What are the qualities of a good teacher? Is there some kind of list or formula a good teacher can follow to ensure they are doing their job well? Not really. But some good qualities seem universal amongst effective teachers, and I will break those down for you. Now, I am just some dude on …
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Teachers are used to having to beg, borrow, and cry for much needed classroom supplies. And these aren’t just cute decorations they’re trying to get their hands on. We’re talking about classroom essentials like paper, pre sharpened pencils, and even books. While people might realize that school districts don’t always give teachers school supplies, they …
A Difficult Job Gets Even Harder So much about what and how teachers can teach kids is under tight control, including what is on school library shelves and classroom shelves. The curriculum in most school districts is practically scripted, which goes against the reason most people become teachers in the first place. A huge aspect …
In May 2022, I posted the terrible story of Kim Burns-Fisher, a middle school English teacher who was viciously attacked by a student, which caused permanent brain damage, amongst other serious injuries. In case you don’t know the whole story, here is a quick summary: Burns-Fisher taught a student who had 14 prior violent incidents …
There is so much to unpack about what happened at Richneck, with many questions lingering in all our minds. And while I know a lot of what happened on that awful day, the full story is not mine to tell, and I will leave the details up to Abby and official statements. It’s her narrative, …
You’ve likely heard all about this “new” and “shocking” teacher shortage happening around the country. But this shortage is nothing new. In fact, the seeds for this current teacher shortage were planted years ago. Teacher Shortage 2022 “Suddenly” the U.S. has a serious shortage of teachers. Somewhere around 300,000 staff vacancies (over 50K of them …
Violent and destructive student behavior continues to get worse in schools across the nation, and current consequences do not seem to be stopping the behavior. Can schools and districts properly handle outrageous behavior before things become out of control? Restorative Justice in Schools In 2018, I wrote about the alarming lack of consequences for violent …
The issues of Common Core State Standards (curriculum standards for the nation), and the PARCC standardized testing that is administered to check those standards, are extremely complicated. It is a matter of how far down the rabbit hole one wishes to go. I will introduce you to the essential facts of Common Core standardized testing, …
It’s hard to get an accurate number of the average teacher salary by state in America. Data for each state is published by many different agencies and organizations every year, and none of it is exactly the same. In the same year, you may see one source claim that South Dakota has the lowest teacher …
The school nurse shortage in America and elsewhere continues to get worse with no good (or appropriate) solutions in sight. Despite teachers and school nurses all reaching high levels of burnout, one government’s solution to address the school nurse shortage is potentially downright dangerous. School Nurse Shortage The amount of things that teachers are expected …
Student aggression in the classroom happens all too often despite a teacher’s warnings about a violent student. Later when a student attacks a teacher, the teacher is often blamed for the incident. The following is about a teacher who suffered severe injury from one such violent student assault. Early Concerns with a Violent Student Kim …
The sky is blue. Water is wet. And Florida is up to some regressive political nonsense again. This time, they’ve crafted an education bill deceptively titled “Parental Rights in Education,” otherwise known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. What is the Don’t Say Gay Bill? For those who are not familiar, Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” …