John Baymore on mon 29 sep 97
------------------
......snip......
She still looks bewildered and asks again if there are written instructions
for the activity=21 And this woman is a teacher=21=21=21
.....clip........
No she is not.... she's a =22time occupier=22. She keeps kids carefully
=22occupied=22 for their assigned 50 minute period. That way she doesn't =
have
to deal with the task of actually causing excitement in her charges minds.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of them out there in elementary and
secondary education.
Ah yes...... the uninspired, uninformed, and unthinking leading the
unformed, impressionable, and revenous minds of our nations youth. It's
so inspiring ( wg ). Soon, this generation will go on to be the teachers
of the next, basing its' ideals on the experiences of youth.
We're on a downhill trend in education. The scary thing is that this type
of thing isn't happening only in the arts. But then again our culture
doesn't value a good teacher very much, so what should we expect to get?
Best,
...............john
PS: (Notice I leave out college in this list. Not that there aren't
plenty of them there too. But. by this time a student is mature enough to
vote with his/her feet when encountering such a person. They can go
directly to the administration and complain or change schools. Not so with
elementary and high school kids.)
John Baymore
River Bend Pottery
22 Riverbend Way
Wilton, NH 03086 USA
603-654-2752
JBaymore=40Compuserve.com
Anita M. Swan on fri 3 oct 97
As a secondary art teacher that puts her heart and soul into her
teaching as well as her art I resent your stereotyping and
generalizations about today's teachers. Believe me, I could be making
a lot more money working in any number of fields, working less hours and
coming home with a little energy left at the end of the day. But I, like
most of colleagues, chose to work long and hard to make sure that
students have a solid background in design principles and art skills and
know enough to make informed choices both as students today and
consumers tomorrow. In my spare time I deal with parents, lesson plans
and impossible requirements the school board comes up with - then I
write grant proposals, shop on weekends to get the best prices for
supplies to stretch a meager budget and promote my program and my
students work by hanging it anywhere that will have us. If I happen to
have an ounce of energy left I have to choose between working on my own
pieces or studying for those required continuing education classes.
Before you brand art teachers as "time occupiers" perhaps you should
spend some time in our shoes!
>
> No she is not.... she's a "time occupier". She keeps kids carefully
> "occupied" for their assigned 50 minute period. That way she doesn't have
> to deal with the task of actually causing excitement in her charges minds.
> Unfortunately, there are a lot of them out there in elementary and
> secondary education.
>
> Ah yes...... the uninspired, uninformed, and unthinking leading the
> unformed, impressionable, and revenous minds of our nations youth. It's
> so inspiring ( wg ). Soon, this generation will go on to be the teachers
> of the next, basing its' ideals on the experiences of youth.
>
> We're on a downhill trend in education. The scary thing is that this type
> of thing isn't happening only in the arts. But then again our culture
> doesn't value a good teacher very much, so what should we expect to get?
>
> Best,
>
> ..............john
>
> PS: (Notice I leave out college in this list. Not that there aren't
> plenty of them there too. But. by this time a student is mature enough to
> vote with his/her feet when encountering such a person. They can go
> directly to the administration and complain or change schools. Not so with
> elementary and high school kids.)
>
> John Baymore
> River Bend Pottery
> 22 Riverbend Way
> Wilton, NH 03086 USA
>
> 603-654-2752
> JBaymore@Compuserve.com
Quentin D. Maxwell on sat 4 oct 97
AMEN!!! Tell it like it is! I too, am a dedicated secondary art educator
and potter (who also does the yearbook). The stereotyping more than
bothered me too. However, I didn't think responding would do any good.
It's been my experience (here in the heart of the Missouri Ozarks), that
once the public has their opinion, very little will change it...:(
Quentin Maxwell
qmaxwell@mail.llion.org
On Fri, 3 Oct 1997, Anita M. Swan wrote:
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> As a secondary art teacher that puts her heart and soul into her
> teaching as well as her art I resent your stereotyping and
> generalizations about today's teachers. Believe me, I could be making
> a lot more money working in any number of fields, working less hours and
> coming home with a little energy left at the end of the day. But I, like
> most of colleagues, chose to work long and hard to make sure that
> students have a solid background in design principles and art skills and
> know enough to make informed choices both as students today and
> consumers tomorrow. In my spare time I deal with parents, lesson plans
> and impossible requirements the school board comes up with - then I
> write grant proposals, shop on weekends to get the best prices for
> supplies to stretch a meager budget and promote my program and my
> students work by hanging it anywhere that will have us. If I happen to
> have an ounce of energy left I have to choose between working on my own
> pieces or studying for those required continuing education classes.
> Before you brand art teachers as "time occupiers" perhaps you should
> spend some time in our shoes!
> >
> > No she is not.... she's a "time occupier". She keeps kids carefully
> > "occupied" for their assigned 50 minute period. That way she doesn't have
> > to deal with the task of actually causing excitement in her charges minds.
> > Unfortunately, there are a lot of them out there in elementary and
> > secondary education.
> >
> > Ah yes...... the uninspired, uninformed, and unthinking leading the
> > unformed, impressionable, and revenous minds of our nations youth. It's
> > so inspiring ( wg ). Soon, this generation will go on to be the teachers
> > of the next, basing its' ideals on the experiences of youth.
> >
> > We're on a downhill trend in education. The scary thing is that this type
> > of thing isn't happening only in the arts. But then again our culture
> > doesn't value a good teacher very much, so what should we expect to get?
> >
> > Best,
> >
> > ..............john
> >
> > PS: (Notice I leave out college in this list. Not that there aren't
> > plenty of them there too. But. by this time a student is mature enough to
> > vote with his/her feet when encountering such a person. They can go
> > directly to the administration and complain or change schools. Not so with
> > elementary and high school kids.)
> >
> > John Baymore
> > River Bend Pottery
> > 22 Riverbend Way
> > Wilton, NH 03086 USA
> >
> > 603-654-2752
> > JBaymore@Compuserve.com
>
Rick Sherman on sat 4 oct 97
----------------------------Original message--------------------------
From Anita:
As a secondary art teacher that puts her heart and soul into her
teaching as well as her art I resent your stereotyping and
generalizations about today's teachers. Believe me, I could be
making a lot more money working in any number of fields, working less
hours and coming home with a little energy left at the end of the day.
--------------------------response---------------------------------
Anita: I know some of these comments cut deep. However, remember this
primary. The writers are presenting more a picture of themselves than
the field of education. A second point, drawing conclusions based on
anecdote never tells the true story. It is called generalization from
specific instance, usually an n of 1. Some of the comments are worth
saving just so we know what some others think. Some may be helpful,
disregard the rest. Keep on doing what you are doing, there are a lot
of us working beside you who appreciate your dedication.
Rick Sherman
California Crafts Network
San Jose, CA
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