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"Our first interaction with Brian Williams was when we walked out on stage. He introduced us, getting my subject wrong, and the program began. All three of us used our first opportunity to speak to lay the ground for key points we assumed we would discuss later. The next thing we knew, they were going to the audience. During the commercial break, I asked Williams if we would have a chance to respond to the audience, and he said we would. He came back to me with the next question, and then before we knew it, we were being ushered off stage. That was it. Not a single chance for any of us to respond to each other or share anything of real substance with the audience or the nation. As the event continued — and it got eaten up by rapid-fire comments from the audience in which everyone just tried to get their voice heard without really listening or responding to each other — the nine of us realized that we had just been pawns for the news media that have little interest in intelligent discourse, the very discourse that teachers teach their students and partake in everyday. I should have known better.
I figured that was the end of my experience, but I got a call Sunday night to go be a part of the “expert” panel on teacher recruitment, retention, and evaluation. I was not invited to be on the panel, but was told I would be in the first row and would have the chance to respond. Since I could attend without missing a class and it was on my way home anyway, I agreed to attend. After the Town Hall, I had low expectations, but I thought I would at least have a chance to speak up for the support and training new teachers need to be successful. I should have known better."
That is shocking.
This deserves a kick and rec.
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