The graduation rate in the high school in Central Falls, Rhode Island is at 48 percent. There are 19-year-old students in classes with 14-year-olds and half way through the school year, 50 percent of students at the school are failing not one, but all of their classes.
The Superintendent of Schools, Frances Gallo, came forward with a solution when the teacher's union rejected her conditions on reforming the school:fire all of them.
Deborah Gist, Rhode Island education commissioner, will participate in an online chat with projo.com readers on Thursday, February 18 at 4 p.m. You can submit a question now at projo.com/chat
READ: Transcripts from the February 18 online chat with Deborah Gist.
A few of the conditions that Superintendent Gallo wants put into place include increasing the length of school day by 25 minutes to provide more instructional time for students, formalizing the tutoring schedule so struggling students have extra help for one hour before and after school and agreeing to eat lunch with students one day a week to build stronger relationships.
According to the teacher’s union, the teachers' $78,000 is not enough to get the 74 teachers to agree to some new standards.
The Central Falls High School Mission Statement
The mission statement on the Central Falls High School website is contradictory for a school that is considered one of the worst performing in the state.
Central Falls High School is a standards-driven teaching and learning community that promotes literacy, effective communication, problem solving, critical thinking, civic responsibility and the skills necessary for living and working in a culturally diverse society.
Local Reaction
John DePetro, an outspoken morning talk show host on Rhode Island's WPRO 630 radio, put the topic up for discussion last week on his Facebook Fan Page. The feedback was mixed, but most who commented sided with Gallo's decision to fire the teachers at Central Falls High School.
The discussion has since been removed from DePetro's Facebook page but some of the comments were as follows:
"78k..they make 78,000. free healthcare for life.pension. Summers off. vacations. 21 sick days.."
"No, the parents, (if there are any) should be fired, the kids that don't want to do any work should be fired...people have no idea what goes on in a public school! People should observe a class, see how hard the teachers try, and see how bad many students are..."
"Yes, hire people that truly want to work an educate children. It appears they are only working for the paycheck!"
"Fire them all!"
Mixed Feelings from Students and Teachers
Wednesday night, Gallo spoke before a large crowd of parents and students who were divided about the situation. Students showed compassion for the teachers they love and some parents felt that the teachers were doing a good job.
Others questioned why teachers didn't want to spent 25 minutes a week with students at lunch or encourage them to have higher goals for their futures.
“When my daughter was in eighth grade, she was told that she could become a hairdresser. I asked her, ‘What about becoming a professor, an engineer, a teacher?’ They never mentioned those.” - Ana Cecilia Rosado, a parent and member of the Board of Trustees, quoted in the Providence Journal.
Students spoke out about the situation on WPRI 12:
Read the latest Rhode Island report cards about RI elementary and secondary schools here.
Comments
Where was the administration when they were supposed to be evaluating and monitoring (and developing) the high school staff? How could the ENTIRE staff suddenly be under-performing? Why doesn't the Superintendent just show all the poor performance evaluations from the teachers at the school? Unless, there aren't any? This seems like a problem with administration, not the teachers. Any teacher can be fired for just cause--tenure does not protect poor teachers. The only thing protecting poor teachers is the poor administrators who are not doing the job of evaluating and supporting their staff and weeding out those who can no longer do the job.
Frances Gallo is an American hero. The backs of the unions must be broken. If the union will not allow poor teachers to be fired then the union must be broken. Frances Gallo has stood up for the children and I salute her.
Teachers union's need to learn that it isn't about the oldest people in the building. Take the path of least resistance and let the kids fail, and they will fail you when you need them most.
I'm beginning to think that teaching is too important to be left to teachers anyway.
Make that unions. Plural, not possessive.
Hmm . . . And parents aren't accountable, when 50% of the student body are failing all of their classes??
Federal Law allows for only a few options and one is "turnaround" to exercise it ALL teachers have to be fired. They couldn't pick and choose. It's high time the unions get the message that this is NOT about them, it's about the children.
are you kidding? how is it possible that these children 52% of them do not read at a high school level GET TO HIGH SCHOOL. How do you teach a 10th grade curriculum to a student who reads on a 2nd grade level???
