Failure of teachers: Haven’t taught politicians a lesson or two about decency
Jordan sent me this link to an essay on the Huffington Post by Randy Turner, a journalist turned teacher. Take a look at it if you have time.
Turner’s piece has the provocative headline of “The Failure of American Teachers,” but is really a broadside against the anti-teacher rhetoric and laws coming out of many Statehouses across the country.
In his essay, Turner concludes:
And that brings me to the sole reason I have changed my mind about the competence of American public schoolteachers — if we were doing our job, somewhere along the line we would have taught the politicians who are systematically destroying public education, the greatest of all American experiments, something about decency, respect, and developing the mortal fortitude to resist the siren song of the special interests who are well on their way to making the U. S. into a world of haves and have-nots, where public education will serve to provide low paid feeder stock for non-union companies and taxpayer-financed private schools will continue to cater to the elite, with the middle class existing only in history books.
Public schoolteachers have failed miserably by producing the most incompetent, mean-spirited legislators in U.S. history.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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46 comments Add your comment
justjanny
March 18th, 2011
9:51 am
Hear! hear!
Retired Educator
March 18th, 2011
9:55 am
Most of these mean-spirited legislators went to private school.
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
10:36 am
I don’t believe that our country can have a strong middle class without strong public education. It is the large middle class (which is now rapidly eroding) that is the real miracle of the American capitalistic system. Sometimes, however, capitalism gets out of control and needs some “gentle” regulation (not strangulation, mind you). In the early twentieth century, raw capitalism had gotten out of control, and it took a great Republican like Teddy “The Trustbuster” Roosevelt to rein it in. All of this talk about “free trade” and “globalism” is hollow when it leads to the wholesale shipping of our industrial base to cheap labor sources overseas and down to Mexico. This has greatly eroded our middle class and the ability of our government to tap into more revenues. I believe in fair trade…which is what we don’t have now. The trade imbalance is unconscionable.
Seymore Skinner
March 18th, 2011
10:42 am
Unions ARE special interest groups!
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
10:43 am
I said the above because I was thinking about how some Republican ideologues are indeed trying to undermine public education. I say this as a person who probably votes Republican more often than I vote Democrat. I am a Ticket Splitter, I suppose. I don’t care for many of the ideological positions in either party. This is probably why I was never a good party person. To advance in politics, so many times the parties want their troopers to be mindless boobs.
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
10:47 am
Seymore, I think that you need to see more…What’s wrong with unions. I suppose you would have opposed ole Lech in Poland in the late 1970s, eh? Ha! Unions are special interests, yes. Just like the Chambers of Commerce are as well. As well as the National Federation of Independent Businesses. There’s a place for all. I have no problem with any of these “self interest” groups. This is America. This is politics. This is capitalism. This is business.
Seymore, you probably watch too much of Glenn Beck. No, I am serious. He puts on a show like WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment).
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
10:50 am
Sorry for the typo. Should have been: What’s wrong with unions?
While I am at it, I don’t care for some of the left-wing shows either…especially the ones on MSNBC. But, I make an exception for Chris Mathews. Have been watching him for years, and many times he has our own Cynthia Tucker as his guest.
ID-10-T Error
March 18th, 2011
11:00 am
Give it a rest, Trotter. Geez.
William Casey
March 18th, 2011
11:05 am
Until America discards the concept of “professional (career) politicians” and the all-pervasive influence of campaign contributions, nothing that a teacher could have taught an aspiring politician would have done much good. Over time, the system corrupts even the “best and the brightest” in subtle as well as obvious ways. We view our politicians as a commodity to be bought and sold.
Lee
March 18th, 2011
11:08 am
What a hack piece. Reminds me of those job interview questions such as “What is your greatest weakness?” which the candidate tries to spin into a positive.
“What’s your greatest failure teach?”
“Oh, we produced politicians who are the scum of the Earth.”
Yeah, well, if you want to go that far out on a limb, you also produced lawyers and used car salesmen.
Politics has never been about “decency.” Back in the Middle Ages, the loser often got his head chopped off….
…. which, now that I think about it, doesn’t seem like a bad idea.
William Casey
March 18th, 2011
11:11 am
Unions have sometimes been corrupted over the years but they are the ONLY way for people of limited financial means to compete fairly with people possessing large financial resources. I learned this from my father who negotiated for the MANAGEMENT side back in the ’40’s, 50’s and ’60’s.
Warrior Woman
March 18th, 2011
11:25 am
@ Dr. John Trotter – I suspect Seymour was reacting to the quote from the pretentious and ill-informed Mr. Turner that accused anyone of questioning the efficiency and worth of our current educational structure of not having the “mortal fortitude to resist the siren song of the special interests” in the same article where he apparently supported unionization.
