Read [this article] from GothamSchools.org detailing how according to King Bloomberg, NYC may have 8,500 LESS teachers next year due to cuts made by Government Patterson.
Really?
[Chester Kent]
How Typical [Substitute Assignment]
“Those who can laugh without cause have either found the true meaning of happiness or have gone stark raving”
-Norman PaperNick
Art Teacher. South Bronx. 25 Minute Commute Time. PS/IS/MS. (K-Gr.*)
Purely basing my opinion on just the facade of the building, I had no idea what to expect. My assignment location was in an area of the South Bronx that I had never been into. The few kids walking towards school seemed merry and weren’t shooting each other. The people inside the bodega were nice. Even the weather was kind of nice for a January morning and as anyone would expect, any of the teachers that I saw walking in the direction of the 2 or 3 schools all clustered in a span of a black, well…they all shared the look in their eyes…Melancholy and lack of caffeine…the last flames of a 3 day weekend.
The scenery inside of the school was that of the typical elementary school. Of course, there was the customary line dividing the hallway in half. Of course, said hallway was painted with the cold, sky blue paint against lime green frames. And of course,there was the familiar sight of the police officers assigned to the building - there to greet everyone with a lack of interest in the actual visitor entering the building accompanied by ghettoness and weave (which would not be kosher policing the streets). Skipping forward past the search for the Main Office (which was on the third floor) I received my schedule and the first of my coverage assignments (which were surprisingly very close the ones I had prepared myself) and headed to my first assignment. Kindergarten. The classroom, and lead teacher were quite bright, and bubbly. After introductions, we went to go and pick the children up from the cafeteria to begin the day. The “line leaders” made all the stops, and it was kind of cute watching the little people hold hands in the one straight shot queue back to the classroom. After normal housekeeping things, Ms Teacher put out the leveled readers for the different kids, and then the kids quite calmly swapped their books out of their backpacks for new books for the week. Honestly, it was a sight to behold as this was done without incident.
Back when I was in Kindergarten, the reading campaign launched by the government was ‘Read to Me’; a sort of way to encourage parents and children to spend quality time together….And when that nice but flawed idea unavoidably failed due to its overwhelming triteness (Single parents? Economic recession? Reganomics? Creation of the term “latch-key child?”) and obvious issues (i.e. suppose a students parents couldn’t read..thus who reads to who?) ‘Read to Me’ exists as a program these days still, however, it is now tailored far more for parents to read to their INFANTS, thus avoiding some of the deficiencies of its previous incarnation.
Anyway, it was around 2nd grade, when my teachers/literacy instructors resorted to the “Book-It” program (a collaboration with Pizza Hut) which basically bribed students to read by dangling a personal pan pizza once they received credit for reading a book. In my opinion, it theoretically worked well for my own independant reading studies - I had been exposed to tons of words at once, and felt like I was actively in charge of my reading. Other students and I even challenged each other with reading but I can’t help but imagine that I (and other students) probably learned a lot of words (pronunciation and/or definitions) wrong.
The Emblem of "Book It"
No offense meant to Ms. Teacher at all (or for she whom I was filling in for) but I think that Literacy time probably needs to be broken into large groups, rather than the students reading seperately. As I let the kids do the ELA/Literacy point-each-finger-slowly-at-the-word-while-you-read thing, I noticed that a lot of the students kept getting stuck at words, which are repeated several times. It’s frustrating not knowing the way that the class is fully structured on a daily basis. Yet even without specific knowledge of ongoing processes and also being aware that I have such a small sampling of what that group has learned….well, it bothers me that several kids were stuck on the words “home” and “name.” Consider the fact that there was a word wall which included far more difficult words than the ones the kids were discovering independently. On a positive note though, the kids didn’t stop with frustration, and even repeated the words after I corrected them- often times they would attempt to re-read the entire (two sentence) page correctly.
However, this was a great pace-setter for the day. The children worked hard. The teacher smiled. Learning was had. Respect, rules, and energy was highly present. Despite my inner concerns about the reading skills, and levels of the class in whole, Ms. Teacher seemed quite involved in helping them improve. She most certainly will be a teacher that they remember when they grow up. And with the end of this period, I went forward to teaching 7th graders a fun art lesson.
