Who cares?

As I’ve discussed the impact of the latest budget on education in North Carolina, I have wondered what I could possibly write that would express what I’m feeling about the situation.  Every time I sit and try to write my ability to articulate my thoughts becomes overwhelmed by a multitude of feelings: anger, disappointment, fear.

There was a time not too long ago that I thought I would be a teacher forever. There was a time not too long ago when I told people that I absolutely loved everything about my job. Sadly, it only took two years of teaching in a North Carolina Public School to become totally disenchanted and disappointed.

It should be understood that I absolutely, without doubt, love working with young people. I love teaching, I love field trips, I love training for competitions. I love any school activity that involves trying to positively impact the children who cross my path. What I did not realize when I began teaching two years ago was that our law makers believe my work with students to be a rather insignificant part of teaching. In fact, they put far more emphasis on test scores, curricula, paper trails, observations, PLC’s, trainings, budgets, meetings, and ANYTHING else they can possibly squeeze into the already busy life of a teacher.

Never mind that the jobs we were hired to do. Never mind the lives that teachers often neglect outside of school. Never mind the children. Never mind our future.

If this budget is a reflection of the values of our general assembly, and the general assembly is representative of the state of North Carolina, then this is what I have learned about our state’s beliefs:

1. The people who educate our children don’t need a solid education themselves, and certainly not an advanced degree. In fact, an achievement such as a Master’s Degree might actually lead educators to believe that they are professionals worthy of respect and valued for their skills, passion, and commitment to children. And we wouldn't want that.
2. Children should be provided with skills that will help them to be successful in a future career… as long as the time spent developing those skills does not infringe on the student’s ability to sharpen his No. 2 pencil and neatly darken the bubble with the letter of the correct answer choice. Especially since these tests hold the students accountable for their learning (wait, what?) and NOW serve as a measure of the teacher’s efficiency. In addition, these tests will also take into account the number of days a student missed school, the below average reading level of the student, various learning disabilities, poor home life, poverty, illness, teenage pregnancy, depression, anxiety, language barriers, gang involvement…  what’s that? There’s nowhere to bubble all that on the scantron? Oh. Nevermind then.
3. Scholarships are awesome! We LOVE scholarships! There should be lots more of them. Just not scholarships, like the Teaching Fellows program, that encourage individuals to pursue teaching and support them in becoming highly effective teachers. I mean, it’s not like you get paid any more if you’re good at it than if you’re not. And really, who needs good teachers anyway?
4. Teachers have super powers. How can you tell? Well, we’ve done away with any provision to reduce class sizes. So now, one teacher could have say, 35 kids on any given day. And since these teachers are so extraordinary they don’t assistants either.  In fact, we should just insult and demoralize anyone who has direct contact with school children. Then, maybe they’ll actually forget that they are, in fact, highly educated and dedicated professionals who have been insulted with a meager 1.2% pay raise over the last six years, frozen salary schedules, and “professional development” that would imply that they never had any pedagogical training whatsoever.

Shall I go on? For the sake of my blood pressure, I’ll stop there.

I’ve always, always wanted to be a teacher. Never once throughout my entire childhood, college, student teaching, and graduate school, did I ever even consider another career. I love working with young people. I love guiding them as they learn new things and seeing them light up when “get it.” I love celebrating their successes, no matter how small they are. I love knowing that at the end of the day, no matter how challenging a day it may have been, I had the opportunity to make a difference in the world. And for now, all those wonderful things outweigh all the ugly things that are out my control.

Unfortunately, I doubt that all teachers feel that way right now. I fear that for many teachers, especially really good teachers who know their own worth, the scale is going to tip the other way. And little by little, those really good teachers will leave our students in search of greener pastures: a salary on which they can support a family, job satisfaction and security, respect. So then, honorable legislators, where does that leave North Carolina education?

I don’t know why I asked. It’s pretty obvious that they could care less.