So you can do my job better than I can, huh?

Work is work. Yeah. That's about as profound as this blog is going to get. But let me rant for a few minutes will ya?

Every job out there has its difficulties. Whether you're a professional athlete making a bazillion dollars a year, or a waitress at the Waffle House or anything in between, your WORK is going to be difficult at times. That's kind of a given. That's why I try REALLY hard to be patient with people that I encounter (although I will admit I fall EXTREMELY short in the patience area MANY times) out in public. For example, the little lady working in the deli at Walmart. I could NOT make her understand that I only wanted ONE SPOONFUL of coleslaw. NOT a whole bowl full. Just one SPOONFUL. I said it FOUR times. She just couldn't seem to understand what I was saying. Finally, on the fifth try, I said "Ma'am." and I waited til she was looking at me. "I am eating one hotdog. I only want enough coleslaw for that one hotdog. One scoop. That's it."  Her response? "Oh. ok."
I mean really. Five times I have to say that before it finally sank in???
I was very frustrated. How could somebody be so dense? How could somebody... But then I had to stop myself. I don't know what her deal was. I don't know what kind of day she had been having. I don't know what kind of crap she may have been going through in her life. Was a scoop of coleslaw worth me getting bent out of shape about? Nah.  Could I do her job better than she was doing it? Maybe. Would I WANT to do her job? NOPE!

My point? you ask...ok. Here tis....

I am SICK TO DEATH of people who think they can do my job SO much better than I can!!!!
Here are some things I know:

1. I am NOT the greatest teacher to ever walk into a class room. I haven't won any awards or graced the cover of any magazines. I haven't been written up in any educational journals for my innovative teaching practices. I haven't had any streets, buildings, or libraries named after me. BUT...I AM a decent teacher. I am constantly on the lookout for new things I can do in my class room to help students. When something doesn't work, I will punt it and try something different. I am willing to do WHATEVER I CAN to help a student who really wants help. I care about my kids.

2. Not just anybody off the street can deal with 110 seventh graders five days a week. I seem to always get the same response when someone asks me what I do for a living. "I teach 7th grade language arts."  "Ohhh....wow..." They say with this look of horror on their face. Seventh grade is a TOUGH year. There are SO MANY changes going on with those young uns.  Hormones are usually BLARING by that time. And that's why I LOVE middle school. Every day is different! Heck, every CLASS is different. But I've just got to tell ya...you have to LOVE this age group to work with them every day because if you don't, they will flat drive you INSANE!!! And I do... I love this age group. Even with all the rediculous, quirky, sometimes downright stupid behavior. I love them. The idea of teaching elementary or high school gives me the heeby jeebies (probably not a real word, but I bet you know what I mean!)

3. Teenagers (especially young ones) are, at best, embellishers of the truth. (most are just flat out liars)They are NOT going to tell their parents the WHOLE truth. (Just a reminder here...I have three children of my own...been there...know what I'm talking about!!) Teens will say whatever they think they need to say to keep their tiny hineys out of trouble!!Forget the fact that the words spewing from their mouths are about as far from the truth as any spoken words could ever be!!

4. There are some crappy teachers out there. Just like there are crappy doctors, and lawyers, and secretaries, and assembly line workers. There are some teachers who just need to retire or go work in a sock factory or SOMETHING. I totally understand this. There are some teachers who are mean. They look and act like they drink pickle juice every morning, and they take out all their frustrations on their students. Now granted, I have bad days. And there are some times when my kids KNOW they better just sit down and shut up or bad things are going to happen. But I do make a conscious effort not to have too many of those days.

5. The education system in our country is on a downward spiral. More than ever before, we are expected to do more with less. Our funding is getting cut more and more each year. But the "standards" and expectations for our students are raised every year. In my class, students have to be able to read (both literary and non-fiction works) and fully comprehend what they have read, write persuasive essays, analysis of literature, and expository pieces, do research using technology and report on their findings,   have a full command of the conventions of English, and be able to speak and listen in a variety of different environments. And that's just the basic stuff. And here's the kicker. Many of my students can't write a basic sentence!! And even worse than that...THEY. DON'T. CARE. I pour my heart into a lesson. I do everything I can to make it as easy to understand as possible. I use different strategies to help explain a concept.  I overly emphasize how important the particular lesson is.
And I have a dozen kids who come in without their homework. And they don't care.

And here's where I get pissed off...Oooo...sorry...shouldn't have said that.
But I do...can't help it.

I, and other teachers I work with, put everything we have into what we do every day. We try SO HARD to help kids and make a difference. And then we get the phone call or the email blasting us because Little Johnny is FAILING our class. How DARE we give precious Little Johnny an F!!
If we cared about Little Johnny, we would do a better job making sure he understood what we were doing in class. Johnny has ALWAYS made good grades before, and now he's FAILING. The problem HAS to be US!!  We have our teaching methods called into question by people who have never set foot in our classrooms! We are automatically labeled as the "problem" when in actuality, Little Johnny boy has four missing assignments and a 23 on a test that he had three weeks to study for! And we haven't even mentioned the fact that John-boy is CONSTANTLY turned around talking, or sticking a pencil in his ear or up his nose, or throwing paper airplanes at his neighbor. (and remember...I teach SEVENTH GRADE!) It doesn't matter....I'M the problem!

Ladies and gentlemen, parents, PLEASE understand a couple of things:
1. We teachers are ON YOUR SIDE. We want what's best for your child too! We are NOT "out to get" your son or daughter. We are trying with all our might to help prepare your little precious one for life! As I said before, we are not perfect. None of us are. We make mistakes. However, when we make one, we are usually pretty willing to admit it and do what we can to correct it. We just ask that you get the whole picture before you jump to attack mode. We ARE NOT THE ENEMY!

2. Failure IS an option. If your child doesn't do the work, he/she is going to fail. That's real life. Now we are going to do EVERYTHING we can...give all the chances we can...push, pull, tug, threaten, coerce, and coddle your child into doing what he/she is supposed to do. But if your kid doesn't do his work, he will fail. It's that simple. And that's not my fault. Nor is it yours.

So, if you still think you can do a better job than I can....I invite you to come on. Just make sure you have your thickest skin, your steadiest nerves, and your sharpest eye...cause you're gonna need 'em.