We had a mandatory meeting with the principal today regarding the dreadful writing scores. Somehow, it feels wrong to have the blame placed in my lap. Frankly, based on the evidence, I would have been able to predict who of my students would pass, who would fail. I don't want to sound like a whiner, but why is it my fault that students who have been doing poorly for years wind up failing the proficiency test?

The news, though, is bad. Only something like 39 percent of the students who took the test passed it. That number has dropped since 2008. then, over 65 percent passed the writing proficiency. So, why the drop?

So, I am being asked to tell my principal what I am going to do to get the students to pass. Hmmm....hold them captive? take the test for them? force them to do the work? I don't know what the right approach is. I go in every day wishing that the planned lesson I present grabs their attention. Often times it does not, yet I show up every day trying. I am making no progress. What am I going to do? Talk to these kids and say, "If you want to pass the proficiency in writing test, you better do what I teach. Write every day and stop telling me you have nothing else to write. Expand your horizons."

Sure hope that approach works.

Where are the jobs? Just today I was reading about how more teaching jobs will evaporate because stimulus money is not available. I hope my daughter finds work in a school, but what will I do next year?

Living alone has its benefits. I can do what I want when I want. The prospect of being here next year is less difficult to imagine than it was two months ago. I already have a place and a job. I've done the hard work already -- planning a class in any school for the first time is a very time consuming job. Doing it a second year in a row? Not too hard. Still, I'd like to be home -- and employed.

I hate that I'm approaching 50 and I am still worrying about employment. I think there are still about 17 more years for me to work before I can retire with benefits. But where are the jobs?

A nook for baby books? Really?

Nook is a great idea, but there really is no replacing the hands-on feeling of a real, live book. this is especially true for kids. I think they need to experience the book, not see it as though it's a TV. I am just too old fashioned, I guess.

Back to my own book.

What's more important: getting kids to pass school or getting them to learn?

I wonder about the education system. We pass the good, quiet kids along without pushing them to reach new heights while we pass the quiet kids with weak skills along because we feel bad that it would damage their psyche if we held them back. Perhaps it's time to reconsider the one room school house. Students moved forward when they were ready, not when their age indicated they needed to be at a certain level.

I have senior students in high school who cannot read well. I also receive pressure to get them to pass. At the same time, I was at a faculty meeting where the staff was told that they are not holding the bar high enough. Furthermore, the deans in the school are too focused on the legal parts of their job. As a teacher, I am only interested in the academic portion of my job. So, the deans and I don't see eye-to-eye because of the nature of our jobs.

American education needs a change but I don't think it's going to happen.

Schools know there are kids who cannot read. I want to know why they cannot do something about it. I have seniors in high school failing my English class because they can't read but there is nothing in place to help them learn. If my school is on a fantastic voyage, why isn't anyone checking to see what can help these kids?

the books we give weak students are too hard to read thereby inviting them to fail again. Why is illiteracy a dirty little topic that no one wants to address. Seriously, if a kid can't read, what direction is that kid going to go?

I spend a large part of my day dealing with unruly children. I want them removed so the kids who actually want to learn are in an environment where they can learn. If schools want the students to do better, why don't we halt everything else and teach kids to read? If we don't take the time to do it when we see it needs doing, we're doing nothing but stealing money from tax payer pockets.

It's time to make real change in schools. Let kids learn at their pace. If a kid is in 5th grade with a first grade reading level, focus on improving the reading so he or she can improve instead of making the kid feel dumb all the time. Kids can learn if they are given the tools they need. Some just need time.

What to do when I really don't like a student? What to do when that same student creates a toxic environment in the class? What to do when that student acknowledges that he is a disruption in the class then says that behavior cannot be a part of the grade? What to do about the others who want to learn and have a good learning environment when others in the class impede their learning?

I am stuck.

My gut feeling is that this particular student, based on the evidence he has given me, is weak academically. Nevertheless, he feels that the weakness is mine, not his. As a result, his frustration works its way into the class and creates a feeling of unease within me. I have brought this weakness up to the people around him, but they disregard the issue. They just think the problem is his unwillingness to listen when he is mad. I suspect that is part of the problem. In fact, I suspect that is why this student is a weak student in the first place. He has spent a lot of time angry. By his own admission, he stops listening when he's mad. By his own admission his anger issues have given him trouble in the past. Unfortunately, he is unable to accept his own responsibility in this matter. Until he does, I have a class of students who are not growing.

What to do?

I did something yesterday that I've never done before. I reported the head of my department to our immediate supervisor.

When I was waiting to get clearance from Las Vegas, I tried to get information about the classes I would be teaching so when I arrived in the district, I would be ready. The head of the English department never bothered to get in touch with me. Once I arrived, she did nothing to help me learn the ropes. I feel as though I am supposed to learn from osmosis. When I requested books for the seniors, she told me she would have one of her aides get them for me. So, I gave her the number of books I needed and the aides delivered the books. That was nice. However, when I went to return the books she gave me a bit of grief because I didn't let her know how many books I had taken from the book room. When I indicated that it was her aide who got the books in the first place, she didn't seem to understand how that translated to her prior knowledge.

The English department has no butcher paper that isn't brown. The social studies department has pink, green, white and brown. So, I requested the English dept. head get some white paper. She claimed we couldn't. When I investigated further, I learned that there was plenty of white paper around. Although the paper has not yet been delivered to the English dept. room, I know if I push the issue I will get some. But why does it have to be the new person?

I asked the head of the dept. if there was a midterm. She said no. However, there is a final in January (how fucked up is Nevada that it calls a middle of the year exam a final?). When did I find out? November 1st. Furthermore, I learned that 90% of what was on that exam had to link up with what was on the other World Literature teacher's exams. Isn't November first a little late to convey that information?

Then there's the World Lit. meetings. I was not attending because I did not know they were taking place. Isn't it the department head's job to ensure that I am there? Really, I am just across the hall -- get off your fat ass and get me to the meeting. I just attended my first world lit meeting this past Monday.

So, I feel bad about reporting her, but too bad.