Posted by Liberal on April 18, 2011, 1:29 am, in reply to "Re: ESL schools..."
"The kids have been the victim of corruption. A corrupt city government allowed the city to fall into shambles and the corrupt school officials hired un-necessary layers of administration and support staff."
....it is true. to what extent i do not know...but no one could argue the district is free of corruption. it is why i am glad the state is stepping in.
the information i learned at the few workshops i took part in were very helpful. i was very vocal at these meetings, and i felt i got alot from them.
bad part is - with a huge turnover rate, the workshops usually end up equipping the teacher who then takes their experience to another school with half the strife.
furthermore - there were some workshops i could not attend because they costs too much money - so the school i was at sent one person to the workshop, and that one person would bring the info back to all the other teachers and teach us...man i hated those nights...felt like i was back in college and had to be there until 6:30-7 some nights...after being there since 7:30am...and still had to go home and grade papers and modify the next day's lesson...
it is VERY prestigious to work in a challenging district like that. most teachers would not dare, so if you do dare, it is highly respected...if you stay in a district like that for 30 years and are a good teacher - you are a saint.
it is a sad place - and apathy has overwhelmed me from my experiences there. i know i made an impact in some young people's lives - but i honestly feel it could never be enough.
the more i delved into the lives of my students - the more i saw the trap they were in. it was not pity...it was more akin to despair. i wished i could do more. i wished i could change things from the top. i spent...honestly...25% of my wages on my class.
as much as i believe in education - i look at the city as beyond repair. the whole place needs renovation...and that takes money that no one is willing to spend there.
on April 18, 2011, 1:29 am, in reply to "