Doing the best with what they had? "The had" represents wonderful children, who may be poor yet certainly capable of learning. Teachers blame children for their inability to learn. Blaming children is the greatest defense mechanism that a teacher can use to hide the fact that they simply can not teach. All children are entitled to a fair and equal education across our country. Unfortunately too often our students of lower economic status are provided with teachers who simply are not equipped to do the job. Some are paying off loans and then they run off into the sunset. Others are granted "tenure" the great prize that means you can sit back and relax until you retire. Tenured teachers are the most arrogant and difficult teachers to work with at times. They are secure with "tenure" that often times, they forget what being a true educator is all about. As unfortunate as this firing was, it is necessary to improve the high quality of education and educators that all children deserve.
This is a pretty dumb comment. Yes, dealing with terrible children is a problem--that is why charter schools just kick them out.
Once again teachers used a scapegoats. If there is anyone in the private sector, including the superintendent of that district, thinks they could do a better job then by all means do it. I question as to why it is always a teacher's fault when student's do not succeed. If the public is looking for accountability how about looking at yourself. Parents and students need to be responsible for some of what is going on in that school.
It is a sad day when people feel that unions must be broken. Perhaps if the private sector was not so greedy in wanting to make mega profits in their companies people in this country would be paid a decent wage for their work.
7% of the 11th grade students were proficient in math??? out of 100 kids, that would be only 7!!! I teach in a low-income district in a neighboring state and our numbers aren't quite so low, but they definitely aren't good. Our district has implemented many different strategies over the past 7 years to try and bring the scores up, they have come up each year, but it's never enough for "safe harbor." Every year we have more professional development, more strategies, more programs, more curriculum changes, etc...The problem I see with all the money they keep spending is that it's only targeted at improving teaching and teachers. There have been some huge societal changes that we are now seeing in our schools, especially low-income school districts. The conversations that I hear and share in are: "how do we get the kids to want to learn?" The parents care, they want the best for their kids, but they have a lot on their plate and aren't the traditional "parent" who is involved in PT
dang, I ran out of characters!
...PTA. The kids say they want to learn, but behaviors don't reflect that desire. I show up for work 45 minutes early everyday and stay 45 minutes past my "paid" time three days per week, not counting the time spent outside of the work day correcting papers, lesson planning, etc...But, the difference between the time I give freely to the kids and school and what seems to have been done in RI, is that it's my choice to give my time...it's not mandated without pay or for reduced pay. I get paid very well as a teacher. I paid a lot of money to become a teacher. I enjoy my summers off (although I work another job too) and all the holidays through out the year. I don't get paid vacations, unless you consider my "high" salary as including vacation pay. I love my job. I love working with kids. I put everything of myself into my work. I wish I could leave it at work when I go home. I worry about the kids and their futures.
One last thing, then I'm off the soap box...I need those "vacations" to recharge my emotional batteries. Everyday is a struggle to motivate, not all, but more than many people might realize, kids to learn. The saying, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink" is quite appropriate with too many of my students...HOW do I get them to WANT to learn???? That is the key to the battle most teachers face today.
While I agree that all students need to be held to the highest standards, I also realize that, until society is fixed, education will not be fixed. Those teachers were up against some pretty tough conditions. It's called battle pay, and they deserved every penny they got. I would like to see who they get to teach those kids now. Let's see if the new teachers can do a better job. Shame on those parents for allowing their children to remain failures. Oh yeah, the parents are probably off doing something else rather than help their kids.
Unless you are a teacher, as am I, then it is difficult to understand the issues that we are faced with daily. A depraved economy does not help education in any fashion. Often the students are forced to get jobs to help their families pay bills which interferes with their ability to go to school and if they do go they are too tired to participate in their learning. Whether some of you like it or not, parental support is a major issue with regards to getting students to perform. If parents do not see the benefit in a high school education then often the children will not either---that is just a fact. Our healthcare is NOT FREE--we pay for it and it is quite expensive! Healthcare eats up half of my paycheck just to have it, not to mention what it actually costs to go to the doctor. Trust me when I say that no teacher minds tutoring students---students just don't come to tutoring and we can't make them come!! We are the first ones blamed for every problem.
