Are teachers in bad public schools set up to fail? What would you do?

[doublejs07]

This is a long read, but it gives an indepth look at the inner workings of Coolidge HS (Washington DC) from the students, teachers, and classroom environment.The students are being uncooperative, the school is lacking things like A/C (which doesn't help matters at all), and the teachers are being put inclassrooms where TEACHING is increasingly difficult. It said 11-12 teachers are absent every week from teaching at Coolidge. It's a great read, and I hopeyou all at least check out the photo gallery. There are some excellent pictures from a teacher who has a fat lip and stitches above his eye (due to analtercation with a student), to a kid smoking a joint in the stairwell of the school, to a teacher breaking up an altercation between two students. I'velinked up the photo gallery, and some insight from two of the teachers. If you don't read the whole article, read what these two teachers said....

Lessonsin Reality (whole article)

Coolidge PhotoGallery

Here's part of the article focusing on the incident where the teacher got beat up (his picture is in the gallery/link above)

Willis passes out markers, and six boys stand at the board. They argue about which problem is the hardest. The door is closed, but a steady stream of students in the hall wander past and peer through the window.
Later that week, two girls dart into class to borrow an MP3 player. Willis blocks one. She falls and gets up cursing. "In all my 28 years, I've never had to stand there and listen to some of the things she said," and from a 14-year-old child no less, Willis says. " 'Who the (expletive) do you think you are? I'll slap your%$+@.' I said, 'Young lady, go to class. If you have a complaint, you can go to the office.' She said, 'You can't tell me what the (expletive) to do.' "

Willis signaled for a nearby security officer. "I'm like, 'Are you not going take them to the office and get them suspended immediately? Will you please take them to the office and get them away from my class.' " After a few minutes of profanity, the girls leave, threatening to bring someone back to deal with him.

Later they return and throw a bottle of tropical punch on him.

By the next week, Willis is oozing frustration. It's one distraction after another. A student in the hall pulls at the side door. Someone else drums sticks on it. He is angry at the traffic in the halls. "I've never been part of something so disorganized," he rails.

In class, Willis reviews for a test but has to stop frequently to reprimand students. "I'm not asking you -- I'm telling you -- to move to that blue chair right now," he tells one.

They argue, and Willis orders the boy to the office.

Later, the boy returns. "Ain't nobody in the main office," he says. Willis makes him leave again, and again the student walks out, cursing.

Willis waves another student away from the door.

Suddenly, someone yanks the door open, and there's a loud pop. The kids jump up yelling and scramble to the back. The smell of rotten eggs fills the classroom.

Willis opens a window to air out the room from the stink bomb. Calm down, he orders his students. The day before, Cox's history class was hit.

Two boys appear outside the door. One has been kicked out of Cox's class for being disruptive. The other is a student of Willis's. They peer through the window and laugh. They bang on the door. Willis shoves the metal door open, and it hits his student. A knot swells on the student's forehead, and blood runs down past his eye.

A deep sense of inevitability descends on the afternoon.

"Why you hit me? Why you hit me?" the boy screams. "Look what the (expletive) you did to my head." The bell rings. Students file out. The boy continues yelling and cursing. He is stomping up and down. A crowd gathers, egging him on. You can't let him do that (expletive)! Steal him, so n ! kids yell.

The two boys push into Willis's class. Other students follow. The one who is bleeding turns over desks. He knocks over a computer. He tears apart the bulletin board that told them to respect themselves and their school.

All around, kids shout for vengeance.

Willis rushes out and down the stairs. The two boys follow him. The crowd follows them, 20 kids or more, running and jumping down the steps. Everyone is hollering. The last of the crowd gets to the first floor and rounds the corner.

Suddenly, kids are running back against the crowd. As he flees, one boy yells: "He put that *****

to sleep!" His voice echoes. Bodies blur in a rush. Seconds later, the hallways clear, the yelling grows distant and a surreal scene comes into focus.

On the floor, a few yards from the main office, Fredrick Willis lay crumpled. He is not moving.