Or so I thought…….(To Be Continued)
[CHESTER KENT]
[Note: This posting is probably the most serious of the experience at this school. The next few postings will include what I can only describe as something that I will tag as under the "These Evil Thoughts" catergories.]
Skydiving
We all have Kodak
moments/ but when the true
Polaroid moments are
happening (mostly when
we are alone)-
The only thing left
to do is paint or
draw the story with
words.
[But that's another tale]
This is about that moment
when we are not dependent
of someone else/ (how intimate
we can be with someone else)
even
if we feel them on our
back.
Falling rapidly (fearful of
missing the drop zone and
terminal velocity.)
[This is how I fall.]
There would be screaming
but who’s here to
hear
(and times before I
have screamed at the
top of my lungs about
my fears, arms
flailing, reaching
for the cord,
or the living being
attached to me.)
These are the moments when
it doesn’t matter if
I roll my eyes or if I can
count on previous feats of
willpower. Hope. Compassion.
The ability to overpower
fear and rage.
No matter what happens,
I have to throwaway
the myth of flying,
and pull-out of this.
(God forbid that I
cut-away at this point,
or depend on someone
else to do it
for me.)
Nothing or anyone can capture
the moment
or measure how you feel (inside)
when-
you realize “I’m
falling and I haven’t
hit the ground yet.”
H.N. Y. - A little more conversation -
“Remember it’s a hard world out there. Take care of yourself, and each other”
Jerry Springer.
Jerry Springer ended every single episode of “The Jerry Springer” show with the above words, and despite that is show mainly existed to exploit people for such problems, I still think there are no finer words for me to think of right now. New Years has always been a hard holiday for me personally and that’s not even considering the overall lack of logic that is made by combining a calender and sappy, and often forced human sentiment.
Actually, that last line is the true basis of why it’s hard for me to understand why New Year’s means more than St. Patrick’s Day, and not everyone celebrates it. Sure it gives people a goal post, and some sort of time marker, but is that time marker really any different than not getting the laundry done by Saturday at any given time. In between the new year and the old, life does happen and unfortunately other than aging (which is relative, as well) there are some things that we can not possibly change, on and off our roads.
Mostly, I sit at home and mourn the deceased year, probably in the way that some people (Jews/Muslims) might have issues with an the orbitrary marker when that happens December 25th and shuts down 2/3 the world because of something that their faiths says doesn’t happen.
So we, live and let live. Not joining in the revery and having a fake grin/smile when people are actually authethentic about is…..wrong.
To Be Continued tomorrow Am. (I’m tired.)
Chester Kent
Will the real newstories stand up, and tell the NY Post to shut the eff up…
First - Some things that I like about the NY Post.
You can buy it for like a quarter (or I think inflation has driven it to 50 cents.) They provide free copies to the kids at school. They have 2 different Sudoku’s, one for those just learning, and one for those who have run out of things to do but try to play logic games with themselves. The NY Daily Police Blotter is kind of cool. It also has pretty pictures.
Next - Some things I dislike about the NY Post.
It lacks intergrity, or class. I mean, it basically is the Daily Bugle from Spiderman comics. Everything seems to be about sensational journalism. The staff is actually employed. It is poorly written. It dislikes teachers, and especially the teacher’s union. They provide free copies to the kids.
When I [read this article from the NY Post online this morning,] I was both shocked and awed. No, it’s not the school scandal, which by the way to me isn’t a serious issue. I mean, when you here that there were two females in a classroom, naked and neither of them was a child being abused or mislead; that the two women were in fact adults, it’s not that big of a deal. Was it a stupid move for these women to trysts at school? Yes. Should they be tarred in feathered by random strangers? Maybe, I don’t know either of them personally. Would this have been an issue if it were male-female? Not really, but probably debatable later. Anyway, my issues came from the fact that the reporter of this article decided that the best way to characterizes these two women would be to let their STUDENT’S do it. For instance,
“[Ms. Mauro] was pretty fun,” said junior Eddie Ramirez, 18.