To add to my previous comment....Bush should be hung by his toenails for implementing NCLB. Basically he stated that by 2014 every kid in the U.S. will be "normal" and performing at grade level!!! There will no longer be any special ed. students because EVERYONE will be able to pass the state tests at grade level! Does no one in this country see an issue with that?!? And how many of these underperforming students from RI were classified as special ed? They didn't provide that information. I have to agree with a previous post in which it was stated how did they get to high school and read at 2nd grade level! Well, it happens all the time but that is on no concern to anyone, but the high school teachers are left cleaning up after everyone and expected to have students make almost lifetime academic gains before leaving high school when prior to reaching high school they weren't makeing any academic gains.
oh and by the way...school is not like it use to be. Field trips are a thing of the past! Students are 'taught' the state tests in order to pass them. They are tested to death to the point that when it comes time to take the test they are burned out and just answer anything. In case anyone was unaware, students may not "drop out" of high school and get a GED anymore. It has to be approved by the school and they won't let a student drop because it hurts accountability. Students who are interested in pursuing a trade versus going to college are told that they NEED to go to college. Education is not based on the students' needs, wants, or desires, but rather an unrealistic law and expectation. I have students who have 2 or 3 kids already and can't drop out to work because the school won't allow them to, so they just don't come. So am I suppose to pass a student who is never there so that it looks "good"! I saw no mention of attendance rates or anything with regards to the firing
I am hopeful to know that a real attempt at addressing the issue has begun. There are many factors at play that cause an entire school to have so many students with far below average scores. I too salute Frances Gallo for taking this remarkable step with the hopes of improving the students grades and students future. Yes, turn around is drastic and will help to get the students, teachers, parents and community to realize that what they have been doing so far to help educate and inspire these children needs to change. Anyway, I think the school can rehire up to 50% of the teachers, so I hope they pick and choose wisely.
Frankly, I hope to see this happen in other failing schools becuase OUR future depends on it!
It would be interesting to see how successful Frances Gallo would be in teaching just one class of students who don't attend regularly, who read on a second grade level, who speak English as a second language, and who leave the school after three months. How will this school district be able to find teachers willing to work with economically disadvantaged students if this is their reward?
Folks, the reality is education is based on three pillars, the teacher, the student, and finally the parent. The later is never held accountable. Parents are allowing children to be raised by television, playstation, and their peers. When the child reaches high school and has little respect for anyone or themselves the parent blames the education system. Fire parents, not teachers. Parents need be held accountable for what they are doing to their own kids. But a politician will never take that stand; they would lose the votes of the very idiots who created the problem.
As Mr Flores points out we need to address the parenting of these children. Perhaps workshops that help the parents develope better parenting skills is needed.
This is another classic example of the root of the problem with education across the nation. We have an administrator who hasn't been in the classroom on a daily basis in FAR too long making decisions that directly affect those in the trenches on both sides of the desk. Pity.
This whole thing totally disgusts me. There appears to be more of an outrage on this issue than the senseless death of a child at the hands of a teacher using restraint. Dear fellow citizens, do some research on this. You probably have no idea what goes on in our schools. These teachers should care enough to take on extra training while learning positive reinforcements, in expending their lunch breaks, and perhaps a bit of time before and after school with these students. These were not unreasonable requests. If there is no will on the teachers part, then I have no empathy. As it pertains to the teaching profession, there is no individual accountability any more. Many times unions cloak misdeeds and therefore perpetuate a dysfunctional system. Because of this system, the administration had no choice but to fire these teachers as a whole. Unfortunately, we lost, I'm sure, many good individuals.
Please be more accurate with your reporting.
-62 full-time teachers at Central Falls High School earned a grand total of $3.94 million in 07-08, for an average salary of $63,780.
-28 of those teachers (45%) have Master's degrees or higher.
-41 of those teachers cannot advance further on the salary schedule, indicating long employment with the district.
-The administrators at that school took home an average salary of $98,620.
-The district administrators took home an average salary of $123,230.
Since I cannot post urls here, the website Themoneytrail has posted the salaries of all employees at this school. If you bothered to fact check at all you find this disparity between what is being said and what is fact.
Also:
-12% of the parents have high school degrees
-Densest population of any school in any district in RI.
-School is already over crowded (literally they don't have space for all the students).
-25% of the students are English language learners and need ESL courses.
This is a very positive step for education. I hope the trend continues in Massachusetts. It's time to get rid of all teachers unions. These are educated professionals - stand on your own merit and stop hiding behind the union!
I'm just curious Lisa, what do you do for work? How many hours of work are you paid for each week? How many hours of your own time do you spend on your job? Do you work through your lunches? Are you expected to stay beyond your work day...for free? What is your level of education? What degrees are you required to obtain? Do you get paid for Holiday's? Do you get paid for vacation? These are just a few questions I have.