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:27 am
I stand corrected. Sorry.
Jordan Kohanim
March 18th, 2011
11:39 am
I should have mentioned, Maureen, this was sent to me by one of the most amazing teachers I have ever known, Ben Crosby. He is the one who found the article. I’m just passing it along. Thanks for putting it out there further.
(Don’t worry, ladies and gentlemen, I’m on my lunch break, typing from my iPhone).
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:39 am
@ ID-10- T Error Jealousy: I appreciate your eloquence, but you just need to take a nap, if you can’t keep up with me. I am always full of energy, and I am about head up to Atlanta with some colleagues to meet with a group of teachers…even on a Friday afternoon. Imagine on a Friday afternoon! We must be doing something right! They keep calling and keep joining MACE! Wow! Should have been at Renaissance Middle School yesterday afternoon. A double-header picket — the standard after school picket with kids all exited on the buses and very curious parents. Then, a quick break to La Fiesta Restaurant and back to the sidewalk as parents were pulling up for the 6:00 P. M. PTA meeting. Teachers (even busdrivers and parents) were giving up some honking horns and thumbs up! Man, I love a good, juicy picket. Is what America is made of. And, naturally I had to lecture a police officer on the First Amendment, and he backed down too. We have all of this on video — both at Atlanta’s Washington High and Fulton’s Renaissance Middle this week. Will be up on wws.theteachersadvocate.com soon!
“ID,” you need to get a life and quit being so bitter and jealous! Life is a beach, and I told you that I prefer Rio!
mum
March 18th, 2011
11:40 am
Honestly, do you think the vast majority of politicians care about “regular” people? Once elected they go where the money comes from so they’re constantly running for reelection. Aren’t their salaries and benefits paid for by the taxpayer, and in that case, why do they vote on their own salaries and benefits? But teachers are bad people because in some places they are part of a union. Georgia is a right to work state, but we’re in the toilet just like everyone else, so whose fault it that? I recall when the Republicans first came in the mantra was that we had a surplus and it should be returned to the taxpayers of the state.
I think teachers only failed in that they have gone along with the dumbing-down of education where we now have a population that only gets info from one viewpooint and doesn’t know how to do their own research. Conservatives want to control everything and to turn this country into a one party state, and people are just letting it happen. So much for small government and keeping out of people’s personal lives!
Top School
March 18th, 2011
11:41 am
Exactly…if the current adults are the most educated models of leadership…and came through the school system when it was “so much better than now” …God forbid…HOW MUCH WORSE CAN IT GET…
The lack of honesty and integrity …and the general public accepts this leadership…pays for it… and rolls over like a dog…
We might as well be lead by dictators. The current leadership in APS is correctly modeling their behaviors. Self absorbed…retaliating … manic…falsifiers…liars…cheaters…egotistical psychopaths.
http://www.TopPublicSchoolCorruptionAtlanta.com
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:42 am
That would be http://www.theteachersadvocate.com. Sorry. Typing too fast again.
Top School
March 18th, 2011
11:50 am
It is not just politicians…most our leaders have developed same mentality…or they learn to turn a blind eye…otherwise they can’t survive in their current positions of authority.
Pompano
March 18th, 2011
11:51 am
Public Schools stopped being about education long ago and are now simply part of a massive jobs program.
oldtimer
March 18th, 2011
12:11 pm
I believe unions serve no useful purpose in public service…
Equitas
March 18th, 2011
12:57 pm
The desire to categorically bash professions and
focus solely on their deficiencies, without regard
for the positive services provided by many
professionals in the particular fields, is a
weakness that needs to be overcome within our
country whether it is directed at lawyers,
doctors,politicians, teachers,bankers,or
other professions that are routinely
criticized.
A Conservative Voice
March 18th, 2011
12:58 pm
@oldtimer
March 18th, 2011
12:11 pm
I believe unions serve no useful purpose in public service…
I would go a step further and say…….”I believe unions serve no useful purpose.” Union members favorite phrase is…..”that’s not my job”.
Clueless
March 18th, 2011
1:01 pm
Is it a conflict of interest when a politician who sits on the board of a private school cosponsors a bill on vouchers?
Too highly qualified?
March 18th, 2011
1:20 pm
Hi everyone!
Each of you represent your points of view with the utmost of passion.
My point of view is that the problem stems from veteran “educators” who run school systems as if they were their own political regimes.
I am sitting at home because, I have been told that I am – too qualified; too happy; too excited; too gung hoo; too pro-education for Georgia – in one form or the other over the last seven years (I have a total of 15 years of experience in science education). With an advanced degree in science, high test scores (although I don’t strive for scores; I teach the whole child); I was told point blank that I am a threat to my administartors-even though I have no interest in administartion.
