...Tenure: A Hot Bed of Controversy by Kirstie Cook 10 October, 2012 English 13 Block 4 A/C Mr. Tress Many people believe that tenure is a great thing that can help protect our teachers from being fired for the wrong reasons. Within this opinion lies the real problem. Tenure started as something that would allow teachers to teach things that were controversial at the time, such as Huck Fin, without having to fear being fired because of a parents outrage (Stephy, pg.1). Now it is next to impossible to fire a teacher. The problem with tenure is that it has become a way to protect the incompetent from being fired. One California school board spent $8,000 to fire an instructor who preferred using R-rated movies instead of books (Stephy, pg.1). Tenure needs to be revamped, we do not need to completely abolish it, but we do need to change it on a large scale. Right now it is harder to change tenure then to add an amendment to the constitution. When discussing the causes of tenure you think of a time when teachers could be fired for things such as reading a book a parent doesn’t approve of. It is true that this is how tenure began. It started at the same time labor unions were coming around. The first state to get tenure was New Jersey in 1909, it started as a way to protect teachers for being fired for a cheaper hire (Brody, pg.1). Tenure also started as a way to protect female teachers from being fired for things such as getting married...
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...becoming a teacher in the education field is having teacher tenure. This article reviews the pro and cons to this benefit. Teacher Tenure is a way to provide protection and job security to teachers in the education field. Tenure laws vary from state to state. Normally this benefit is available after a teacher probationary period generally between three to five years. The beginning rights of tenured teachers happened 17 years ago in the Supreme Court case Cleveland Board v. Louderhill. In this hearing the courts stated that non-probationary employees who might be terminated are to be notified of the charges brought against them. They are to be given a fair hearing or trail and evidence is to be a gathered to support the decision. Since then other cases have gone to court over teacher dismissals. The state of Michigan has a lawsuit pending on new Teacher Tenure laws. The new updated law states teacher probationary period to occur for five years. Many people are divided on this issue. Leaving other to wonder what to do with educators who have poor performance but continues to teach in our school systems. Employees can be terminated for several factors: failure on certification, immoral character and insubordination just to name a few. The termination process is lengthier with tenure than a teacher without. Law makers and school board systems are looking into ways to implement stipulations on educators receiving this benefit. The author of the article (Firing a teacher is getting...
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...students. While different types of tests and assessments may be “standardized” in this way, the term is primarily associated with large-scale tests administered to sizeable populations of students. Standardized tests comprise a very important role in student’s education. Many children will take at least one standardized test every year, which means many teachers will spend significant class time on test preparation. The results can reflection the teachers' efforts as well as that of the students. In some states, standardized tests are the yardstick for determining whether a child gets to progress to the next grade level. Many parents want to know the purpose of standardized tests. The answer is that these tests help evaluate the performance of students, teachers, even whole school districts. The results provide information on a child's ability to learn new material, as well as his grasp of the material he's already supposed to understand. With that information, teachers can identify areas where specific students need more attention, while officials can identify the strengths and weaknesses in the approach of a given teacher, school or school district. Of course no test is perfect and some students have difficulty with testing in general, no matter how familiar they are with the material. Many factors can affect a child's performance. Perhaps the coursework she has studied is not represented in the testing material. Maybe she hasn't had a good breakfast or a good...
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...clearly the work of a non-teacher, as the reforms showcased in the film highlight radical change to teaching staff, the dissolving of teachers unions, and the placement of the child’s needs above the adults. What ‘Superman’ got wrong, point by point is (as stated) the rebuttal to the movie from the view of a teacher. The educator who wrote this essay, Rick Ayers, shows his support for teachers unions, the addressing of the curriculum and method that we teach kids and not the people...
