That's from one university. What are the bills for graduate courses from other universities? I know there must be. Where can I find a federal job that will pay for grad school, increase my salary AND pay 95% of my health benefits? Must not forget staff development positions at >$100,000 per, supposedly helping 'teach the teachers'. Oh, I forgot. Training is not mandatory, except sometimes Tier 1 (not that anyone keeps track). And teachers get paid to go to the tiered training, too.
I like your blog, I really do. It's informative, and even entertaining. I am an MCPS teacher who has taken some Towson classes, partially paid for by the county, totally by choice. Still, they cost me thousands of dollars out of pocket. I learned much in my coursework, and am a better teacher of the county's children because of it. I would assume all teachers improve their practice through this and other types of training. I had no idea how much the county spent on this, but I assumed it was at least this much.
As a teacher, though, I am very unsettled by comments similar to those of the above person. I hear them all the time now. When the economy was better, was it still a bad idea to get training? Is it only a bad idea now because the economy is bad? If I had to go to the doctor, sure would want him to have the latest information. Should our education stop?
Why are teachers and their income under such scrutiny? I can afford to live in Montgomery County, barely, because I'm not married to a teacher. Otherwise, I'd be joining my brother and sisters with 1-2 hour daily commutes to be able to afford a house for my family somewhere outside of MoCo. Think hard about what it will mean to push the teachers out of the middle class---cut those benefits/pay/pension and you won't have experienced people willing to drive two hours to teach your children. They can save themselves four hours in the car and find something else to do closer to home. Teachers have become a popular whipping post these days, but all I see at my school are hardworking teachers, who might be married to other teachers, or someone who even makes less money than a teacher, struggling to pay bills. These people have dedicated their lives to helping children learn, and I am in awe of their devotion to this profession. It's a stressful job, and having our income under attack is not helping your children get a better education, it's creating stress in the workplace, and morale is really low these days. Nobody selected teaching as a profession as a way to get rich, and it's awfully ironic that due to some minimal job stability relative to other professions, that we are under attack.
While I was writing this, three different parents e-mailed me asking for help with their children's homework, upcoming tests, make-up work. It's 7:20 p.m., and now I'm going to reply to every one of those e-mails, and there will be more later. My colleagues will be doing the same, I'm sure. We do this because we care.
Thanks so much for your comment. Help us out here. Can you explain why your union is silent on MCPS expenditures that divert tax dollars away from classrooms and from your salary?
For example, let's talk about leases for cell towers. The money that comes from those leases doesn't go to the MCPS Operating Budget - it doesn't pay for textbooks or teachers. Same for the money that comes in from E-rate rebates.
What about the 22 admins with car allowances? The 1,400 credit cards floating around? The unknown number of "consultants"? The no-bid contracts like the Promethean Boards security cameras and artificial turf. The out of state travel, the dinners, and the list goes on.
Your union is at the MCPS Budget table. The public isn't. We don't know what is being traded at that table. All we know is what we can see. And what we see is lots of areas where the budget could be trimmed before teachers are cut. We believe that the public would much rather have you in the classroom that an administrator in a Lincoln.
I love how you totally blow past everything she said and, once again, sidestep the issue to ask questions that you should be asking union reps. Have you ever had a job? I mean, other then digging up dirt on MCPS, I mean a real job, with a boss and a paycheck that you had to go to ever day. Did you have control over everything your boss did? Do you have control over everything the Board of Education does? You elected them, doesn't that me you answer for everything they do? That seems to be what you think of teacher union members. We elect representitives by majority. That means that 1) they don't represent every single one of us and 2) sometimes they make decisions that some of us don't agree with, don't like, etc.
See, the problem is that most of us are busy teaching YOUR kids and don't have time to sit behind a blog and question what goes on a budget meetings. We are too busy WORKING. You should try it!