Responding to this post exposes me to ridicule, but something has to be said that is pro education. I have a passion to close the “achievement gap” by opening the “opportunity gap” (Flores, 2007).
What’s my point? Find me a school that is serious about education; willing to hire highly qualified teachers; like me, who prefer to work in “at risk” environments; to advance STEM education. I don’t care what is happening politically…after all my mind is wasting away waiting for educators to empower themselves intrinsically! I am one of those people who really doesn’t care about salary…I care about students! …Yes, we do exist!
Ed Johnson
March 18th, 2011
2:20 pm
“Public schoolteachers have failed miserably by producing the most incompetent, mean-spirited legislators in U.S. history.”
Broadside or not. It speaks a reality. It’s the reality of the elephant in the room few wish to see, and the reality has nothing to do with promoting self-esteem and not hurting feelings. Never have I seen a kid who suffers low self-esteem but I’ve seen many a kid who lacks esteem for others, usually in defense of their own well being as they perceive it being necessary.
Here’s a take on the elephant that resonates…
“Our fascination with rewards systems that attempt to get people to comply with the demands of work and short-term good behavior starts early in school. These systems operate without imparting an understanding of good solid principles for the betterment of our community, our place of employment, and ourselves.”
Read the rest, at http://www.qualitydigest.com/inside/quality-insider-article/when-croc-month-leads-employee-month.html
Consider that “losers” have the interesting habit of figuring out how to become “winners” by any means necessary. This includes “loser” kids in school that grow up to become “winner” politicians who then set out make “losers” of whomever, including public schoolteachers.
it's about time
March 18th, 2011
2:23 pm
Dr. Trotter is the CEO of a teacher’s organization (can’t be called a union because Georgia is a right-to-work state) but he votes Republican most of the time. WOW!!!!!
Equitas
March 18th, 2011
2:26 pm
@ Too highly qualified?
You stated your position well, but I disagree with your
statement concerning veteran educators. I don’t think
you will receive much ridicule,but do remember that
there is a difference between a testing gap and an
achievement gap.
HStchr
March 18th, 2011
2:39 pm
There’s a scene in the the movie The American President where the president directly attacks his accusers by saying, and I paraphrase, “you talk about the good ‘ol days when everything was easy and then you talk about how bad it is now. Then you get people worked up and scared and tell them who’s to blame for their fear…” Right now, education and anything remotely “public” is the designated chump and the source of all our world’s problems. Schools are the barometers of society, registering and showing the troubles within the society as a whole. Until we can cure the social ills that produce the kids we teach, we’ll NEVER completely fix education. Schools can influence and help with the cure, but we can’t do it all.
Georgia Coach
March 18th, 2011
3:14 pm
There you go again John, promoting your for profit group of mindless low performing teachers. I will ask again, what value do you produce for $40 a month?
Are you really one who is bitter about never being able to get an administrative position?
Picket and run your mouth. That is the sum total of your feeble existence.
Too highly qualified?
March 18th, 2011
4:15 pm
@Equitas: Perhaps I did not make my point clear. It has been my experience in the seven years that I have been in Ga that those who have been around the longest, have the greatest influence on the “losers posing as winners” (Ed Johnson, above). Moreover, they themselves are “losers posing as winners”. They ridicule and frustrate forward thinkers; they despise a rigourous curriculum; while misleading parents that they do. When all else fails, they pit parents against teachers so that they can appear innocent. I have worked in five counties in seven years-it has been an unscientifc experiment to be sure!
As for the testing gap…that was not even on my mind. Those of us who are true to our cause, do not have testing at the front of our mind…which is perhaps why we have great test scores…for what they are worth.
Here is the full citation for the article that I referred to above; there are so many others:
Flores, A. (2007). Examining disparities in mathematics education: Achievement gap or opportunity gap?. High School Journal, 91(1), 29-42.
Cobb History Teacher
March 18th, 2011
8:18 pm
” if we were doing our job, somewhere along the line we would have taught the politicians who are systematically destroying public education, the greatest of all American experiments, something about decency, respect, and developing the mortal fortitude to resist the siren song of the special interests who are well on their way to making the U. S. into a world of haves and have-nots, where public education will serve to provide low paid feeder stock for non-union companies and taxpayer-financed private schools will continue to cater to the elite, with the middle class existing only in history books.”
That’s because we spend so much time on math and reading that we spend little if anytime on history. Remember history is the “boring subject about all those dead people.” My be if we treated all subjects as equals we might see some change.
