Blog Archive » DC Public Schools

Many great comments continue to come in on my original blog in this series Who Will Teach? Students in Early Childhood Education offer these thoughts on the discussion:

Makai Kellogg writes:

"Yesterday after leaving my preschool to go to Trinity for class, I came across a bumper sticker that read "It's too bad that the people who know how to run the country are too busy teaching school." After reading President McGuire's blog, this message rang even more true in spite of the 'teacher bashing' that has been going on. I agree that good teachers need to be respected and not criticized because of bad teachers. As a former DCPS student, I have personally experienced problems such as unprepared, unmotivated teachers and facilities that were literally falling apart. At the same time I also had the opportunity to be taught by teachers who told me the truth and used their own resources to better convey meaning to their students. Blaming does not solve anything. Solutions addressing all facets of education, from meeting children's basic needs to properly training teachers, will better evoke change for the better. I am thankful that I have professors here at Trinity dedicated to preparing and producing high quality teachers so that one day the conversation will shift from the failures of our public schools to how our public schools have become the model for others."

Juliana Labetti writes:

"It has become the norm to point fingers at those around us and place blame on others for mistakes made by many. This approach will solve nothing. I have heard Dr. Brereton say many times that the only person we can change is our self. It is time for everyone involved in education in this country to reflect inward and determine what they can do to better the current system. The professors in the education department at Trinity allow for their graduate students to take time to reflect on the kinds of teachers we want to become and the steps we must complete in order to accomplish our goals. By encouraging us to challenge ourselves and open our eyes to the changing educational climate, these education professors are insuring that a committed, confident, and well prepared group of new teachers join in the task of improving our children’s education."

Patti Hellmuth writes:

"My first year of teaching I taught at the Patrick Gavin Middle School in South Boston in a Substantially Separate Classroom under 766. In this classroom, there were six boys – three black and three white who were all from impoverished backgrounds. The boys were in the sixth grade and they could barely read or write. The schools had failed them, their parents had failed them, and no one knew what to do with them. At this point because they had gotten into so much trouble at school, they were not allowed to attend the regular classes, not allowed to eat in the cafeteria, not allowed to participate in sports, and not allowed to be in the hallways without an escort.

"In this classroom, I worked alongside another teacher and we both agreed that the school obviously did not want the boys there and the current curriculum had failed the boys. Therefore, we went onto devise our own plan for the boys and it worked. Our first job was to get the boys to get along and to trust one another and we did. Our next plan was to get the boys educated so, in the morning we taught the boys in school and for the afternoon we took the boys out of school and we visited museums, parks, libraries, and so on. I am happy to report that at the end of the school year, they were all at grade level and feeling much better about themselves.

"I believe in continuing to teach children based on their ability to do the work because not all of the children of all of the people have the same capacity. The solution is to provide a curriculum that meets the needs of the various learners. All teachers and schools need to support an educational philosophy that supports exposing children to different levels of instruction because the reality is that no two children have the same strengths or learn in the same way.

"Trinity has allowed me to meet some wonderful professors and to continue to believe that I can make a difference in children’s lives. My role as a teacher is to inspire students to do their best and not only motivate them to learn, but also teach them how to learn, and doing so in a manner that is relevant, meaningful, and memorable. As a teacher, I must be a strong and original leader with characteristics of honesty, principle and decency because teachers influence students by example. Dr. Brereton has taught me that a good teacher is about style, humor, listening, questioning, being responsive, and remembering that each student and class is different."

What are your ideas on how to address the challenges of school reform and teacher quality?   Join this discussion by clicking on the "comments" box below and let me know what you think!

Read these previous blogs:

Who Will Teach? (November 1, 2009)

Who Will Teach?  Faculty Respond (November 4, 2009)

Who Will Teach?  More Faculty Voices (November 5, 2009)

The faculty in Trinity's School of Education have responded collectively and individually to my previous blog on the state of teacher education and Secretary Duncan's remarks.   While they posted their response on the "comments" section of the last blog, I think what they have to say is so important that I'm reposting it here:

Dear President McGuire,

We in the School of Education whole-heartedly agree with your position regarding who will teach! Teacher bashing is entirely unproductive, as is the non-inclusive approach that Chancellor Michelle Rhee seems to be taking as she attempts to implement the worthy goal of improving the District of Columbia Public Schools. We also agree that to address the school problem without addressing the context in which many students live is not a realistic approach to school reform. Pretending that good teachers alone can solve the problems in DCPS won’t get the job done. Schools do not exist in a vacuum; historic, socio-economic, and political factors including the legacies of racism and disenfranchisement have contributed to their troubles. School reform should be a part of a comprehensive plan to address poverty, adult illiteracy, and all the related issues. Full Article

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan gave a provocative address on the future of teacher education when he appeared at Columbia Teachers College on October 22.   Everyone involved in Trinity's School of Education — all faculty and students here, our graduates and partners in the field, our colleagues who take continuing education courses — ALL should read Secretary Duncan's speech and think about how Trinity should respond.   I encourage you to post your comments publicly to this blog, comment link below, or send me an email message with your thoughts if you don't want to post publicly. Full Article

In my previous two blogs, I have predicted that the Class of 2009 will enter a world in which the whole idea of the news media will be radically different from at present, that citizen activism will be more diffuse through the opportunities that new media present to make every person their own commentator (an idea that Thomas Friedman wrote about extensively in "The World is Flat"); I also predict that demographic and economic changes will create new ideas about social class, capitalism and socialism, and that a woman president is quite likely in the lifetimes of our graduates.

Here are my final four predictions for the Class of 2009:

7.   65 is the new 45….

…and as a result, the new retirement age will be 75 or 80…   It's not just a factor of the economy and perils to Social Security and pension funds in the recession, it's also because people are living longer and healthier well into years that once were considered old-old.  I know women in their 80's who are thriving, leading active and productive lives that their grandmothers could not have imagined. Full Article

"Education Reform" is one of the prime embattled fronts in the culture wars in this country.  News of President-elect Obama's choice of Chicago School Superintendent Arne Duncan as the new U.S. Secretary of Education brought the more recent skirmishes to a small climax as leaders of the revolutionary and reactionary sides of the schoolyard both generally agreed that Duncan is an acceptable choice.   But the cease-fire is likely to be short-lived. Full Article