"children first" is an idiot. HOW MANY days have YOU spent teaching these "wonderful children" in these school settings?? where the h**l did you get the idea that ALL teachers just get "tenure" and sit on their ass?? your blanket statements UNINFORMED and INSULTING. we're ALL difficult? We're all arrogant?? you know EVERY teacher in the country in ALL of the school systems??? why don't you put your money where your mouth is and take one of those now vacant jobs and teach them all day every day, early before school and after school and eat lunch with them, go home with them, follow them to make them do their homework, keep them out of the street on school days, unplug their Playstation, turn off the tv and make them study.....
Oh, what's that you say??? that's the PARENTS job???
Damn straight!!! where were the PARENTS in that big "6 point" plan??? i didn't hear any concequences for them when they dont show interest in THEIR OWN child's education!
I wish people really knew what goes on in public school. It is a shame that teachers are held accountable for everything. Parents held accountable for nothing. Children have to sit in class and "tune" other students out so they can get something out of the class because administrators are afraid of losing their positions if they don't play the numbers game that makes the system look good. Discipline is not handled. Teachers are kept from doing their job at every level because of unruly students whose behavior, many times, is a mirror of the behavior of the parents who feed them.
I hope MARLA is not a teacher because the word "holiday" is not supposed to be capitalized, and there is no apostrophe used to show plurals (holiday's?). Please say you're not a teacher, if so this is why the kids are failing.
I hope MARLA is not a teacher because the word "holiday" is not supposed to be capitalized, and there is no apostrophe used to show plurals (holiday's?). Please say you're not a teacher, if so this is why the kids are failing.
Yes, I am, but not LA...I never could get the syntax correct in a sentence. Too many commas too, if you're counting that as well. You attacking personally doesn't change the situation or my opposition to blanket statements about teachers in general. Teachers know there are problems in the schools, but our perspective is a little different. We know the "apple doesn't fall far from the tree" in most cases. That's usually confirmed at a parent conference...if the parents even bothers to come in. In fact, it's quite common for a parent to tell the teacher or administrator or counselor that they don't want to be bothered anymore if their child isn't doing their work, has behavioral problems, or is failing...Yet they are the first to protest how bad the schools and the teachers are. The kids whose parents are involved, do contact the teachers, do care about their child's performance are the kids who tend to do well in school...and not just academically, but behavior and attendance are
better as well. Those kids also tend to be involved with school: sports, clubs, etc...You can't ignore or get away from parental involvement. Many of my student's parents work more than one job, are single parents, or are tired from all the rest of life, but still find time to make a phone call, send an email, or a note inquiring about their child. Those are parents who make their child's education a priority and don't just put it off onto the school system. When schools are just used as a form of daycare/babysitting, then you get what inner-city schools are seeing today...students who don't care about education, who treat not just the adults, but each other with disrespect, who spit on the floors, who wipe their feces on the walls in the bathrooms, who fight because if they don't they'll be in trouble at home. The list goes on with more "little" things that you didn't see 20 years ago and most people would be appalled to know about.
The main actors in the school are the teachers. If the student does not perform well that means the teacher does not do his job well. It is all about responsibility. The main actor responsible for the education of the student in a school setting is the teacher. Some students may be bad or some parents may not have the time to attend activities in school but it does not take away the responsibilities of the teacher to educate a child since he is paid to do that. Never blame the parent or student because teachers are paid to teach. If the student does not learn anything from the teacher, that means, the teacher does not teach well.
I hate to agree with SmartenUp but I have encountered quite a large number of teachers who can not even spell a word correctly and make a sentence. My kid spells much better than his teacher. The teachers I have encountered have masters and doctorate degrees. This led me to wonder that time if teachers in this country can really teach at all? However, I have also met some teachers who are really great. The students are failing because teachers do not know how to teach. This is a fact.
LETS COME UP WITH SOME SOLUTIONS with so many intelligent teachers and intelligent bloggers, lets come up with some solutions. There is alot of complaining and blaming going on but once we are past that, we need to talk about some creative solutions. As we know there are many issues at play that cause the students to fail. There are schools that have been improved, does anyone know what techniques were used to get help the teachers be more effective.
Before some knit-picker makes a useless comment about my spelling error, let me make the correction about the question mark that I forgot.
Does anyone know what techniques were used to help the teacher become more effective?
I hate to agree with SmartenUp but I have encountered quite a large number of teachers who can not even spell a word correctly and make a sentence. My kid spells much better than his teacher. The teachers I have encountered have masters and doctorate degrees. This led me to wonder that time if teachers in this country can really teach at all? However, I have also met some teachers who are really great. The students are failing because teachers do not know how to teach. This is a fact.
The teachers unions should all be fired. Central Falls is a GREAT starting point. They SUCK the life out of everyone.
