Image by claire_h via FlickrI happened to watch the news yesterday (I don't do that very often, since I have high blood pressure; I find written sources are less likely to make it rise) and caught a story on Matt Damon's encounter with an obnoxious reporter who was anything but objective about teachers. His comeback was priceless! (watch it for yourself at http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/actor-matt-damon-defends-teacher-tenure-testy-exchange-211042801.html, where there is also a link to the speech he gave at the Save our Schools rally earlier this week.) Obviously, I agree with him. While I don't teach at the K12 level, I have listened to my colleagues who do, and I have seen the results of the policies Damon decried in the students who enter my college classroom each fall. Many of them have no idea how to be students. All they know is how to prepare for standardized exams. Unfortunately for them, life doesn't offer that option very often. Daily living requires critical thinking skills that cannot be developed by drills.
I cannot thank Matt Damon enough for using his position in the public eye to draw attention to this problem. Now, does somebody want to tackle the fact that around 50% of all college courses in this country are taught by part-time faculty, which has resulted in the elimination of many full-time positions at a time when enrollments are exploding and faculty jobs should be increasing?
If you are shopping schools for yourself or your child, be sure to ask what percentage of the faculty is full time and how many courses are taught by grad students instead of instructors or professors. It matters.
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