjoyed our several-course feast and napped in the sun. Then I went back to Steph's house to share music. Later in the evening, Steph and Taylor and I were going to

Comments

[changeandchance]

John Holt isn't really saying you shouldn't teach low-income kids; he's saying you should look to find a school which is ready for a movement towards teaching the kids with respect and justice. Which... I mean, this just shows how cynical I am, but I'd agree with that. I've got friends working in the DC public school system, and the one thing they've had the hardest time with is the administration. There's not a whole lot you can do in a system where the principal thinks that you're over-reacting if you get upset when a staff person physically shakes a kid and tells the kid they're a brat. I mean, you can offer what you have to the kids, but you also might end up miserable if everyone around you thinks you're a kind of stupid idealist. And if you're miserable, you're likely to be less effective. You've got to make sure you're taking care of yourself AND the children, because you have to meet your own physical/emotional needs to be effective in meeting the needs of others. Otherwise you're being a martyr, and martyrs beg the question:

[whetherwoman]

There are lots of school settings where everyone is trying to the best of their ability to serve low-income kids. In this era especially, many schools don't have the people-power, or the people they do have don't have the time and energy, to do the job they want to do. There are lots of school settings that are not "rigid and authoritarian", but still don't do an adequate job of serving the students who need it most. You don't have to be a teacher in a "rigid and authoritarian" school to be very, very strongly needed

[idealforcolors]

I think the quote is talking more about the administrative approach and personalities than the income level - not that teaching low income kids and trying to change their school for the better is a mistake, but choosing to do it in a school with a particularly authoritarian and disrespectful (to the kids) atmosphere could be a mistake. I guess the question is WHY the school is bad, and if the administration will give you the room and respect to work on it.

[tangledskeins]

I've been subbing in a wonderful school recently, but from being in a number of schools around the area, I have felt very different 'vibes' from the schools, just working there for a day or two each time. I love the current school I'm in because I feel that most of the teachers have a genuine respect and love for the kids, even the tough ones. Some other places, it's more of a question of controlling the kids than anything else

He is right though...

[sandokai]

I don't know John Holt, but he's right. It is way harder than you think. You can teach in the most supportive, perfect environment, and you will go home every night exhausted (and if you don't have good stress management techniques, defeated). Few people can possibly last as caring teachers in a poorly run public school environment. I went to college with a bunch of very smart, devoted, idealistic people, and now about 8 years out of our teaching degrees, maybe 1 or 2 in 10 are left still teaching in a traditional public school classroom. The rest have found different careers or easier settings.

He is just being realistic. If you are serious about making it a lifelong career that doesn't end in heartbreak and a sense of failure, you need to find a school with-- in the very least-- strong administrative support for teachers.

The demands of the job are just unbelievable.