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...are the No Child Left Behind under the Bush administration. That 2002 law required states to show yearly progress in the number of students who were proficient in English and math on standardized tests, although it allowed states to measure proficiency in their own ways. (Gabriel, 2011). THe other is President Obama's own signature education initiative, Race to the Top, similarly used federal money to leverage change that many Republicans had long endorsed -- charter schools and teacher evaluations that tied effectiveness in the classroom to tenure. (Gabriel, 2011). The pros of these policies, is that by tying federal money to them, that they appear to raise test scores among students on these standardized tests. Charter schools seem to raise education standards by the fact that most of them have specialized programs aimed at the government standards. I think the cons of these programs are that a good general overall education that children should get is ignored somewhat. In other words, teachers on concentrating more on teaching students so that they can do well on the standardized tests and ignore or gloss over other studies that give kids a well rounded education. These programs seem to be consistent with Cooperative Federalism, where they designed and funded programs, and then left their implementation to the states. (Levin-Waldman, 2012). The programs were designed by federal government, but the states were to determine their efficientcy. In conclusion, this issue is...
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...describes the school’s guiding principles, governance structure, and applicable accountability measures. If approved, the state will fund the charter school on a per pupil basis. Charter schools are tuition-free and open to all students. In this position paper we will postulate the pros and cons of Charter Schools in the state of Kentucky. In closing I will explain my personal stance on the subject of implementing the Charter schools in Kentucky. There are pro-advocates that support the Charter School bill in the state of Kentucky. One point made in support of the Charter school is the fact that funding for the Charter schools are provided by the parents and local community and the state. “Since funding follows the student, charter schools survive only by attracting enough parents to enroll their kids. Money is not wasted on bad schools incapable of convincing parents to enroll their children.” (Garen, 2012) Focusing on the monetary benefits of Charter schools the following statement supports the bill, “Significantly, this means charter school administrators also have far more leeway in hiring and evaluating teachers and setting their compensation and benefits. This is, in part, why the state's teachers unions are so opposed to charter schools, but also why charter schools typically operate with much lower per-pupil costs.” (Houchens, 2012) Student’s individual needs...
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...formulating an opinion whether or not tenure is still necessary, it is important to evaluate the pros and cons of having tenure. Some benefits of tenure protect academic freedom, provide job security, and provide institutions with experienced professors. With those concepts in mind, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the Association of American College and Universities (AAC&U) have agreed on a policy that defines professor’s academic freedom rights and privileges. Undergraduate enrollment is increasing with every passing year and there will be a need for professors for instruction. Some tenure critics say that tenured professors do not keep themselves abreast of trends with higher education affecting the quality...
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...INQUIRY RESEARCH PAPER- MERIT PAY Action Inquiry Research Paper- School Finance Jennifer Ponton Grand Canyon EDA 535 July 01, 2012 Action Inquiry Research Paper- School Finance Statement of the Problem This past spring thousands of teachers protested at the Louisiana State Capital to prevent Louisiana lawmakers from passing an educational reform bill proposed by Governor Bobby Jindall that would change the face of public education in Louisiana forever. Many superintendents and school personnel were relieved of their professional responsibilities on the days they protested hoping that they could sway the governor and the lawmakers from passing the bill. The bill was passed even without the support of many educational leaders and lawmakers in Louisiana. The laws passed by Louisiana lawmakers read like a conservative education reformer’s wish list. Teacher tenure in Louisiana after three years of employment was eliminated and replaced with teachers receiving a “highly effective rating for five out of six consecutive years of teaching. Back to back “ineffective rating will result in a teacher being fired. Seniority will no longer be a dominant factor in layoff decisions. In fact most decisions involving teacher employment and pay will now be the responsibility of both the principal and the superintendent of school. Before Governor Jindall’s reform plan it was the responsibility of the local school board. The reform proposed by the governor goes well beyond...