Seemingly far off, someone starts to yell. "Get the (expletive) to class."

Comments from another teacher, and "highlights" of her classroom management....

Kathiresan , 22, had finished at the University of Georgia and was about to apply to medical school when she decided to take a few years to teach. "I didn't really know what I was getting myself into when I chose D.C.," she says.

Of the 27 students in one class, 17 had D's or F's mid-semester.

Last month in second period, Kathiresan yells at a student to hand over his phone. A girl asks loudly "somebody got some tape?" She wants to tape a mock ransom note to her own back. Kathiresan raises her hand and waits for students to quiet down.

They don't.

"You ain't tell me if you got tape or not," the girl yells out.

"Just a minute," says Kathiresan. "Let me control my class."

She counts down five, four, three, two, one. The chatter continues.

She counts down again. The chatter continues

She counts down again. The chatter continues.

Kathiresan tries to engage the class around the work. She has two students draw a bicycle on the board. "What would happen if you didn't have brakes?"

"He would go so fast he'd hit an old lady," one girl laughs. The class bursts into mini-eruptions.

Kathiresan counts down from five. She counts down again. She counts down again.

"What would happen if I take the wheels off the bike?" she asks.

"He would get [expletive] by another car," a girl calls out.

"The only people allowed to talk are those who raise their hands," Kathiresan says. "Take out paper for a quiz," she threatens. The class groans.

"Then you better let me review," says Kathiresan. The class continues talking. That's it. Kathiresan makes them take the quiz, five differences between plants and animals. No talking, she tells her class repeatedly.

"What's the date?" one girl yells out.

"You have a zero," the teacher tells her.

"NO!" the girl shrieks.

Other kids make fart sounds.

"When you are done with your two Ven diagrams, put your head on the table so I know you're done," Kathiresan says.

"She ain't even give us the review," complains one boy. "I don't know nothing. All I got is my name. That's why I hate school."

Kathiresan collects the papers. "Now, what I would like to do is throw these away and start over tomorrow," she says.

She'll try to review again if the class can accomplish 10 seconds of silence. She gets to eight and someone coughs. She gets to seven and they laugh. She counts to five and kids start to argue. A half-dozen tries but the class refuses to be silent. She reviews what she can.

 

[cabron james 23]

some school districts are due to the lack of resources. The No Child Left Behind act is not effective.

 

[charles montgomery]

 

[droopy1006]

Depressing.

 

[ceelo4]

Why care about those who don't find education as a privlege? These children are obviously not the future successors so let them do what they want. Theywill regret it in their later years.

 

[boredone1]

She counts down five, four, three, two, one. The chatter continues.
No *+%%.

That don't work anywhere. Let alone D.C.

 

[nolandw]

got dammit doublejs. always posting the washington post articles i read.

 

[apwrxmd]

Those are the typical kind of kids I see at the malls and movies around here anyway...I'm not very surprised.

It's sad that there are probably alot of kids in that school that actually want to learn but the stupid actions of the bad ones wont let thathappen.

 

[skip2mylou23]

They talk success. "How many of you want to be successful? Willis asks. Two of the 12 raise their hands. What's your definition of success? Willis asks. Money, they say.

"You gotta have bacon," says one.

"When you can drop money like bam, bam, bam , that's success." They talk up rappers P. Diddy and 50 Cent.

 

[doublejs07]

got dammit doublejs. always posting the washington post articles i read.

and you know thisssss


The front page...the FRONT PAGE of the actual WP today was that dude Willis with his fat lip and swollen eye...that is what caught my attention. When I readwhat happened I

, but then I read that he went back to work 2 days later, and I just didn't know what to think. I was like "what if I was in hisshoes?" Would I just swallow my pride and not show anyone I was a punk and STILL report back to work? Or, would I have sent in my resignation as soon as Iwas discharged from the hospital? I want to give this guys props for going back to work, but it seems like a lose/lose situation, that no matter what you doyour efforts WILL not be respected or admired...

