Florida...

[cornermouse]

Where your kindergarteners are taught by a high school student instead of an actual teacher probably because they simply don't want to pay a real teacher's wages. You have to wonder how long it will be before they start putting high school "teachers" at the front of your third and fourth graders classroooms.

Welcome to our projected Bush-whacked future.

[wakeme2008]

1. They have done this for years

As a contract programmer I have looked into being a "sub" between contracts and all you need is a high-school dep. for that. Why do they have problems finding "subs" well maybe it is the $8 per hour wage........


Oh btw, you may have to drive to any school in the county to "sub". Travel costs are on your nickle.....

[RC]

2. The best way to learn something is to teach it.

So there ya go. Florida is just getting their next generation of teachers some real world experience. :sarcasm: :dunce:

[tmorelli415]

3. Considering the quality of Red State public school education...

the kindergarteners are probably smarter than the subs at times - we used to try out outwit our subs when I was a kid but they were all mean old ladies. Imagine what fun we could have had with someone whose IQ was in the same range as our class pet guinea pig.

Red state America sounds better and better the more I learn about it!

[ClintonTyree]

4. I talked to many young parents while living in Florida....

and all they would talk about was moving to another state where there was a decent educational system. They're working minimum wage "service jobs" though, and their chances of ever escaping Florida are pretty slim.
Anyone who thinks Florida is "paradise" has no idea what Florida is really like. Get past the theme parks and beaches and the place is a cesspool of corruption, a bad educational system and bad government. I know, I fled Florida screaming a year ago and will never return. I'd rather endure a harsh, northern winter than live in a place where the social pecking order is determined by the accessories an individual has on their pick-up truck.
On edit; I find it VERY telling that the two states that the bush boys have controlled have two of the worst educational systems in the nation. Gee, do you think there's a connection there somewhere? :shrug:

[HockeyMom]

5. Motive is to end public education

I believe that. If you read between the lines of the freepers and all those Christian family organizations, that is what they want to do. All they keep doing is touting home schooling, home schooling, home schooling. I cannot for the life of me see how a parent who barely graduated high school can be a better teacher than somebody who has a Masters Degree in a particular subject. Doing this also assumes that one parent, most likely Mom, will have to stay home with the kids for 12 years. Apart from everything else, how many can even afford to do that in today's economy?

The standard here in NY for a Kindergarten teacher is the same as for a teacher in High School. For a new teacher that means a Bachelors Degree and provisional certification and then receiving a Masters Degree in a two year time period for permanent certification. Since 2002, even a teacher's assistant now needs at least an Associates Degree and certification.

My daughter is gong to a SUNY school. She is majoring in Childhood Education (Grades 1-6) with a minor in Social Studies. She is going to get her Masters in Special Education. It's a lot of work - a lot.

As I have said many times before, Florida schools routinely try to recruit for teachers here in newspaper ads and at the colleges. Judging from the comments posted, I can now see why they do.

[barbaraann]

6. Peer learning can sometimes be a good thing.

For example:

http://www.pnla.wsu.edu/whitepapers/peer.pdf