That's from one university. What are the bills for graduate courses from other universities? I know there must be. Where can I find a federal job that will pay for grad school, increase my salary AND pay 95% of my health benefits? Must not forget staff development positions at >$100,000 per, supposedly helping 'teach the teachers'. Oh, I forgot. Training is not mandatory, except sometimes Tier 1 (not that anyone keeps track). And teachers get paid to go to the tiered training, too.
ReplyDelete@ user of MCPS computer to comment on this blog
ReplyDeleteYour comment is not being posted.
Clean up your language.
I like your blog, I really do. It's informative, and even entertaining. I am an MCPS teacher who has taken some Towson classes, partially paid for by the county, totally by choice. Still, they cost me thousands of dollars out of pocket. I learned much in my coursework, and am a better teacher of the county's children because of it. I would assume all teachers improve their practice through this and other types of training. I had no idea how much the county spent on this, but I assumed it was at least this much.
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher, though, I am very unsettled by comments similar to those of the above person. I hear them all the time now. When the economy was better, was it still a bad idea to get training? Is it only a bad idea now because the economy is bad? If I had to go to the doctor, sure would want him to have the latest information. Should our education stop?
Why are teachers and their income under such scrutiny? I can afford to live in Montgomery County, barely, because I'm not married to a teacher. Otherwise, I'd be joining my brother and sisters with 1-2 hour daily commutes to be able to afford a house for my family somewhere outside of MoCo. Think hard about what it will mean to push the teachers out of the middle class---cut those benefits/pay/pension and you won't have experienced people willing to drive two hours to teach your children. They can save themselves four hours in the car and find something else to do closer to home. Teachers have become a popular whipping post these days, but all I see at my school are hardworking teachers, who might be married to other teachers, or someone who even makes less money than a teacher, struggling to pay bills. These people have dedicated their lives to helping children learn, and I am in awe of their devotion to this profession. It's a stressful job, and having our income under attack is not helping your children get a better education, it's creating stress in the workplace, and morale is really low these days. Nobody selected teaching as a profession as a way to get rich, and it's awfully ironic that due to some minimal job stability relative to other professions, that we are under attack.
While I was writing this, three different parents e-mailed me asking for help with their children's homework, upcoming tests, make-up work. It's 7:20 p.m., and now I'm going to reply to every one of those e-mails, and there will be more later. My colleagues will be doing the same, I'm sure. We do this because we care.
@ teacher
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment. Help us out here. Can you explain why your union is silent on MCPS expenditures that divert tax dollars away from classrooms and from your salary?
For example, let's talk about leases for cell towers. The money that comes from those leases doesn't go to the MCPS Operating Budget - it doesn't pay for textbooks or teachers. Same for the money that comes in from E-rate rebates.
What about the 22 admins with car allowances? The 1,400 credit cards floating around? The unknown number of "consultants"? The no-bid contracts like the Promethean Boards security cameras and artificial turf. The out of state travel, the dinners, and the list goes on.
Your union is at the MCPS Budget table. The public isn't. We don't know what is being traded at that table. All we know is what we can see. And what we see is lots of areas where the budget could be trimmed before teachers are cut. We believe that the public would much rather have you in the classroom that an administrator in a Lincoln.
I love how you totally blow past everything she said and, once again, sidestep the issue to ask questions that you should be asking union reps. Have you ever had a job? I mean, other then digging up dirt on MCPS, I mean a real job, with a boss and a paycheck that you had to go to ever day. Did you have control over everything your boss did? Do you have control over everything the Board of Education does? You elected them, doesn't that me you answer for everything they do? That seems to be what you think of teacher union members. We elect representitives by majority. That means that 1) they don't represent every single one of us and 2) sometimes they make decisions that some of us don't agree with, don't like, etc.
ReplyDeleteSee, the problem is that most of us are busy teaching YOUR kids and don't have time to sit behind a blog and question what goes on a budget meetings. We are too busy WORKING. You should try it!
@8:50 comes to us from a MCPS computer.
ReplyDeleteWhat does it matter that "@8:50 comes to us from a MCPS computer?" How about responding to some of the questions posed by that person?
ReplyDelete