About

The state of public education in the United States is undeniably horrible. Held against international standards alone, Americans rank lower than the Slovak Republic for mathematics and lower than Estonia in science. Our spending per student was $9,139 for the 2001-02 school year. (NCES, "The Condition of Education 2005"). Compared to other members of the (then) G7, the United States outspent all other countries for primary and secondary education in 1992. (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs/eiip/eiipid43.asp) The problem is not underfunded schools.

I would like to be a teacher. Not an educator, but a teacher. A teacher is a person who realizes that a student can only learn the content that is presented, and therefore centers the class on real, academic material. An educator is a person who believes that the first step in creating a classroom is to consider "learning strategies" that fit into socioeconomic theories of modern psychology and multiculturalism. If a person begins a discussion of their experiences as a "teacher" with buzz phrases like "differential instruction," "scaffolding," or "learner-centered", you can be sure you're speaking with an "educator," not a teacher.

I am currently going through the hoops to become a certified teacher in Texas. I have graduated from a university with a Bachelors in Literature. For the time being, I think it is prudent for me to remain anonymous. From what I have already experienced in education courses, criticism is not well received. Those who question their methods or requirements are considered to be ignorant of the "real" hardships of the "profession". Critics are openly bashed in the media and loudly mocked in classrooms. Dissenters are allowed to give their thoughts, but are then completely ignored.

Although my experiences have been difficult, my primary concern is for the state of education. It deeply bothers me when I hear about parents voicing concerns about their student's failure to learn, only to be met with derisive comments from teachers about how it "isn't their fault," how the parents "don't know anything about how to teach," or how terribly underfunded the school is. As one person wisely pointed out, "You don't have to be a trained musician to recognize a sour note".

I fully believe that the responsibility of the student's progress rests with the teacher's ability to pass along critical academic knowledge. If you don't teach (or know) academic material, then it doesn't matter how many "strategies," "lesson plans," or psychological theories you've read about. The students still won't know how to write a meaningful sentence, understand mathematical proofs, or thoughtfully consider historical events.

I am passionate about teaching, but this does not mean I cannot be critical towards the requirements involved with the process of certification, or the general attitudes and beliefs that educators have. In this blog, I write about my experiences with certification classes, my dealings with the enormous requirements of paperwork, and the perceptions of educators towards those who are outside their profession, as well as the perception of the rest of us, looking in.

I hope that this blog will serve as an insight to everyone. Not just parents with children in public schools, but to every person who pays for the public schools. That's all of us. What exactly are these notions of "highly qualified candidates" and what are the values of the world of public education? What are you really getting for your tax money? If, by the proof of embarrassingly low international scores, it is not a quality academic education, what is really being taught?

Aude Sapere – Dare to think independently