Elizabeth Warren Promises To Appoint A Public School Teacher As Education Secretary

[left-of-center2012]

Speaking before a crowd of teachers on Monday, Warren described her past as an educator and promised to make a teacher the secretary of education.

“I will name a secretary of education who has been a public school teacher,” Elizabeth Warren said to applause in Philadelphia.

“I want someone who has seen tattered textbooks. Or tried to manage when there’s too many kids in a classroom. But I also want someone who has actually been there and taught a child to read,” said Warren to applause.

Warren also used the town hall to burnish her own public school credentials as a former special needs teacher.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/elizabeth-warren-education-secretary_n_5cd9e4c7e4b0615b0817b660

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

1. Excellent idea... another example why Warren is a rockstar!!

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[wasupaloopa]

2. She sounds like she needs to make headlines everyday.

She is not the only one who could do that.

My fear is she will run out of steam before the voting.

[rusty quoin]

3. I don't know. You cannot predict these things, at least I have given up on it.

I did get some right in the past, such as McCain being the guy to watch out for way back then.

But I don’t really know a damn thing now rather than do what you think is right, and I think she has a chance, because she is real. That’s what I’ve got.

[BlueMTexpat]

9. IMO, your comment is

somewhat unworthy.

Aren't ALL the candidates trying to make headlines? I don't begrudge ANY of them for that.

But Elizabeth actually taught in at least one public school, albeit for a short while, in addition to her experience as a law professor, and her later experiences in other areas. https://www.biography.com/political-figure/elizabeth-warren

From the link:

Elizabeth and her husband moved to New Jersey, where Warren worked in public schools, helping children with disabilities. During this time, Warren gave birth to two children, daughter Amelia and son Alex. The day her first child turned 2, she headed to graduate school to study law at Rutgers University. She earned her J.D. in 1976, and practiced law from her home, becoming known for her scholarly expertise in bankruptcy law.

Are there others among our excellent candidates who have taught in public schools?

[Honeycombe8]

4. Good idea.If she/he also has big managerial or executive experience.

Running a massive federal department is a far cry from teaching school.

[BlueMTexpat]

7. As a former teacher who went

on to receive an MBA, I maintain that ANY successful teacher ALREADY demonstrates management experience.

In fact, I found that my MBA management courses were very similar to ed psych and similar education courses. I only took enough education courses that would allow me to teach/get my teaching license, already having a master's degree in the subject that I taught. I also firmly believe that any teacher at the secondary level at least should have a master's degree in their teaching subject.

I am now retired, after various careers spanning 51+ years. But I was promoted in post-education experience incarnations BECAUSE of my management skills, including budgeting and ability to elicit excellent performance from my staff, most of whom came from different cultures and backgrounds. I have always told both my employers and my employees that it was my classroom skills that served me the best in any project where I was in charge.

But yes, I take your point about management skills for a massive federal department.

What I would argue against is someone with administrative skills who has NO solidly demonstrated classroom management skills. I have a feeling that this is what Elizabeth meant. After all, good classroom teachers at any level also know how to delegate responsibilities effectively.

[Honeycombe8]

10. It's very different managing 35 kids and a school board vs. a huge conglomerate...

of thousands of peoples, with a lot of financial and budget responsibility, staff handling, rules & regs to abide by (or change). And to make those judgment calls and management calls and budget calls every day.

An entirely different set of skills.

That's why being President is often filled by others with executive experience, like governors, rather than congressional politicians. Being an executive is not a group thing. It's an executive thing. It's not the details. It's the broad, sweeping plans, the big picture, than an executive is responsible for...while having key people in place to handle details and detailed plans.

That's in fact what I notice about Warren. She is excellent with detailed plans. She is used to a group working environment, rather than an executive position. Executives use different skills from the detailed managers and planners. Executives hire the people to do the details.

I like her, though.

[BlueMTexpat]

11. I'm not sure what you are

arguing about here. Because I have done BOTH and I can personally and honestly say that the skills I learned as a teacher helped me even more than my MBA courses did! Like both Kamala and Elizabeth (and many other candidates), I also have a law degree.

Before my retirement, I ended up in very interesting careers at fairly high executive levels in international systems/organizations.

Btw, as a teacher I never had less than 140+ students on a daily basis in my secondary classes, which were electives! Usually it was at 30-35 per class, which is one reasons why I support policies that reduce classroom sizes. I was completely exhausted at the end of each week and still had papers to grade over the weekend - as well as raising two sons, in large part as a single parent. When I left teaching, I never had quite the same daily grinding stress ... and earned one heckuva LOT more $$$$.

And yes, "executives" hire people for the details. The point is to choose the best people to handle those details. I learned about how to select such people, as well as to motivate and inspire them, from my own classroom experiences. These skills carried over seamlessly and they are not to be disregarded or belittled.

I am not just talking the talk. I have actually walked the walk.

[YOHABLO]

5. You can only make headlines if the media is covering you. Of course we want a school teacher.

[brooklynite]

6. Lovely symbolism, but...

Part of the job is to develop policies, and part is to administer them. A teacher is not necessarily accomplished at the latter.

[BlueMTexpat]

8. Please see my

response above.

IMO, this is NOT just "symbolism."