Trying Doesn't Cut It For This Girl

What do you say to a student who sits in a remedial college class night after night, moaning that the work is too hard.

The girl tries but can't do more than copy the material from the board.  She is allowed to use a calculator but I have to remind her constantly to use it.

She sends me e-mails all the time about the class, letting me know she cares but she can't write a coherent sentence and I very often can't even understand what she is writing about.

She reminds me of the non-diploma bound special education kids I knew at Packemin.  Her IQ can't be much higher.  I wonder why she is sitting in a college class, wasting money and her time, frustrating the hell out of her.

The high school she went to probably encouraged her to attend college.  They probably got points added on to their evaluations because she has gone on to higher education.  Instead of points, they should be fined and punished for letting this girl believe she can have a future that involves academics.

Torture

Had dinner with friends who were lamenting returning to work next week.  The biggest dread was two days of staff development.

This reminded me of the Torture Museum we visited in Rothenberg.  Those medieval people really knew how to make people suffer.  The wheels pictured above were used to roll over victims and cut them to shreds while they were still alive.  Too bad these people never heard of PD.  They could have inflicted just as much suffering without the bloody mess to cleanup.

More pictures here, on Facebook.

Punishment



Regents are over. Grades are in.  No learning could possibly take place, yet, the DOE, in its infinite wisdom has decided the following:

Due to snow days this year, the DOE has mandated that Monday, June 27^th be an instructional day. In addition, students will receive a list of their Fall 2011 courses in Periods 2 and 9. Therefore, on June 27^th we will schedule 30 minute classes .

This is nothing more than teacher punishment.  Nobody will be doing anything.