What if you made plans (and paid a lot of money) to take a trip on Spring Break?

Education is more important than vacation .

Alot of the policies hold alot of teachers back.

 

I'd rank it -

 

1 - Politics

 

 

 

 

 

2 - Policy

I get it, but I also feel school districts have been praying for this decision. To me it is an absolute joke when they allow schools to add 15 minutes to a day to compensate for time lost. So you are really going to tell me that if you add 2-3 minutes of course instruction to each class every day that you are really going to cover more material? Whatever. You get to the end of teaching about multiplication, you are not going to flip over the next page of the textbook for 120 seconds and start on long division. Anyone else with all these snow days still have districts take their full allotment of Spring Break?

 

^^^Bolded^^^ I said this as soon as some districts stated this is what they will do. Agree 100% with your assessment. Go on Saturdays, go till the middle of June...whatever you need to do, but the kids should be in school for the appropriate # of days.

How many teachers in this thread?

 

 

Education in Kentucky is a joke for the most part....

 

I am a teacher.

 

I can tell you that education is not a joke in my classroom. I take my job VERY seriously and do it to the best of my abilities, putting so many other things in my life second.

 

My school is on Spring Break this week and I am thankful for it. Instead of taking off school days for doctors appointments, dentist appointments, etc, I wait and do them all this week. I've also spent several hours at school this week anyway, working on grading and plans. But I do that every Sunday, too.

 

What are your suggestions for making Kentucky less of an educational joke?

I get it, but I also feel school districts have been praying for this decision. To me it is an absolute joke when they allow schools to add 15 minutes to a day to compensate for time lost. So you are really going to tell me that if you add 2-3 minutes of course instruction to each class every day that you are really going to cover more material? Whatever. You get to the end of teaching about multiplication, you are not going to flip over the next page of the textbook for 120 seconds and start on long division. Anyone else with all these snow days still have districts take their full allotment of Spring Break?

 

You'd be amazed at what 2-3 minutes a class period can do. It's not like any of our lessons fit into a neat repetitive time interval every day.

Education is more important than vacation .

 

I agree but if you have school this week the ones that had vacation planned will go and the amount of students gone would hurt. It would hurt in the classroom and financially.

Make them go to school on Saturdays until they make it up .

 

I don't have a problem with that.

I am a teacher.

 

I can tell you that education is not a joke in my classroom. I take my job VERY seriously and do it to the best of my abilities, putting so many other things in my life second.

 

My school is on Spring Break this week and I am thankful for it. Instead of taking off school days for doctors appointments, dentist appointments, etc, I wait and do them all this week. I've also spent several hours at school this week anyway, working on grading and plans. But I do that every Sunday, too.

 

What are your suggestions for making Kentucky less of an educational joke?

 

I couldn't agree more with you. Excellent post

You'd be amazed at what 2-3 minutes a class period can do. It's not like any of our lessons fit into a neat repetitive time interval every day.

 

In your heart of hearts, do you really believe every teacher will cover the same amount of material by adding 2 minutes to a class without the material and subject matter being compromised? And I am not one of these bash teacher types either. It is a helpless job with limited resources.

You'd be amazed at what 2-3 minutes a class period can do. It's not like any of our lessons fit into a neat repetitive time interval every day.

 

TBG, as a coach I work with kids from elementary age to seniors in high school. I support good teachers and know how hard and many times thankless a job it can be, so I am in your corner. However, with that said, the bolded part I just can't agree with. And you are right, I WOULD be greatly amazed that anything would get accomplished with an extra 2-3 minutes at the end of a class period. I will use this example. I would get a WHOLE lot more accomplished as a coach by having a full practice on a Saturday than I would adding 5 minutes on to 12-15 different practices. Not even close. I feel the same way about adding a handful of minutes to each class. It might meet the legal definition of getting the required number of classroom hours in for the year...but that's all it will do IMHO.

In your heart of hearts, do you really believe every teacher will cover the same amount of material by adding 2 minutes to a class without the material and subject matter being compromised? And I am not one of these bash teacher types either. It is a helpless job with limited resources.