“She dressed like a teenage girl - she’d wear low-cut tops, shorts, three-quarter length jeans. She was kinda sexy.
“You could see that she was the kind of person who would flirt.”
So….who is Eddie Ramirez to be a character witness. Instantly, I now have the idea that Ms. Mauro was a slut, and deserves whatever job and std that she gets. Eh. Lying. Joking. I mean, should I really be listening to the opinions of an 18 year old junior? Besides how does he know so much about women’s clothing? Instead of obtaining the actual documents pertaining to this case, the reporter elects to write an article that basically quotes teenagers, and Facebook, while destroying these ladies professional careers. To me that feels like watching an episode of Grey’s Anatomy to ascertain what it’s like to be a doctor, instead of taking the time and care to furter fostering or refining y0ur ideas.
[Chester Kent.]
I wish “Tenure” applied to life realistically - 11-30-09
Sorry that I have been away for so long. Yes, I’m aware that I’m going to be playing catch-up hardcore to even try to get things up to date. But I will admit King Bloomberg being coronated again for another 4 years is fucking annoying. Just in concept. From there it umbrellas out in a shit storm of fallacies, bureaucracy, and the triumph of the almighty dollar. Except tons of folks aren’t making that dollar, and I’m including myself in that club. Or rather the fraternity of Broke FI Broke and their chant “We broke, we broke, broke fi broke….WE AIN’T GOT IT!!!”(Kudos to Kanye West for doing something inane yet so pointed.)
Meanwhile back at the ranch, I thought of a few things to keep this blog sparked. There’s enough turmoil in the education field that I don’t have to worry about finding something to write about in a commentary kind of way. For instance, teacher’s evaluations, tenure, NYC ATR pool, the power of Joel Klein or his possible replacement, class size and again “tenure.” Which the NY TIMES wrote a pretty decent article about which you can [read here]. This particular journalist recognizes the furor that other papers such as the NY POST or Daily News haven’t caught onto. Thinking that I may actually do a few comparisons of how certain events are skewered by an ineffective, and overly opinionated sense of sensationalism.
I’m still trying to think of a way to include my own personal poetry or writing, along side the lesson plans and ideas I plan on posting. In many other ways, I think that they may actually get their own space on Blogspot or whatever is functioning as the NU-GEOCITIES of the day such that they have their own room to not be connected insofar as directly with my renewed aim and purpose However, I want to get it out there for myself, because with so much time on my hands, I’m starting to get antsy about using this time in a positive sort of way.
When I sub though, I will be completely and utterly posting all the rich, and gritty details in as close to a real time format. So, yeah. Tentatively, back on regular basis.
Direct Links (for reposts)
NYTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/26/education/26teachers.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&ref=todayspaper&adxnnlx=1259244253-Tp65HsZ9M+Jvq9m/Lu0M0Q
All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another. ~Anatole France
Due to the current economic situation (mine and the nation’s), I have had to reevaluate the current direction of my life. It seems that the education field does not seem to be a viable career path until some time in the next five years when the “baby boomers” all retire. Note that this has not been a thorough and bold faced lie for almost a decade. Somewhere, someone has spread the idea that teaching equals longevity and career security. How many times have you heard someone say “Well, don’t they always need teachers?” That question is sheer propaganda in such that if there is a so-called “need” for teachers, the fiscal amount budgeted and even granted to school systems has not matched said “need.” Imagine a car dealer who needs the current model of a vehicle, needs a more employees to work his lot, mind you, not just employees, but knowledgable ones who can sell and keep with the times and all the new innovations. Meanwhile he’s also facing vacancies in his lot from both used and new cars; the older models, refuse to sale and often appear antiquated despite whatever improvements to the body that is made, while some of the new cars haven’t been driven extensively yet, and thus may not be completely functional in different environments. Finally, completing his incomplete inventory are tried and true automobiles that are seemingly dragged down by his inability to build a front business office that has a valued name, yet is willing to take risks for the mutual betterment of the company and its consumers. So…what does the dealer do? Does he go out and buy the new model because eventually the older ones are going to seem outdated. Does he ignore the fact that he doesn’t have the money on hand for any of his needed expenditures. Or does he just buy whatever automobile he can for the empty slots, in hopes that it doesn’t look like he has a business that is going under and salvage his reputation. The current field of Education Administrators (and our Politicians) have made it hard to fill our lots with the teacher’s that are going to take you there on a purposeful ride. It doesn’t matter what model automobile being driven, as long as there are regular tune ups/maintenance and that you aren’t just being taken for a spin.
