Submitted by dkahlona, Jan 5, 2008 10:21

Everyone hates ("Raymond" - Chris Rock's TV show) a teacher! Is this "wabbit season"? Come one! In the mayor's charm school, principals are not being developed into effective, knowledgeable leaders, they are being trained to go for the jugular and make the chancellor and mayor make good their empty and senseless promises. Truly, the issue regarding poor student results is not about NCLB. It's about the fragmented poor black and other low-income families whose lives have been ravaged by drugs, violence, and homelessness, oh, and hopelessness. Nope. Teachers factor in a little. Let me add, let's look at teacher education programs who graduate these supposedly inept teachers. I still believe that "it takes one to know one." I believe administrators should know about teaching because they have had successful teaching careers for more than one year! There are horrible, incompetent principals in the schools who only care about saving their butts because they will be canned before a tenured teacher gets canned! On another note, I am proud of the UFT's historical presence. Wow! Hire a team of lawyers to figure out how to do a principal's job. It seems like the teachers aren't the problem---the administrators are. If a principal and assistant principals are concerned about effective leadership, then he or she should lead. If all administrators practiced administering to the teacher and to the teacher's classroom, then either 1) the teacher will identify weaknesses and improve or 2) an administrator will fairly, accurately, and without heated bias, document efforts provided to assist the poorly performing teacher. Note the key word: document. Maybe if principals and assistant principals stopped texting each other, they could pay better attention to what is happening in the classroom, come up with viable solutions and support, and use the money paid to lawyers to get textbooks into the classroom. I am not clear as to why the finger points only to teachers. Where are the hypocrites who mouth, "It takes a village to raise a child?" Oh, they've gone "wabbit" hunting.

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