A heartbreaking post by a great Chicago teacher, Karen Moody, about how the job she loved was destroyed by the Accountability Police and other agents of “School Reform”
Read it and weep!
Read it and weep!
“When I started teaching:
When I started teaching, my principal worked WITH me, she encouraged me, she applauded me, she valued me.
When I started teaching, I had the freedom to choose our reading material and design lessons without templates.
When I started teaching, I was not judged by my kids' performance on standardized tests.
When I started teaching, I wasn't scared all the time.
When I started teaching, there weren't teams of scowling administrators in my classroom with open laptops, tap, tap, tapping away at my self esteem.
When I started teaching, I didn't cry in my car.
When I started teaching, there was laughter in the classroom and joy on my kids' faces - well, oftentimes.
When I started teaching, I liked going to work.
When I started teaching, I felt proud to say, "I'm a teacher."
When I started teaching, my principal worked WITH me, she encouraged me, she applauded me, she valued me.
When I started teaching, I had the freedom to choose our reading material and design lessons without templates.
When I started teaching, I was not judged by my kids' performance on standardized tests.
When I started teaching, I wasn't scared all the time.
When I started teaching, there weren't teams of scowling administrators in my classroom with open laptops, tap, tap, tapping away at my self esteem.
When I started teaching, I didn't cry in my car.
When I started teaching, there was laughter in the classroom and joy on my kids' faces - well, oftentimes.
When I started teaching, I liked going to work.
When I started teaching, I felt proud to say, "I'm a teacher."
When I leave teaching, I will be completely emasculated, chewed up, and spit out. The bastards won.”
5 comments:
Sad but true. Karen is not the only one who feels this way, in and out of Chicago. If teachers, across the country, continue to be abused this way, the shortage we see today will continue to grow. For those of you coming into the profession, best of luck and for those of you being “pushed-out” my heart goes out to you,
I changed the order of the lines. I don't mind if folks share it - either version. Thanks, Karen Moody
When I started teaching:
When I started teaching, my principal worked WITH me, she encouraged me, she applauded me, she valued me.
When I started teaching, I had the freedom to choose our reading material and design lessons without templates.
When I started teaching, I liked going to work.
When I started teaching, there was laughter in the classroom and joy on my kids' faces - well, oftentimes.
When I started teaching, I felt proud to say, "I'm a teacher.”
When I started teaching, I was not judged by my kids' performance on standardized tests.
When I started teaching, I wasn't scared all the time.
When I started teaching, there weren't teams of scowling administrators in my classroom with open laptops, tap, tap, tapping away at my self esteem.
When I started teaching, I didn't cry in my car.
When I leave teaching, I will be completely emasculated, chewed up, and spit out.
The bastards won.
This brought tears to my eyes. I will be leaving the profession I love in a couple of years because I cannot take the pressure anymore. The joy is no longer there. I feel for my students as I know I am a great teacher and I still have the energy to teach. Not like this though!
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