The Bad Manners Behind Bashing Educators

The other day I posted my resume in a professional forum looking to pick up some extra education work. As an educational consultant, I personally know the economy is very slow; contracts are hard to find. However, I love what I do, I love working in education, and these slowdowns come with the territory.

Anyway, there is always one a$$ clown who feels they have the right to denigrate you because you simply because you are an educator, you many degrees, and because you are not looking for work in sales. Do not get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with sales, but if you have explicitly said you are not interested in sales, what gives someone the right to say “you are an over educated dinosaur” because I do not want to sell products? (Please do not say everything in life is sales because that is not true)

It turns out that I am considered over educated, that the years of hard work improving myself to better help my students is not always appreciated. Since when is it bad to have a lot of education, in any field? Since when did we have to start dumbing down our achievements to be accepted?

This is a symptom of educator bashing. This is what happens when non-professionals think they can tell you how to do your profession. This is what happens when the people running your profession do not always have your best interests at heart and are more interested in just the bottom line, when hiring managers are passing over highly experienced and educated people for those without as much, because we are worried about having to pay them a little more!

Time to share some links now:

“Dumbing Down Our Kids: Why American Children Feel Good About Themselves But Can't Read, Write, or Add” http://www.amazon.com/Dumbing-Down-Our-Kids-Themselves/dp/0312148232

“-Why our kids rank to, or at the bottom of international tests in math and science
-Why "self-esteem" has supplanted grades and genuine achievements
-How the educational establishment lowers standards and quality in our schools-while continuing to raise their budgets and our school taxes
-The dumbing down of the curriculum so everyone can pass-but no one excel
-How parents, students, and teachers can evaluate schools and restore quality learning”

Educator's Letter to Oprah -- 'Ask teachers. http://www.nea.org/home/educators-letter-to-oprah.html

“Oprah’s show heavily promoted the release of Davis Guggenheim’s Waiting for Superman documentary but what it was not heavy on was inclusion of public school teachers. In fact, there were no teachers included on the panel. Instead, viewers heard only from Guggenheim, D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, charter school founder Geoffrey Canada and Microsoft magnate Bill Gates”.

A Warning to Young People: Don't Become a Teacher http://www.huffingtonpost.com/randy-turner/a-warning-to-young-people_b_3033304.html

“After all, what other profession would allow me to make $37,000 a year after 14 years of experience and have people tell me how greedy I am?”

 

Today’s blog is written out of disgust and frustration. Disgust in the rudeness some people feel they can say too me (of course they hide behind email), frustration in a system that seems to be getting worse but yet the solutions are right in front of us.

We can solve many problems if we include educators in the conversation. There is no doubt that things need to change, however, being rude to educators is not the answer. This is what is happening; very bad manners.

Dr Flavius A B Akerele III

The ETeam