The Conservatives are promising to make teaching "brazenly elitist" by improving the quality of graduates entering the profession in England. Leader David Cameron said there would be no financial help with training for those who failed to get at least a second-class university degree. But those with the highest grades in maths and science could […]
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Tories promise to make teaching 'brazenly elitist'
Teacher fired for reporting child abuse, sues school
A former assistant principal at Goodlow School says he was fired for reporting suspected child abuse. Kenneth Taylor says that while he was assistant principal of the school, a coordinator/teacher in the Reading First program told him that she observed a special education teacher "kick the legs out from under a second grade student who […]
Honest teacher: "Raise your test scores - that's all they want."
by Alan Sitomer Yesterday I wrote about how first and foremost I must raise my standardized test scores. I also expressed how I was disheartened by such a cold, black and white reality. However, these are the cards I’ve been dealt. The federal government is literally strong-arming the states through a lording of the purse […]
The Number of Disheartened Teachers is on the Rise
An article featured in Education Week reports the findings of a study showing that 2 out of every 5 teachers are “disheartened” by their jobs. This was a nationwide study of teachers called “Teaching for a Living: How Teachers See the Profession Today.” The study of the Teacher Community is taking a closer look at […]
Leaving a Vulgar Comment Online Might Cost You Your Job
A backlash against anonymous commenters and trolls seems to be underway. Only last month, a court case was settled where anonymous commenters ended up having to pay big fines to the women who they defiled using vulgar, derogatory remarks on an internet forum. And previously, an anonymous blogger in the modeling industry was forced to […]
'Teachers waterboarded my autistic son,' claims U.S. mother
Two teacher’s aides are accused of holding a 14-year-old autistic boy’s head under running water, forcing him to eat his own vomit and making him sit in his soiled clothes for hours. Garrett Schilling, who cannot speak, attended Great Falls’ North Middle School, in Montana, from 2008 until April 2009. He allegedly suffered abuse at […]
Duncan Urges Overhaul of 'Mediocre' Teacher Colleges
U.S. colleges aren’t adequately preparing teachers for jobs in the nation’s elementary and secondary classrooms, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said. “By almost any standard, many, if not most of the nation’s 1,450 schools, colleges, and departments of education are doing a mediocre job of preparing teachers for the realities of the 21st century classroom,” Duncan […]
The Socratic Method: Teaching by Asking Instead of by Telling
The best way to explain something is to get the students to explain it to themselves... here's an example: The following is a transcript of a teaching experiment, using the Socratic method, with a regular third grade class in a suburban elementary school. The class was conducted on a Friday afternoon beginning at 1:30, late […]
Children denied school trips over teachers' fears of being sued
Local authorities paid out just £293.44 per year following problems on school trips, research finds Children are being denied school trips for fear teachers will be sued if something goes wrong, despite the fact that only 156 recorded legal actions have ended in compensation in the past decade, new research reveals. A culture of fear […]
The Anarchist Professor: Interview with Denis Rancourt
By Chris Guillebeau How does a tenured, full professor lose his job? First, he throws out the grading system by deciding that every student gets an A+.Next, he tells students to rebel by showing how they, collectively, have more power and authority than any of the administration. Then, he gets arrested and taken away in […]
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