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...MGMT 591 11/9/2014 Case Study: Building a Coalition Dr. Anne Hallcom Case Study: Building a Coalition for Woodson Foundation The Woodson Foundation, a large nonprofit social service agency, is teaming up with the public school system in Washington, D.C, to improve student outcomes. It appears the schools have problems with truancy, low student performance and crime. The teachers are discouraged to help students due to the disrespect and behavioral issues in the classroom. The turnover rate for the best teachers is high, they tend to leave and go to schools that aren’t as troubled (629). Part 1: Group Development The organization has five stages of group development. In the forming stage they have identified that there is a problem, now the plan is how to drive results. The first stage is bringing the plan forward and forming an executive development team. The team will consist of an HR representative from Woodson, the schools, and the NCPIE. This team’s responsibility is developing an operating plan for improving school performance. It is expected that representatives from both teams participate. Once this stage is finalized they can move on to the storming stage. The storming stage will consist of conflicts. This is an aggressive way to get to know each other a little better. Once the team has gotten over differences they start the norming stage. In this stage they realized although they have differences they still share things in common. The cohesiveness is...
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...each bullet point should be a full sentence. The analysis should be comprehensive, yet concise; there is no minimum or maximum word count. Grammatical and spelling errors will lower your style score. Total value: 22 points. 1A. Please analyze the opportunity: Customer value 1. Who is end user and purchaser/decider? Is this a Pro or con and why? The target market is something the team struggles with throughout the case. The students (Henry and Dana) believe the ideal market is the education market (i.e. elementary school aged children), however the founders believed they should be going after the entertainment market (i.e. junior high and above). Both have sound reasoning for their opinions; however I tend to side with the students that the best approach in the beginning would be to go after the education market because of the inherent benefits available. I will be answering the questions based on the standpoint their target market is the education market. In the education market, the end user would be younger children (elementary school aged children) with the decision maker being their parent or their music teacher at school. By targeting the younger students, MGI can help develop a sense of love and passion for music at an early age in a child, which opens up avenues for more advanced puzzles as the child progresses and becomes older. I think of McDonald’s marketing of the Happy Meal as a way to attract a customer at a young age and then condition...
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...Appendix E Title:Pros and cons of online education for educators and students Author(s):Hadley Leavell , Balasundram Maniam and Sara Lange Nagel Source:International Journal of Business Research. 11.6 (Nov. 2011): p136. From Academic OneFile. Document Type:Report Abstract: Online education offers students an anytime/anywhere method of receiving an advanced knowledge. Proponents point out the increased access will level the playing field for all. This study explores the benefits and issues for those tasked with those who are teaching the students and the students themselves. This study focuses on the higher education faculty and students who enroll in online courses. The pros of online education will be balanced with the possible cons of Internet education versus face-to-face education. Finally, the study also presented the results of student perception of technology use in classroom (traditional as well as online classes). Keywords: Online Education, technology, distance learning, web-based learning 1. INTRODUCTION Higher education started in 1088 in Europe at the University of Bologna and although many changes have occurred, brick and mortar classrooms have been the primary means of education ever since. (Universitas de Bologna). However, the social media changes in the past ten years have altered the landscape more dramatically. The computer has transcended from a data manipulation tool to a means of constant communication between individual and among large groups...
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...education, I spent time as a substitute teacher in grades k through twelve. This was an invaluable experience that provided me with the insider’s advantage of the pros and cons of working in every classroom setting from accelerated to special needs, and small group learning to larger class sizes. I have found that I work well in every class room setting. As a substitute teacher, I was one of the most highly requested in my district. Even my superintendent recognized my work and accomplishments in maintaining classroom management and curriculum in the absence of the teacher and regardless of the length of time of the absence. After a year of “subbing”, I was able to identify that high school grade nine through twelve was the age group that I had the greatest success working with. As I mentioned, I was successful at all ages and grades, however, I was able to overcome challenges and barriers that many other high school teacher had difficulty or inability to overcome. Another indicator was listening to the way that teachers speak of their students. Naturally, elementary school teachers cannot cay enough positive things about their students. It is easier to be forgiving with younger children because you understand and expect them to need redirection and reinforcement. As opposed to older students who teachers expect to have achieved a certain level of learning and behavioral expectation. Unfortunately, I have encountered many high school teacher who don’t speak very highly of their...
