Dr Flavius Akerele III's The E Team Education blog

As an educator, when I see a wrong fact I feel I must educate. In addition, if I am wrong I have to problem admitting when I wrong because we learn something new every day. I am a biker, not a hidden fact, and I try and be a student of history. I responded to this story today by Charles Fleming of the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-easy-rider-captain-america-bike-sold-20141019-story.html I simply reminded him of know facts that the true and original builders were never credited. Apparently Charles Fleming LA Times has no manners, apparently he feels it is appropriate to respond to a polite suggestion from a reader with a rude and ignorant statement. Here is the exchange: “From Fleming, Charles Charles.Fleming@latimes.com” “To: Flavius Akerele” “You insult me, in your own ignorance. I did my research. We didn’t have room to include every fact in this strange, long story. I reached out to Vaughs, tracked him down, and emaile...

Coincidentally, I had been thinking about two subjects this morning when I found these two articles I am going to share. I have been thinking about all the good things that happen in education because of the recent field day the media has been having with a teacher who had sex with a student: news flash most teachers do not do that so do not condemn the whole profession. “Why Do We Ignore All That Is Good in Education?” “If there is one teacher in a system that has an affair with his/her student, it gets reported on.” “When 1 in some random huge amount perpetrates a scandal, it gets recognized and publicized.” “If one didn't know better, one would say that the media and government want the world to think ill of teachers, or why else would there be such a focus on the few who do bad things.” “Let's face it, if journalists go on an expedition to find the unsavory aspects of teaching, they'll find it. It's always there, just like in every pr...

“Steep Drops Seen in Teacher-Prep Enrollment Numbers” “California and other big states particularly hard hit, raising supply concerns” “Massive changes to the profession, coupled with budget woes, appear to be shaking the image of teaching as a stable, engaging career. Nationwide, enrollments in university teacher-preparation programs have fallen by about 10 percent from 2004 to 2012, according to federal estimates from the U.S. Department of Education's postsecondary data collection.” “Some large states, like heavyweight California, appear to have been particularly hard hit. The Golden State lost some 22,000 teacher-prep enrollments, or 53 percent, between 2008-09 and 2012-13, according to a report its credentialing body issued earlier this month.” “Though the decline is probably due to a multitude of factors, the reason topping many analysts' list is the budget crunch that hit the nation in 2008. In California, Ms. Sandy believes that the state'...

“The Adjunct Crisis Is Everyone’s Problem” By Sarah Kendzior “In 2012, I got my Ph.D. and left academia with no regrets. Like all decisions based on financial stability, it was not so much a decision as a reaction.” “Academia, I had discovered, was not an industry in which one works for pay but one in which you must pay to work. New Ph.D.’s are expected to move around the country in temporary postdocs or visiting professor jobs until finding tenure-track positions -- financially impossible for me as a mother of two – or stay where they are and work as adjuncts with no job security and an average wage of $2,700 per course. While making an income below the poverty line, a new Ph.D. is expected to spend thousands of dollars on job interviews at conferences in expensive cities and write paywalled papers for free.” “Labor exploitation is not the new normal. Adjunct professors are distinct from other low-wage contract workers only by virtue of degree – that is, the...

No doubt Ebola is a deadly disease, and no doubt some countries are suffering from this (more because of the inconveniences). However, since when did we become afraid of our own shadow in the United Stated? Since when have we reacted so badly to every possible scary thing that passes us? Educators should know better, but we are not immune to the chicken disease it seems (yes I said chicken). “Rejecting All Nigerians?” “Nigerians and others are expressing outrage after letters surfaced from Navarro College, a community college in Texas, saying that all applicants from countries with confirmed Ebola cases were being rejected.” “The letters were sent to several applicants from Nigeria by Elizabeth Pillans, director of international programs at the college. The letters said: "Navarro College is not accepting international students from countries with confirmed Ebola cases."” “Idris Bello, an advocate for Africans in the United States, circulated copies o...