Fighting for Our Teachers

Honoring the teachers of America. National edu...
Honoring the teachers of America. National education association; 1857-1957. United States postage, 3 cents (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Over the last few months, several school systems have been in the news due to protests over unfair contracts, standardize testing and teachers being asked to compromise the quality of their teaching for the quantity of students being graduated.  As an educator, I find this greatly disturbing!
  
Thing is, this isn't just a problem in the US.  Teachers around the world are under fire from school boards, government agencies and the media.  Just a few examples to consider:
What is happening in our world?  Why are teachers being undermined?  Why are students being persecuted?  Why are parents being lied to?

I don't know the answer to these questions, but I do know that my heart tells me that something is very wrong.  

Today, the Poem-a-Day challenge was to write a "broke poem."  Here's mine.



Busted, Breached, Bankrupt, and Beat! Oh my!


Entering the halls of academia
has become a task gargantuan -
tests created by computers programmed
to find the chinks in students' armor
have successfully caused an avalanche
of closures with students and teachers left far behind.

To add insult to injury, the mega-giants of
commerce and finance have pushed for
testing teachers with the same genius computers,
leading to an end of creativity, spontaneous learning
and critical thinking, which the corporate Goliaths see as DANGEROUS!
And, threatening to their profit margins.

Truth is, education is broke -
Kaput - fractured into millions of pieces.
Parents, students, teachers reel at the lockdowns,
lockouts, rip offs and lies that hold them prisoner.
The verdict is still out - can Education be fixed?
Can the mouse outsmart the cat?

By Linda M. Rhinehart Neas © 2013

May the powers that be have the sense enough to stop this insanity, giving all people the right to an education that enables them to be the best they can be.

Namasté! 
 
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Comments

Kath Fearing said…
As a writer and an educator I find it so very destructive to our society that creativity and the arts and imagination (problem solving) are viewed as not important to our children. What can we do? Spread the word that this is not the answer to our educational problems. Education is a universal experience. Children need to be exposed to many different ways of thinking to have successful lives. Keep spreading the word.
April 13, 2013 at 7:43 AM
Rev. Linda said…
Thanks, Kath! Yes, please spread the word. AND, if anyone hears of other protests, please feel free to send us the link so we can let the world know.

Blessings!
April 13, 2013 at 9:51 AM
Phila Hoopes said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
May 3, 2013 at 12:23 PM
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