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
9:33 pm
There you go again, “Georgia Coach” (and dozens of other monikers). Ha! Nah, I couldn’t get an administrative job! Was an Assistant Principal at a large Georgia high school at 27 years old. Had I been willing to eat do do (even in capsule form), I’d probably been superintendent way before the age of 40. Had earned my first doctorate in Administration at UGA by age 30. But, then again, I realize that jealous souls like you have nothing more to do than throw stones behind your anonymity. By the way, when do you teach? Ha! Now climb back under your rock and try to breathe. Had a great time with several teachers from North DeKalb today. Just got back home. Don’t you wish you had my job? It’s the greatest job in the world!
Keep lobbing me your softballs, and I’ll keep knocking them out of the park!
Teaching is worse in FL
March 18th, 2011
10:40 pm
Duh….aren’t parents supposed to teach decency?
I support rolling back the clock to the good old days of pre-union America: low wages, dangerous working conditions, and 6 day work weeks. Give America back to the Vanderbilts and Rockerfellers (or in today’s case, the Kochs-look’em up!)
not shocked
March 18th, 2011
10:47 pm
Trotter (Johnny Rocket), you should start your own blog……
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:00 pm
@ not shocked: You know that I have my own blogs…several. But, I do love visiting Maureen’s blog too! Since we are both UGA grads, we can both agree on this…Go Dogs! The Dogs, 26 and the Huskies, 26 at half. It’s a dog fight for real! Johnny Rocket Trotter. I like the sound! Ha! P. S. I even posted on your DeKalb School Watch blog today also. See, I try to help you from time to time!
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:22 pm
Well…it’s still half time. So, why not spar with my blogosphere nemesis some more? Ha!
You made a snide remark about me being a union man and voting Republican the majority of the time. Yep. I am up front about things like this. I tell you the truth…without dissimulation. (Did I spell that last word correctly?) I even voted for Richard M. Nixon when I was 18 years old in 1972. Four years later, I met Jimmy Carter three times in the campaign, and I voted for him in 1976. I would have voted for Ronnie Reagan in 1980 but I was in graduate school at UGA and had not changed my voter registration and had forgotten to send in an absentee ballot. In 1984, I stood in a very, very long line to vote and would have voted for Reagan, but had to leave the line because I had made a commitment to some kids to show up at one of their important events (a Ninth Grade County Football Championship Game — a big deal in Clayton County at the time). In 1988, I voted for George Herbert Walker Bush, and I voted for him again in 1992, although I had met Bill Clinton in 1988, and he was extremely nice to me. In 1996, I voted for Bob Dole. Had met him several times, and I liked and respected him a lot. In 2000 and 2004, I voted for W. In 2008, I voted for Barack Hussein Obama. Now, there you have it. I don’t hide from the truth.
Let’s see if you will tell the truth. Ha! See…that’s the difference between you and me. I am not afraid of the truth or afraid stand up for what I believe. This, I believe, makes you bitter and jealous. You need to get over this because it an damage your health.
I am like an ole East Tennessee Republican Union Man. I don’t think that being a Union Man and voting Republican occasionally or even the majority of the time is mutually exclusive. Who appointed Earl Warren to the bench? A Republican. Who ordered forced busing? A Republican. Which President busted up the all too powerful trusts? A Republican. Which Republican effectively ended slavery? A Republican.
Second half is starting. Gotta go. Go Dogs!
Dr. John Trotter
March 18th, 2011
11:30 pm
Please forgive the typos above.
catlady
March 19th, 2011
12:44 pm
I would bet that these folks WERE taught. They just didn’t LEARN.
GA parent/teacher
March 19th, 2011
4:01 pm
The trouble is that our legislators do learn all kinds of things in school. They do learn to lie in school, especially about what goes on in school. Parents should believe about half of what some students tell their parents.
JAT
March 19th, 2011
8:59 pm
Yes, let’s please blame teachers for the unethical behavior of our legislators that have been voted in and are reaking havocock on our public ecducation way of life. If we can’t blame teachers for our shortcomings, who can we blame?
Most teachers I know want to work with and get to know students, want what’s best for the school and students..but, who wants to really hear what teachers have to say….certainly not the politicians…
Erik
March 19th, 2011
9:44 pm
For additional essey tips, please visit http://www.collegeessaytips.org
Great Teachers Needed
March 19th, 2011
10:25 pm
@Too Highly – apply to KIPP Metro Atlanta.
http://www.kippmetroatlanta.org/
Theresa
March 20th, 2011
7:24 pm
Randy appears to assume that our esteemed (NOT) elected representatives attended public schools. I suspect that is an incorrect premise.
Linda
March 21st, 2011
1:17 pm
John Trotter – I wish you would just go away. I stopped reading your posts ages ago. You just take up space on the blog. And seeing you post comment after comment after comment leads me to believe that you only care about your own ego-centric message and not teachers or their students.
Booklover
March 21st, 2011
2:34 pm
Some of the comments here prove that Turner is right, and not just about American politicians, but about the American people as a whole.
Democracy is not possible without an educated populace.