Thursday, November 05, 2009

Beg. Steal and Borrow


I spoke to a concerned parent today. She was worried because her son is not doing well in my class and she has yet to be able to get a report card from him.

If I had a desk and a computer when I called, I could have accessed that information for her. I could have given her his guidance counselor's information too. I even could have discussed his present academic performance in comparison to what he did in eighth grade.

I shouldn't complain. I was able to borrow a phone in the attendance office. I wasn't presumptuous enough to use her chair so I stood while making the call. Unfortunately, the alcohol she took out to wipe off the phone when I finished was enough to tell me I better not use it again.

Hey, Education Mayor, do your employees work under these conditions as well?

The joy of working in Packemin HS.

4 comments:

NYC Educator said...

We don't need no stinking desks. We don't need no stinking phones. We don't need no stinking computers. We don't need no stinking reasonable class sizes. We don't need no stinking technology. We don't need no stinking space. We don't need no stinking soap.

All we need is four more years, and that's just what we've got.

Anonymous said...

In all my years of teaching I never understood why we handed out report cards to students in NYC. Living in Nassau County the report cards always came in the mail, addressed "To the Parents of____", and the first report card always arrived the day after Thanksgiving. Of course you save the mailing costs but to me this is a case of poor administration. Why aren't supervisors accountable for the goal of every parent receiving a report card. I do remember the the yellow report cards we received in elementary school said "REPORT TO PARENTS"

Rita

mathman42 said...

At least the alcohol didn't come from the cup she was drinking from.
But I shouldn't assume.

The next classroom has no desks. The kids stand or have a chair at a keyboard. No pens or paper either. No problem with losing pens or throwing or ripping paper. Your handout is in the file they received at beginning of class. No textbooks either.

Anonymous said...

I teach in a high school in another country, but the problem of phones is the same. I have more or less stopped phoning parents.

We are not allowed to mail letters to parents. (the cost...) We are supposed to give them to the student, and hope they get to the parent. I have stopped sending letters to parents.

So the problems are the same the world over.
Best of luck!