Why teacher bashing will fail...

[Stuart G]

Well..we all had some pretty good teachers as we were coming up. Ok, not all, but a few were very good, and helped us.

They deserve all the benefits, and we remember they were not selfish assholes as the right wing tries to portray.
These people were kind, generous, and caring. They helped us.. They represent the best in this country.

No matter what is on tv, and radio, we owe them, and deep down inside us, we know it..

[dkf]

1. It's not bashing to realize we aren't keeping up with the advances of the rest of the world

Sometimes it is about recognizing the reality of the situation. Frankly it is either bash the Teachers or bash the kids and we as a society generally don't like criticizing kids.

[Stuart G]

2. OR, perhaps it is really about bashing parents who have no time,

or ability to help their kids. The daily teacher is a great target.
I guess that I am hoping for the ultimate good in people to see truth.

[dkf]

7. We don't have any way to hold parents accountable.

Maybe if we dinged the child tax credits they would pay attention. I have no problem with that.

[Pisces]

15. My mother never helped me with homework or volunteered at the school. We still learned what was

expected. I didn't know any parents that were involved like parents are today. I am not sure what has gone wrong but when I was growing up there was little if any involvement from the parents yet
the students still succeeded in graduating.

I don't think the teachers have all gone bad, but I do think we have a different type of person entering the profession than when I was growing up.

[Orrex]

4. I've never seen such an obvious false dichotomy.

Frankly it is either bash the Teachers or bash the kids and we as a society generally don't like criticizing kids.

Really? Just those two choices?

I can think of many elements more worthy of bashing than either of those two. The two chief targets, for instance, are No Child Left Behind and publicly funded charter schools. I can think of many others.

Public education has been under constant attack for at least four decades; at this point, blaming the teachers for the shortcomings of our schools is like blaming Nader for Gore's "loss" in 2000.

[Chorophyll]

9. +1000. Thank you. Yes.

We can look back at the 1970s as the time of a huge right-wing backlash against the advances we made as a democracy beginning with FDR and continuing well into the 60s. The 1970s was when the Republicans began to actively court Christian fundamentalists, who up until then had been mostly apolitical. With all of these new Republicans on board (being used as human shields by the corporatists) they began successfully chipping away at public funding for education and the arts, and on anything perceived to give a "leg up" to minorities, women, and the poor.

So to see someone on DU parroting right wing talking points by blaming public school teachers for the nation's ills is beyond appalling.

[PATRICK]

12. Other things have also

been under attack for at least four decades. Anyone or anything with the slightest decency or social value using misdirection or perceived weaknesses in false applications for a clear RW goal. The Post office, as business rags constantly harped on was a poor career choice, outmoded, doomed, ought to be privatized and the "unskilled" workers needed to be kept to starvation wages as machines eliminated them.

Thanks to an illegal nationwide strike it was revealed: the union presented a different picture, the public supported them, and the government that was supposedly responsible for this service drew back its corrupt fangs. Workers flourished to something just below private sector standards, the business flourished, privatization was held down and horrible ideas for the degradation of the service were kept at bay. The constant constant harping in the papers and by private sector businesses about the "monopoly", the "horrible service" and all the jokes(the "going postal" theme has faded into the dull lexicon of old sayings) will continue until the looting wolves get to carve up the system. In smaller countries, always less productive, always charging more, privatization was at least possible. In ours such a disintegration of the sole binding national human network reaching every person and home will be chaos and inflationary failure in a cascade of service meltdown- even with the internet.

We continue to take our arguments and conversations from the corporate media. We all profess to know what that means, but like suckers lined up at the button controlled roulette wheel we place our "strategic" bets and in the end we are all losers. Every factoid, every opinion, every occasional gem popping up from the poisoned well relieves the tiring depressing critique of the well's more consistent garbage.

The air of American debate is poisonous. First questions like "who profits" are obvious but the only real attack seems reserved against our fellow victims.

My father(NALC Branch 210 president) was directly instrumental in the Brennan vs. postal monopoly case. An entrepreneurial couple decided to more cheaply deliver first class mail within Rochester, N.Y. Dad had some colorful discussions with postal carriers working for the Brennans on their off hours(an example of how poorly paid the general carrier was paid back then and how short-sghted even union members can be). Of course delivering the city, profitable mail might be cheaper if the national service didn't also have to deliver a letter at the same rate to the hinterlands, the mandate of universal service- and the restricted to break even budget. By law, which existed in a more pristine form back then, the poor Brennans lost their business and while gaining much victim press and support as crusaders, the press had no appetite to publicize the value of universal service with zero profit for very long.

