‘Creative ... motivating’ and fired

[proud2BlibKansan]

By the end of her second year at MacFarland Middle School, fifth-grade teacher Sarah Wysocki was coming into her own.

“It is a pleasure to visit a classroom in which the elements of sound teaching, motivated students and a positive learning environment are so effectively combined,” Assistant Principal Kennard Branch wrote in her May 2011 evaluation.

He urged Wysocki to share her methods with colleagues at the D.C. public school. Other observations of her classroom that year yielded good ratings.

Two months later, she was fired.

more . . . http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/creative--motivating-and-fired/2012/02/04/gIQAwzZpvR_story.html

[elleng]

1. Can't STAND to read this!

Sent daughters to private + parochial schools in DC + suburbs, and PRAY they'll be able to find decent schools for their kids.

[Smarmie Doofus]

2. Ugh: Rhee. Oy: Gate$. They have one valid point here:

>>> They also contend that classroom observations by school administrators can easily be colored by personal sentiments or grudges.>>>>

This much is true. And it invariably politicizes the professional environment in the school building.


"Value added" is no solution to the above. But there must be some pilots in place where third parties can come in from outside the school and dispassionately evaluate pedagogy. With controls in place to keep the process from being corrupted by $ and/or politicized.

If there aren't, there OUGHT to be.