Thus I declare October 27th, 2009 is the day when I officially lift my head up, and say that I am not going to continue living life as a placeholder, or to extend the above metaphor - a rental car. The twists, curves and windy roads I’ve driven to attain a place for myself in this journey towards this career have undoubtedly made me into a stronger educator, enriched my character and has allowed me to touch other’s lives in ways that I can probably never know. Yet, at this point where I am not firmly entrenched in the field, I’ve had to make a personal decision in regards to well…….how am I going to eat. Is it going to be .20 cent wings that I budgeted in, Chipotale on pay day, or a meal a high class restaurant. I’ve looked at so many of my friends and colleagues (not particularly those who are just in the Education field) living not necessarily meaningful lives, or the ideal life they want, but they are doing something. They aren’t sitting at home by the phone at 6 am hoping to possibly work today. They can knowingly count on a pay cycle that isn’t a month behind, and they in many ways know what kind of arena they are stepping into. I could read off a litany of different comparisons as to how much more, for lack of a better word, complete. I need some stability and routine in my life. I need to start working on a postive (bank account) balance, and not feeling envious of others vacation plans or snazzy new gizmos. I’ve reached the point of the journey whereupon I do not feel proud of myself, nor am I willing to continue down this road with hopes that eventually there will come a break.
Today, I declare that I will not allow myself contentment because I got called upon because someone else was not there. Even most temporary jobs have got to be much better than being classified “Per Diem” but not actually working every day. In life so many things are constantly shifting, yet still they start to add up but it feels like I am eschewing my involvement in acceptance of that fact. Defiantly, I told myself I was built for an even more arduous journey, when in actuality I haven’t even started to transverse into that terrain. I had been hoping to weather the storm and counted on my ability to rebuild damaged communities, and enlighten dark corners by my shining example of perseverance and morality. However, what if these cataclysmic changes to the environment isn’t just localized to this area? What if it is the end of the world as I know it? Perhaps, one dream’s supernova can be seen light-years away by a person who I have not even had the consciousness to dream of, because my dreams had been occupied by memory.
It’s time to move on or break away from what I had thought the mapquest of my life had said. It’s not necesarily that I am finished necessarily with Education as a career, I’ll still answer Substitute teaching calls until I have full-time employment. However, I can either going ahead and hope I don’t run out of gas, or I can turn back to where I last saw a safe place to begin my journey again.
[Chester Kent]
I have avoided blogging for the school year of 2009 mostly because it has been the school year that hasn’t. What do I mean by that? Well the hustle bustle of finding a full-time ELA position quickly downgraded to becoming any position when Joel Klein (the commissioner of NYC public schools) reiterated that the NYC hiring freeze was not going to be lifted anytime soon. So, despite any position that I “had” there was now way around the freeze.
Making things far worse, the excess of excessed teachers creates a situation where some schools have on hand 2 or 3 teachers that can be used as substitutes for coverages and such. Thus eliminating the need for Subcentral to call me in the morning. As of now (late October,) I have only worked 2 days this school year. Thus, the changes I make towards the theme and outlook of this blog are definitely going to be along the lines of “Living on a Prayer.” Yes, the song by Bon Jovi. You’ll see what I mean.
-Chester Kent.
We cannot hold a torch to light another’s path without brightening our own.
Ben Sweetland
According to the critical lenses, “We cannot hold a torch to light another’s path without brightening our own,” teaching is a journey of self-discovery. Ben Sweetland’s remark really fits into what I’ve done today; nothing but research other educational blogs to hear and see how this school year is going.
Honestly it just put me in an even more foul mood. I think I shall go play Farmville on Facebook.
Chester Arthur Kent is both a Work in Progress, and a finished sculpture. Much like Pinocohio he is still ascertaining what it means to be a real person in today's world.
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