 

[bbanks707]

Maybe the students shouldn't act like low life's? Or parents need to "step up their parenting game"

 

[grittyman20]

[h3][/h3]

Are teachers in bad public schools set up to fail? What would you do?
Good post DoubleJs...
I haven't had time to read through the entire article yet, but I recently begin working at a high school to begin my coaching career and know all to wellabout the public education system.

I wouldn't say that teachers are set up to fail because many know how difficult the job is before they step in a classroom.
At times it can be overwhelming, but the thing is many don't get the support that they need from administration....and it's not all their fault either.

My school has a major problem with students ditching classes.
We have over 2500+ students and I think there is like 6 security guards....see the problem there?
Staff members have asked the district repeatedly to hire more security but the district says there is no money.
Now I read in the news that the Governator is going to cut back on educational funds even more....so I'm wondering will we even have 6 guards next year

I really don't what can be done. Seems like it's just getting worse...the entire public school system needs to be reevaluated.

Personally I think they should create more alternative/trade schools to weed out those that DO NOT WANT to be there.

 

[sir hendrix]

got dammit doublejs. always posting the washington post articles i read.
Haha, I feel you on that one. Good read.

 

[nolandw]

The front page...the FRONT PAGE of the actual WP today was that dude Willis with his fat lip and swollen eye...that is what caught my attention. When I read what happened I

, but then I read that he went back to work 2 days later, and I just didn't know what to think. I was like "what if I was in his shoes?" Would I just swallow my pride and not show anyone I was a punk and STILL report back to work? Or, would I have sent in my resignation as soon as I was discharged from the hospital? I want to give this guys props for going back to work, but it seems like a lose/lose situation, that no matter what you do your efforts WILL not be respected or admired...
Seriously. It's a tough job, and the DC school system is just in terrible shambles. It takes a lot to be a teacher, and it's never alwaysgonna end up like the movies.

 

[x Buddha Bless x]

I miss those good times in the public school system during junior high. However, all those teachers need to watch n embody Joe Clark.

 

[i nasmatic i]

reading stories like this makes me

since i plan on being a teacher.

but then again, i'm aiming to teach elementary school.

 

[x Buddha Bless x]

Originally Posted by I NaSmatic I

reading stories like this makes me

since i plan on being a teacher.

but then again, i'm aiming to teach elementary school.

Pssssh those were my training grounds for the bad student I eventually became when it comes to being a disturbance. What makes that such a good way to gothru school is if your grades are always good. Its lose lose for the teachers, you pass everybody else probably fails

Man I wish I was a kid again(I didnt even know what I was doin then)

 

[datznasty]

Me too. I always had this dream of teaching in a bad school or bad neighborhood, and reaching the kids in a way no other teacher ever could or tried to;convincing them someone does care and that they really can do whatever they put their mind to and all these fantasy romantic type ideas (ala Dangerous Minds,Freedom Writers, or many similar movies), but then reality hit when I talked to some teachers from other places around the country and they tell me aboutstories like this and how the school board won't even give them books, up to date technology, or any of the necessities needed to foster a productivelearning environment. When I was in high school I was a straight a-1b type student, mildly disruptive in some of my classes but never anything like kids arenow. It only really takes 3 kids in a class of 30 to make it impossible for anybody to get any learning/teaching done. Back in my day, it was like yell out awisecrack, people laugh, teacher says something to you, only 15 seconds are lost and you're back on task.

I mean if I was convinced they would pay attention, I would just buy books or run copies my damn self just for the class and have them stay in the desk orsomething. I just can't imagine how and what you are teaching without any reading materials. I guess you could do the old powerpoint presentations and havethem be expected to take notes.

