News in New York #sol15 Day 30

News this morning in New York 
Budget deals emerge
"Governor Cuomo
wreaking vengeance"
Diane Ravitch writes. 
Elected officials
making decisions
not qualified to make.
Tests to decide
the effective teacher
and the ineffective one.
Heart sinks.

 What else can I do?
I'm a teacher.
I was born to teach.
It's all I've hoped to be.
If I am found ineffective
due to independent evaluators
who don't know me
don't know my heart
my experience
my work ethic
my continual search
to be better
where will I go?


 If test scores
are the focus
and my job is
on the line,
is it a job
I really want 
to do anymore?
When my family
depends on me,
will I need
to play the game?
To get my paycheck?
To pay our mortgage?

 How will I face
the young faces
in front of me
who are more 
than any test 
will ever say?

 Sadness today 
in New York
Our letters
our phone calls
our pleas
 in the end
didn't matter.
Money wins
again.

 Tomorrow
I take down 
my charts
their name tags
anything that 
could be helpful
on "the test."
Weeks lost
to make Pearson
billions
and tell me nothing
I don't already know.
Weeks lost
to prove accountability 
to elected officials
who never seem
to be accountable
to anyone. 


Comments

  1. JudyMarch 30, 2015 at 6:02 AM

    Gut wrenching - especially that last line. I wish I had some salve to offer other than to continue to do what you know to be best.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JudyMarch 30, 2015 at 6:02 AM

    Gut wrenching - especially that last line. I wish I had some salve to offer other than to continue to do what you know to be best.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Chris MargocsMarch 30, 2015 at 6:11 AM

    I am so very, very sorry. It is a knife to the heart of the profession, scapegoating teachers for the ills of society--when will they figure out that until this country values children with support and funding for basic needs, pouring money into testing will account for nothing?

    ReplyDelete
  4. JaanaMarch 30, 2015 at 6:15 AM

    So sad. How many decades of testing it will take for someone to realize that testing does not teach anyone? That testing does not prepare future citizens who have creative ideas? People who can invent the next technological amazement?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lisa CorbettMarch 30, 2015 at 6:20 AM

    Terrible! I wonder, are private school teachers facing the same evaluations, or just those in public schools?

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownMarch 30, 2015 at 6:40 AM

    So sad. You have to wonder when NYS will ever get their priorities straight. Hopefully soon because our students are the ones who are suffering. I know it is hard, but we need to go into our classrooms and do right by the children and not let a test dictate who we are as teachers. You are not alone!

    ReplyDelete
  7. UnknownMarch 30, 2015 at 6:42 AM

    So sad. You have to wonder when NYS will get their priorities straight. Hopefully soon because the children are the ones being hurt. We have to go into our classrooms and do right by our children and not let a test dictate who we are as teachers. I know it is hard but you are not alone.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Michelle HaseltineMarch 30, 2015 at 6:58 AM

    The end of this poem packs a punch!!! I have no words. Thank you for writing about it so beautifully!

    ReplyDelete
  9. drferreriblogspot.comMarch 30, 2015 at 7:14 AM

    You have brought me to tears. Your scores do not define you as a teacher - that I know for sure. As others have said, we have to do what is right for every child in our midst. We are the ones they depend on to provide a foundation for life long learning. I am confident that in time, this ship that has turned sideways will be righted. There is no other option for children and teachers.

    ReplyDelete
  10. KendraMarch 30, 2015 at 7:50 AM

    Oh my. My best thoughts are with you and your teachers in New York. This is such eloquent writing. Thank you for sharing it with us.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Linda BMarch 30, 2015 at 9:25 AM

    I hope that things can be straightened out in your topsy-turvy world. You wrote with such love for teaching, no test for that! Best wishes to those of you facing this challenge!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Amanda ReganMarch 30, 2015 at 2:39 PM

    Your poem brought tears to my eyes. You express yourself so eloquently in this piece. All I can say is don't give up! Teachers need to continue to raise their voices and make themselves heard over the meaningless chatter of politicians.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Peg DMarch 30, 2015 at 8:21 PM

    Such a powerful piece. Unfortunately it is everywhere. You are not alone. And it is very sad. Your last line drives it home. Just...wow.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

#SOL16 Lesson From Piper

Image
Have you seen the Disney Pixar Short film Piper ?  If not, go watch...I'll wait. :) I watched this movie today with a few of my students who stay after school for "Club Success" (formerly called "tutoring" but this feels way more positive for the kids who are asked to stay). After we watched Piper , we wrote about the movie and then shared our writing. Each of the three students who wrote touched upon the idea that Piper had to learn how to get the food for herself. Some students mentioned the pride she felt after she learned how to survive the big waves and find food.  We talked about the mistakes she made and how they helped her to learn.  I think this video is a MUST WATCH for a few reasons.  1- It really makes you think about the process of learning and how uncomfortable it can feel when you move to trying something new for the first time.  2-Piper learned by her failed attempts and eventually by finding a mentor and trying his strategy. 3-When
Read more

A Working Mom's "I am" Poem #sol15 Day 16

Image
Disclaimer: I have nothing but respect for moms who "stay at home." It is the hardest job.  In my brief stints being a stay at home mom while on maternity leave and on summer vacations, I know that the days are exhausting and challenging.  This poem attempts to capture how I feel about life at the moment, being a third grade teacher and a mom to 2 kids under the age of 5. I am a Working Mom I am exhausted and never done.  I wonder how to find the elusive "work-life" balance  I hear my alarm go off at 3am and trudge downstairs to do the work I couldn't do when the kids were awake I see my work bag,bulging, begging me to finally pay it attention. I want 5 minutes to myself. I am exhausted and never done. I pretend I can do it all I feel the need to eat lots of chocolate I touch my children's soft little cheeks and hug them. I worry I am missing important moments with them. I cry when I feel like I am drowning from it all. I am exhausted and n
Read more

#SOL19 You Can Go Your Own Way

Image
If you were looking at an Identity Web for me right now (Sara K. Ahmed's Being the Change has been on my mind with our recent #twtblog series and a book study/ workshop I facilitated with the Long Island Writing Project), you would see the added role of "Daisy Co-Leader" as another hat (or Girl Scout tunic?) I am wearing. My daughter, Megan, is a kindergarten student and I have signed on to be her Girl Scout troop co-leader. My fabulous friend and colleague (and down the street neighbor!) is the leader of the troop and she is everything you've ever dreamed of in a Daisy troop leader- enthusiastic, creative, organized, kind, thoughtful, and ambitious. Our troop has done A LOT in our short six months together.  Last night was another Daisy event. We met up with other Girl Scouts from our town and the town right next to us for a "Paint Night." Each girl got a canvas and paints and was instructed, step by step, on how to make a snowman in a winter sc
Read more