The "Children First" slogan espoused by the NYCDOE and all it's sycophantical toadies is such a load of bullshit. Well, yeah, that's not a major revelation, now is it?I have just spent this rotation, since December 4, co-teaching with another ATR, A 5th grade class. Including myself and the ATR this class was on it's 3rd teacher this year. The teacher they had at the beginning of the year suddenly quit. That teacher was replaced by an ATR who was rotated out and then us. On Monday, teacher(s) #4 take over.
So one wonders why this is a rough class? I had to spend time not only building trust but building and maintaining my expectations along with catching the students up with the rest of the students in their grade.These students are 5th graders in the Bronx. The are brought into this world to be skeptical, to know the difference between shit and shinola.
Then there was Danny Noonan. Danny is ADHD and smart as a whip. He, alone among his classmates, would call out the utter bullshit that they have not had consistency in their classroom's teaching position the entire school year. He was right.
Danny was a challenge. He challenged and tested me right up until the end. The first week with him was tough. But I was me did what I had to do and his outbursts and temper was soon few and far between. I saw some of my when I was in 5th grade and I wasn't going to let Danny down.
I think things came to a head with him earlier this week. After weeks of being firm, yet compassionate during his disruptions with Danny I had to try a different tact. The day before the AP suggested that I call mom. With this outburst I told Danny I had no choice but to call mom. As I was walking out the door he pushed the door shut almost catching my fingers my thismuch.
Mom came in and we talked. She told me that too many teachers had given up on him. I told her that I will not give up on him (even knowing in the back of my head this was my last week). I think I finally got through to Danny. He finally felt safe.
Thursday night I got the email telling me to report to a new school this Monday. I told the class first thing yesterday morning. Danny wasn't there. He was late as usual. At about 8:40 I saw him walking down the hall and I told him outside the class one to one that I was not coming back.
He was stoic. Maybe too stoic. I saw the look in his eyes. Then with about 20 minutes left in the day there was a major meltdown.
I'm not blaming the principal at all. The principal of this school is a damn good principal. It's Tweed. It's the system. Its the fair student funding bullshit. Not all principals want the newbs.
This blaming the teachers and laying waste to ATR's needs to stop and stop now. The Susan Edelmans, the Eva Moskowitzs, the New York Posts of the world and all like those need to open their fucking eyes and look at how the people who are in charge are laying waste to education.Not to mention the con artists from within, like the UFT, and Mulgrew and Fuckface von Clownstick who is nothing more than Professor Harold Hill in manipulating ATR's and offering false hope and empty promises and now has decided to turn teacher against teacher.
The Danny Noonans of the NYCDOE are being adversely affected. Don't they deserve a system that everyone works together for them?
I had a hard time being an atr. I hated being at a school that I liked and then being pushed to another school, ripped from the one I had grown to like. The dumbest ide in education history is having this stupid atr pool. All atrs should join in on a law suite being brought about with attorney Brian glass. Hit him up. Sue the doevil yo be fair. Hit them where it hurts. Fight not only for yourselves but the children of this city
ReplyDeleteI have 100% faith in Bryan. He has integrity and morals. I do not trust, nor should anyone, the messenger behind and leading this ATR suit. It will go nowhere. But that is a blog post for another day.
ReplyDeleteThat last contract should never have been voted on because it did not demand an end to the ATR pool or a return to the classroom for all affected.
ReplyDeleteIn a way, the last contract did have a way to end the ATR pool but not to the betterment of the ATR's. We really can't trust the union to negotiate or bring this matter up IMHO. They'll fuck it up more.
ReplyDeleteHope you changed the name to protect the innocent and yourself. You are absolutely right, this ATR thing needs to stop because the children have become collateral damage. This post illustrates the damage done to children and though you come off as stoic yourself, I know it is ripping you up inside that you had to leave your students. Moving forward you will be less likely to bond with the students because you don’t want to feel that pain of leaving them to an unknown situation. Our children can see that the system doesn’t care about them and that will impact them moving forward. That young man you were working with will also be less likely to trust or bond with the next teacher because the child too wants to avoid the pain of losing a teacher. The ATR situation hurts children and teachers alike. Being an ATR made me extremely distant with the students because I knew that at any time I would be rotated out. Every time a teacher rotates out they leaving behind their students and the students are left in limbo.
ReplyDeleteDanny Noonan is the main character from Caddyshack. https://youtu.be/OophxEckcu0
DeleteAt least you got to teach the same kids daily. I’m in a war zone since 11/4. 4 teachers have quit and there’s teachers absent every day. 2 went out in ambulances with breakdowns. Now I’m here until mid April. It’s a fucking hellhole.
ReplyDeleteAnd that cocksucker Sill and his milk fed hominid do nothing to help anyone!
ReplyDeleteWho is the milk fed hominid?
DeleteRaj
DeleteOh that guy??? I thought his name is Hoz or something like that.
DeleteOh, I’m so pissed at him.
Don’t even get me started on those two bozos. They have fucked over more ATRs than Weinstein and Simmons have aspiring starlets. They are reason #1 and 2 I will not being paying dues when the time arrives.
DeleteI am an ATR social worker and the DOE has decided to leave the social workers in a school for one year at a time. This is worse! Imagine working as a social worker with students for one whole year, working out the kinks and making your way into the trust of students, bonding with many many students, open ended issues regarding students and their families and then.....yep...
ReplyDeleteThe genius DOE moves us right out of there into a brand new school and now I do not know anyone....no staff, no students just another warm body in the building wasting away as my former students ponder what happened to that great social worker I have been working with and why did that person abandon me! So sad that the DOE would even consider using the tag line..students first.....excuse me....lollollololol crock.
mikey bloomberg created the fair student funding formula which created the atr pool and now this midget of a man sits with a 35 billion dollar empire. how is it that bloomberg moved into the mayors office worth 5 billion in 2002 and left office in 2012 worth 35 billion?
ReplyDeleteIf the UFT want my dues they better fix the ATR bullshit and that means the Fair Student Funding bullshit. Otherwise they can forget about me handing over $1400 a year to a bunch of fat slobs in tight suits.
ReplyDelete