139 days without a contract….

Our district has passed its levy (10 days ago)….$42 million.

Negotiation meetings are again being held today…

The real kicker………they have 60 more days to settle with us, or they lose ONE MILLION dollars of state funding!!!! (Wouldn’t that look great to tax payers!?!?!?) As of Monday, they weren’t even close.

ugh.

Work to Rule begins on November 27th. This is when we work our contract hours, and do nothing more. We walk in together at 7:45 AM and leave at 3:25 together……taking NO WORK home with us. It’s the step before we take the strike vote. Isn’t this a nice way to kick-off the holiday season?!?!?!

ugh.

I’m not one to be a whiner…and yes, many of you will say that I only work 9 months of the year…but let’s be realistic here. No. Child. Left. Behind. Otherwise known in my brain as “Leave No Teacher Standing.” It’s a GREAT concept. But there is NO WAY this can be done in our current public school system. Let me use this to illustrate my point:

Once there was a man named Nathan. He wanted very much to be a teacher. So he went to seek the advice of the wisest, most highly respected counselor in the land.

“Wise counselor,” Nathan began, “it has always been my dream to be a teacher. I want to stimulate the minds of the young people of our land. I want to lead them down the road of knowledge. Please tell me the secret of becoming a teacher.”

“Your goal is a commendable one, Nathan. However, it is also a very difficult one to achieve. First you must overcome three major obstacles.”

“I am ready to meet the challenge,” answered Nathan bravely.

“First you must swim the Sea of Children,” directed the knowing counselor.

Nathan started off to swim the Sea of Children. First he had to learn their 38 names. He had to send the line cutters to the end of the line. He made the paper throwers stay after school to clean the room.

He commanded the name callers, pushers, and punchers to apologize to their victims. He gave M&M’s to those who finished assignments and stars to those who were sitting in their seats quietly. Nathan checked passes to see how many children were in the bathroom. And he tracked down students who were gone longer than was necessary. He arranged the desks in alphabetical order, then boy-girl, boy-girl, and finally into small groups of four. He lined his children up for physical education and music and library and lunch. Then he stifled a cry when the secretary came into the room with number 39. Tired and shaken but still undefeated, Nathan returned to the counselor for his second task.

“You are a very determined lad,” said the advisor. “However, now you must climb the Mountain of Paperwork.”

Nathan set out at once. He wrote objectives and drew up lesson plans.

He made out report cards and graded papers. He filled out accident reports, attendance reports and withdrawal reports. He completed inventories, evaluations, surveys, and request forms. Finally, he made dittos and more dittos. He ran them off until he was purple in the face. But the courageous boy’s resolve never dwindled. He went to the wise counselor for his third task.

“You are indeed very strong, Nathan. But this third task will take all the courage you can muster. You must now cross the country of Duties and Committees.”

At first Nathan was hesitant. But his convictions remained steadfast. He began his long journey across the country of Duties and Committees.

Nathan took lunch duty, bus duty, and recess duty. He was on the social committee, patrol committee, and the faculty advisory committee. He was the adult supervisor of the student government and ran the United Fund and Easter Seal drives. He went to PTA meetings, NRA meetings, SST meetings, School Site meetings, and in-service workshops. He organized bicentennial programs, talent shows, and book drives. Finally, he was elected the building representative of the union. At last Nathan reached the outskirts of Duties and Committees.

Exhausted but happy, he returned to the knowledgeable counselor.

“I swam the Sea of Children. I climbed the Mountain of Paperwork. I crossed the country of Duties and Committees,” Nathan proclaimed. “Am I not worthy of the title of Teacher?”

“Why, Nathan,” began the counselor, “you have been a teacher all along.”

Nathan protested, “But I have not stimulated any minds. I have not guided anyone down the road to knowledge, I have not had any time to teach”

“Oh, you say you want to TEACH! I thought you said you wanted to be a teacher. That is a completely different story!!

Or…..here’s a good resume of what we do these days:

The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life.

One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education.

He argued,”What’s a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?”

He reminded the other dinner guests what they say about teachers: “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.”

To stress his point he said to another guest; “You’re a teacher, Bonnie. Be honest. What do you make?”

Bonnie, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied, “You want to know what I make? (She paused for a second, then began…)

“Well, I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I make a C+ feel like the Congressional Medal of Honor.

I make kids sit through 40 minutes of class time when their parents can’t make them sit for 5 without an iPod, Game Cube or movie rental…

You want to know what I make?” (She paused again and looked at each and every person at the table.)

I make kids wonder. I make them question. I make them criticize. I make them apologize and mean it.

I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions.

I teach them to write and then I make them write.

I make them read, read, read. I make them show all their work in math.

I make my students from other countries learn everything they need to know in English while preserving their unique cultural identity.

I make my classroom a place where all my students feel safe.

I make my students stand to say the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag, because we live in the United States of America.

Finally, I make them understand that if they use the gifts they were given, work hard, and follow their hearts, they can succeed in life.

(Bonnie paused one last time and then continued.)

“Then, when people try to judge me by what I make, I can hold my head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant…

You want to know what I make? I MAKE A DIFFERENCE. What do you make?”

I wonder what the school board members make? The superintendent?

Granted, we ALL know that I am not a math teacher…but let’s do some simple math.

Full-tiume professional job = 40 hours a week at 52 weeks……..2080 hours a year.

My contracted hours each day: 7.4166667 hours, or 7 hours and 25 minutes.

My contract year is 180 days. (for ease of math)

That would put me at 1335 hours of work each year, for which I get paid.

I work almost 9 hour days each day…that’s 1.58 hours a DAY at school beyond my duty day planning, grading, and doing my special education paperwork. This simple fact puts me at 1620 hours a year for which I am only paid 1335.

Let’s take into account all of the days I put in over my 9 hours by either planning at home, doing paperwork at home (as now our district has put all of our information online so we can WORK FROM HOME!) or the time I take to call parents at home or email them about their student’s progress…….. how about the time I spend of my own learning the new curricula, learning the new “BEST PRACTICES,” the new strategies to teach at-risk kids, the regular courses and activities I have to take to keep my license current, the mental health classes I have to take to keep my license current, do you get the picture yet, or shall I continue? Because…..the. list. goes. on.

Let’s just be “gentle” and add 2 more hours a week to this massive workload….and don’t forget the summers when you are trying to regroup and keep that fire of energy burning within you with new ideas that will jump-start the kids in the fall……… with those 2 more hours, we are now at 2350 hours a year…..of which I get paid 1335! I have now also surpassed the “professional” in the “REAL WORLD” who has worked 2080 hours.

Then, let’s also add 150 hormonal middle school children into the mix.   Are we really paid for what we do?

ok, I’m done. This all just IRRITATES me!