Comments on NYC Educator: Teachers and Principals Behaving Badly

Glad someone made the correction about the parent ...

2012-01-12T22:30:40.669-05:00

Glad someone made the correction about the parent coordinator. However, I have to agree with Susan on this. We have seen principals getting away with inappropriate behavior with a slap on the wrist. The principal who made inappropriate comments is the latest example.

You will find stories like this all over the US, and even though it is a very small percentage of teachers who are reprehensible, the media does everything they can to label all teachers the same way.

I am sure the teachers in each and every school are aware of the bad apples, but they are powerless. The UFT gave up the rights of teachers to help select new teachers rendering our opinions useless. This is why any new evaluation system must be fair, balanced, not include a large percentage based on test scores, and should include teachers in the process of evaluating their peers. However these teachers must be elected by the staff not appointed and each year new elections should be held.

In any group of people this large, there will alwa...

2012-01-12T16:16:39.418-05:00

In any group of people this large, there will always be stories like these. What bothers me is when everyone else is stereotyped by them. When I was younger, I used to hear people say things like, "The bad ones spoil it for the good ones," as a thin rationale for racism. But it's inevitable there will be stories like these, and as you say, it's a very small portion and thankfully, not representative of who we are or what we do.

The problem is there is a double standard between ...

2012-01-12T14:31:51.931-05:00

The problem is there is a double standard between teachers and principals. Teachers are typically swiftly removed for improprieties, while principals get promoted, reassigned, or even demoted once in a while. They don't usually lose their jobs. That's what I get irate about because I know it to be true.

I agree completely, Miss Eyre, but just one minor ...

2012-01-12T08:27:26.018-05:00

I agree completely, Miss Eyre, but just one minor correction: the employee who falsified a death certificate was a parent coordinator, not a teacher... unless you consider parent coordinators teachers (which would be an interesting piece to read).