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...over the years, including sweeping changes in the curriculum. Many of these changes have originated from the federal No Child Left Behind Legislation (NCLB) legislation to reform educational practices. The main tenet of the change sought to raise reading and math scores on standardized tests. They also included reforms on how teachers are evaluated and how low performing teachers need to be removed. This change has led many principals to struggle with the issues of how to contend with red tape that makes it very difficult if not impossible to remove teachers. In addition they must also fight unions who are struggling to keep their teachers from being dismissed arbitrarily. The issue has become whether or not principals may be using coercive management techniques to persuade teachers to leave. Many principals appear to be engaging in bullying tactics, resulting in a negative work environment that is unconducive to efficiency and impedes the quality of education provided by already overwhelmed instructors. When we examine articles about the ABC school system as well as other school systems across the world we see a pattern emerging. Teachers are struggling to save face, they are being yelled at in front of students and peers, they are constantly being pressured with job termination and denied resources and promotion opportunities. Often support plans are not being put into place where attainable goals are set. Training and...
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...GUJARAT UNIVERSITY SYLLABI OF THREE YEARS LL.B. PROGRAMME WITH CREDIT BASED SYSTEM (As prescribed b y the BAR CO UNCIL OF INDI A and as per the Rules of Legal Education, 2008) Effective from the academic year 2011-12 THREE YEARS’ LL.B. POGRAMME First LL. B. Semester – I FIRST LL.B. - S EMES TER 1 (MONSOON ) PE R WE EK S UBJEC TS LEC TURE S OT HER S T OT AL C RED IT S (SE M)29 CORE COURSE 101 L aw of T ort i ncludi ng MV A cci dent And C on sum er Pr ot ecti on Law s 4 1 5 5 CORE COURSE 102 Crim in al Law P aper – I (General P rinci pl es of P en al Law ) 4 1 5 5 4 1 5 5 4 1 5 5 4 1 5 5 1 1 2 2 1 1 2 2 CORE COURSE 103 CORE COURSE 104 CORE COURSE 105 FOUNDATIO N 106 F SOFT S KILL 107 K Crim in al Law P aper – II (S pec ific Off enc es) L aw of C ont ract S peci al C ontr act C on sti tuti on al Hist ory of I ndi a Use of Law J ournal s and L egal S oftw ar e 1 Semester – I Monsoon Semester CORE CO URSE 101 : LAW OF TO RT I NCLUDI NG M V ACCI DENT AND CO NS UM ER P ROTECTION LAWS Objectives of the Course : Wit h rap id industrializat ion, to rt actio n came to u sed again st manu factu rers and industrial un it fo r p roducts injurious to human beings. Present ly the emphas is is o n extend ing th e principles no t only to acts, which are h armfu l, bu t also to failu re to co mply with stand ards that are continuously...
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...ECONOMICS _____________________________________________________________________________________ WEEK 1: HOW ECONOMISTS THINK * What are preferences? Preferences refer to all of the objectives an individual wants to achieve that might motivate a choice among a set of alternatives. * What does it mean for an individual’s preferences to be rational? Please explain the concepts of costs and benefits and the reasoning process used by a rational individual. A rational individual will try to make the best possible use of his/her scarce resources, usually choosing an activity that has the highest utility. Rational preferences possess 2 properties, which are completeness and transitivity. Completeness means that choices can be ranked in an order of preference. For instance, an individual will have a preference when faced with two choices. Transitivity means actions can be compared with other actions. As an example, if action a is preferred to b, and action b is preferred to c, then a is preferred to c. A benefit is the maximum unit of currency amount you would be willing to pay to do x, while the cost is the value of all the resources you must give up in order to do x. The cost-benefit approach to decisions states that an individual should do an activity x if the benefit exceeds the cost. Relating to cost, in the process of coming up with a decision, a rational individual will take into account opportunity costs and ignore sunk costs. * New theories argue that...
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