 

Every teacher? How am I supposed to answer that?

 

I don't teach a number of "days." I teach students. Again, lessons don't fall into "days" and I always fight against having to turn in weekly lesson plans, because I simply can't know on Sunday (when I do my plans, as they are due at 8:00 am Mon morning) what I will actually be doing the rest of the week. What I do one day to the next depends on how my students respond to what they are taught the day before. I might anticipate giving a class a test on Thursday, but it may become clear by Tuesday that students will not be ready for it and I am going to have to include different lessons beforehand that I had not anticipated.

 

Looking at it differently: Our administration adopted a new bell schedule this year, that took us from a 7 period day to an 8 period day. The 8th period is shorter and designed for remediation, mainly in the areas of math, English and reading. They took 2-3 minutes from every other class period, cut passing time between classes 1 minute and added minutes at the end and 5 minutes at the beginning of every day. That 2-3 minute cut doesn't seem like a lot, but it is huge. Most teachers are reporting being far behind where they were at this time (school calendar, we are at the end of our 3rd nine weeks) last year.

TBG, as a coach I work with kids from elementary age to seniors in high school. I support good teachers and know how hard and many times thankless a job it can be, so I am in your corner. However, with that said, the bolded part I just can't agree with. And you are right, I WOULD be greatly amazed that anything would get accomplished with an extra 2-3 minutes at the end of a class period. I will use this example. I would get a WHOLE lot more accomplished as a coach by having a full practice on a Saturday than I would adding 5 minutes on to 12-15 different practices. Not even close. I feel the same way about adding a handful of minutes to each class. It might meet the legal definition of getting the required number of classroom hours in for the year...but that's all it will do IMHO.

 

I am not saying that I'd prefer minutes at the end of the day to days at the end of the year. What I am saying is that 2-3 minutes one way or the other makes a huge difference in the classroom. I know, because I've lived it. I'm sure that you work with kids, but unless you've been a teacher in a school where this has occurred, I don't think that you can know.

I am not saying that I'd prefer minutes at the end of the day to days at the end of the year. What I am saying is that 2-3 minutes one way or the other makes a huge difference in the classroom. I know, because I've lived it. I'm sure that you work with kids, but unless you've been a teacher in a school where this has occurred, I don't think that you can know.

 

 

I haven't been a teacher to kids in a classroom, no, you are correct in that assessment. But, I am a teacher of basketball (coach). Similar discipline, different curriculum. And as a teacher of basketball I'm saying that an extra 2-3 minutes isn't going to accomplish what I need to accomplish, and I personally don't think it will in the classroom either. Now, if given only one option...2-3 minutes extra at the end of practice, take it or leave it...sure I will take it because maybe, just maybe something might click with a kid. I might say something or demonstrate something that without those 2-3 minutes might not have been said or done. But to think that something systemically will be accomplished, I think that's just a farce. And no I'm not directing that towards you and please don't think that I am, that's just my opinion on the subject overall.

I haven't been a teacher to kids in a classroom, no, you are correct in that assessment. But, I am a teacher of basketball (coach). Similar discipline, different curriculum. And as a teacher of basketball I'm saying that an extra 2-3 minutes isn't going to accomplish what I need to accomplish, and I personally don't think it will in the classroom either. Now, if given only one option...2-3 minutes extra at the end of practice, take it or leave it...sure I will take it because maybe, just maybe something might click with a kid. I might say something or demonstrate something that without those 2-3 minutes might not have been said or done. But to think that something systemically will be accomplished, I think that's just a farce. And no I'm not directing that towards you and please don't think that I am, that's just my opinion on the subject overall.

 

2-3 extra minutes of practice might mean an extra drill, game situation, extra FTs, etc. 2-3 minutes could be big.

2-3 extra minutes of practice might mean an extra drill, game situation, extra FTs, etc. 2-3 minutes could be big.

 

Not overall, no I don't think so. Like I stated above, maybe something might click for a kid, and I'd take it over nothing...but I believe it's pretty close to next to nothing that will get accomplished. Take that extra few minutes over several practices, add it all up and give me an extra practice...then something will get accomplished for sure.