 

[doublejs07]

I always had this dream of teaching in a bad school or bad neighborhood, and reaching the kids in a way no other teacher ever could or tried to; convincing them someone does care and that they really can do whatever they put their mind to and all these fantasy romantic type ideas (ala Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, or many similar movies), but then reality hit when I talked to some teachers from other places around the country and they tell me about stories like this and how the school board won't even give them books, up to date technology, or any of the necessities needed to foster a productive learning environment. When I was in high school I was a straight a-1b type student, mildly disruptive in some of my classes but never anything like kids are now. It only really takes 3 kids in a class of 30 to make it impossible for anybody to get any learning/teaching done.


co-sign....those "hollywood" types of stories are a dime a dozen...of course there are success stories, but it's not going to happen overnight.With such a high turnover rate with the teachers in many of these urban schools, things are becoming increasingly difficult as far as a teacher building apositive reputation or rapport with their students. These teachers are wet behind the ears AND HAVE NO CLUE WHAT THEY ARE GETTING THEMSELVES INTO! Just look atthis quote again:

"I didn't really know what I was getting myself into when I chose D.C.,"


how alarming is that? I am sure she was fed all sorts of lines as to how she can make a change or difference, but in acutality had no idea how hard of a taskher job actually was. These kids are like wolves, and if the teacher isn't prepared to face these challenges, they are looked at but nothing as raw meat. Ireally hope things can improve, but it seems like all these teachers (at coolidge) are nothing but babysitters in keeping these kids off of the street duringthe day....

 

[skip2mylou23]

I'll be the first to say that it starts in the home. The kids they mentioned in the article don't seem very well-mannered. However, upon furtherreview, I realized that the parents of these bad kids were probably pregnant teens so how well can you be raised by a 16-year-old?

 

[drjordanfreak88]

This was definitely a good read, made me think of my high school days. The main thing that the public school system lacks is community. It's imperativethat teachers and parents get together regularly to talk about the student/child. The teacher and parent should communicate regularly and work together towardsprogress of the child. And I'm not saying necessarily for their academic progress, I'm also saying for their mental development. These are still youngpeople we're talking about in a frighteningly influential setting. The elders, being the parents and teachers, need to work together to help the studentflourish. I think teachers could be much more effective but my idea of community with the parent, teacher and student will most likely never become widespread.I'm sure there is some kind of educational community in "better" areas, but this needs to be implemented in ALL areas, regardless of race orincome.

This article also makes you ask questions. I, for one, thought about why these students were so out of line. I'm not sayin they gotta be quiet lilbookworms at all times, but some of the things said in the article just weren't right. The article makes you think about the situation at home in the D.C.area. Honestly, theres not much I can say. I was born in D.C. but only lived there for a few years. Hopefully other D.C. heads can add to the topic. The way Isee it tho, there are some major changes needed.

To answer the question from the headline, I don't only think teachers are set up to fail. I think every black child in D.C. is set up to fail. I take thatback, I think every black child is set up to fail, or at least endure some unfavorable situation or influence. I could go on...

 

[grittyman20]

I really hope things can improve, but it seems like all these teachers (at coolidge) are nothing but babysitters in keeping these kids off of the street during the day....
You don't really want to be that way....but the way that the system is set up is that the less office referrals you hand out, the betterteacher you are.

I constantly get told "keep up the good work" by people who've never actually seen me in the classroom but I'm sure they know that I hardlyhave any behavioral issues in my classroom.

 

[doublejs07]

You don't really want to be that way....but the way that the system is set up is that the less office referrals you hand out, the better teacher you are.

u ain't lying....these kids leaving school even more unprepared for the real world than what they were when they entered.....

The teacher and parent should communicate regularly and work together towards progress of the child.


I forgot who had the thread (it might have been ClassyFreshman), but he was saying that for his son's back to school night, only 6 parents out of the 20+kids that were in the class showed up. If the parents don't care or make an effort, it's really hard to blame some of these kids.

A lot of what I read in the article sounded like what I saw on The Wire

 

[drjordanfreak88]

aiyo does anybody know anyone who went/goes to a Montessori school? whenever I have kids, they most likely gonna be goin to one of those.

 

[skip2mylou23]

^ You're worried about what school your unborn kids will be attending?