Because of unions, because of the separation of the USPS from the federal pool, because of the law, because of private unions like the powerful UPS Teamsters who CAN strike and the nationwide popular support of local postal employees, I and many others have had a decent secure job. If someone's letter is mangled or delayed by management's automation failures(or astroturfing just makes it up) the papers will continue their fine tradition of trash-talking the "government" Postal service. We were lucky in the 70's when we could then(not now) bring the nation's finances to its knees, fought back. The slow attrition would have continued and the minimum wages crazy quilt of expensive and incompetent private companies would be the norm- making the break up of AT&T look like a citizen's dream in comparison.

What has been done to the teachers, divide, deride and conquer is plain abominable and indefensible evil on the behalf of a few avaricious monsters and the corrupt hacks who do their bidding. Accepting the memes of corporate goons is something even union members fall for. Without a nationwide catalyst their is little to attack this united corporate front swiftly and decisively.

Is it about education or the children? Is it about a better information service? No and both will suffer outrageously letting the usual suspects set the "debate". And bluntly, you will pay and pay and pay and get nothing in return. In fact, nothing would be a plus.

[Mr Generic Other]

5. or recognize that we compare apples and oranges when we compare scores on standardized tests.

we test all of our students and then compare them to countries that test only college bound students.
the comparisons are made to make the US schools seems as if they are failing. actually if you just used scores from middle income schools to the rest of the world we do better than most. we just have too many living in poverty.

[KharmaTrain]

3. Everyone Knows A Teacher...

It could be Jon Stewart's mom or a cousin or, in my case, two of my children. Either way a large number of us know how hard working educators who do a lot more than 9-2:30. They're dedicated to not only doing their jobs but to improve how they do it. Bashing teachers is like calling someone in your family a dirty name...not too many people take a likin' to that. But let the rushpublicans continue...it's stirred a pot that needs to continue brewing...growing stronger and more powerful over the next 18 months to restore some sanity to this country.

[reformist2]

6. +1

[snappyturtle]

8. I couldn't agree with you more. As a former teacher, I, of course, knew

many. We car pooled and teachers were always weighted down toting papers, etc. back and forth. I was lucky in that I didn't have children yet and could do my couple extra hours at night right after dinner. Many had to wait until their children were tucked in. I know I put in five weeks of work a month with the extra hours...and, I loved it! So I am now greatly disheartened hearing the bashing.

Maybe we should look at society at large. IMHO there are huge pockets of people who have little regard for education. Relegating it to something one is mandated by law to do no matter how poorly. The current situation has been a long time in the making and will probably take a long time to go away unless, of course, we privatize education and give the TFA teachers free reign.. :sarcasm: IMHO

[KharmaTrain]

10. This May Have Awakened Some...

I truly appreciate your post and your dedication and the satisfaction you've enjoyed that no paycheck can ever show. I'm proud of my kids who are both in continuing education programs and going for their Masters. For many this is a real sacrafice as not only are starting teaching jobs barely above the $30k level around here (and I'm sure lower in poorer areas) along with anywhere from 40-80k worth of debt for many of today's grads who have seen college tuitions soar over the past decade. You'd think no one in their right mind would consider teaching...and that doesn't take into account the privitization and NCLB assaults.

One affect of the bashing is with my son-in-law who grew up in a very conservative, rushpublican family but has shed a lot of that baggage and now considers himself an independent. He reluctantly voted for some Democrats in the psat but the Wisconsin situation has pushed him over the edge...he's pissed at the rushpublicans...and not only that, so is his mother who is a lifelong "cloth coat" rushpublican and now is strongly considering becoming an "independent". The desire to please their corporate masters may be the undoing of this short-lived rushpublican "mandate".

Cheers...

[snappyturtle]

11. I have that gut inkling you are correct. Hopefully, this time may become known as

the great awakening! Enough people are feeling the consequences or know someone who is that it seems to be going viral. What is hard to swallow is the current debate over collective bargaining with teachers is not at all about elevating our educational system but rather keeping a political base. However, in keeping the base my hope for the educational system may be realized as well!

[phantom power]

13. and yet paying teachers shit and spending shit on education remains pretty popular

:shrug:

[Starry Messenger]

14. It won't stop until people stand up for teachers.

As long as stuff like this keeps getting posted at a liberal website http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x556066 I have little faith that this will happen soon. More people need to stand up, and publicly.

[Stuart G]

16. Teacher bashing is not new,,,fighting back as teachers are now

doing is. This fight is a long one, and can be won, but it will not be easy.
What else is new???