Education is a triad as has been mentioned in this thread. 1/3 is a teacher, 1/3 is the student and the other 1/3 is the parent. The school only has 1/3 of the power as they control the teachers.
Let me put it to you this way, as many want to run schools like a business. "If you don't produce, then you're fired!" Just like in the business world!
Well, for that I say how can a salesman (teacher) sell a product (education) to a consumer (student) who does not want to:
1. Listen to your sales pitch.
2. Show up for the sales pitch appointment.
3. Sell a product that the consumer does not want.
4. The consumers have lawyers (parents)who do not take good care of their clients.
5. Lawyers blame the salesmen for their clients failures.
6. Consumers are raised on fast food, video games, and no respect for authority.
7. The company the salesperson works for has little or no funding for the salesperson's advertising.
Now, can you still sell this product?
Education is a triad as has been mentioned in this thread. 1/3 is a teacher, 1/3 is the student and the other 1/3 is the parent. The school only has 1/3 of the power as they control the teachers.
Let me put it to you this way, as many want to run schools like a business. "If you don't produce, then you're fired!" Just like in the business world!
Well, for that I say how can a salesman (teacher) sell a product (education) to a consumer (student) who does not want to:
1. Listen to your sales pitch.
2. Show up for the sales pitch appointment.
3. Sell a product that the consumer does not want.
4. The consumers have lawyers (parents)who do not take good care of their clients.
5. Lawyers blame the salesmen for their clients failures.
6. Consumers are raised on fast food, video games, and no respect for authority.
7. The company the salesperson works for has little or no funding for the salesperson's advertising.
Now, can you still sell this product?
Have any of you "teacher-bashers" even looked at this school's website to see what these teachers are up against? The 2005-2006 SALT survey reports the following information:
•96% of students are eligible or free or reduced lunch
•65% of the student body is of Hispanic origin, 13% White, 14% African American, 8% other
•25% of students receive ESL services
•21% receive SPED services
•12% of parents have a post-secondary degree
Over a third of the population are either classified or speak a different language other than English. Only 1 in 10 parents are college educated, and since 96% of the students get free or reduced lunch, it's a very poor school. When the parents didn't put their own education as a priority, what do you think they've taught their chikdren?
One more thing. Teachers have these children for about 7 hours a day, give or take a few minutes, the parents have them the other 17 hours. Teachers have these students for about 1250 hours a year, parents have them 7500 hours a year. Who do you think has the greatest influence on these children? According to rikidscount, the attendance rate for students at this school in 2009 was 85%, which means on average, a student at this HS misses 27 days of school. ATTENDANCE IS THE PARENTS' RESPONSIBILITY! If any of you teacher bashers that work in the "real world" missed close to 40 days of work (265 days times 15% absentee rate,) would you be able to do your job effectively, or would you fail? How can the teachers teach, and the student learn, when the average student at this HS is absent almost 30 times a year? Why aren't the parents held accountable for their children not going to school?
Teacher in NJ, You seem like an intelligent person. Do you have any suggestions as to how to help improve the problem ?
This is simply INSANE!!! The principal and all the teachers whooudl refuse to show up and let the superintendent and the community see how valuable all these people have been to their community, both the school and the town. This is becasue of a federal recommendation? Too scarey. Who next???????
I would like to know one thing: In what part of the equation do we plug personal responsibility? We cannot simply assume the teachers are responsible for the actions, feelings, and circumstances of others. Blaming an instructor for a child not learning is similar to blaming McDonald's for a child's obesity. We are dealing with people, not products. The nation's culture is depleting. This problem is a result of it.
One thing I'd like to know is what was done about getting these kids to school. According to rikidscount, a few years ago, they had almost a 20% student absentee rate! They are looking to add minutes to the school day, I say they should shorten the day. I like the idea of some sort of extra contact time after school for those that WANT it, but nobody,not even in the real world, should do extra work without compensation. Maybe they already do this, but I think child protective services should be called in and work hand in hand with the school to find out why these parents arent making sure these kids are in school. Has ANYONE, from school officials to some family services to the police gone to these houses during the school day? How about offering parent/children classes in the evening, such as English, or life skills, and use these federal dollars that are being used to fire entire staffs to pay for these classes and to staff them? Somthing needs to be done to get these kids to school.
I'd also like to know what is done at this school in terms of an alternative education. While it is hard for some to believe, not every kid wants to, can afford to, or have the ability to go to college. But there certainly is a need for blue collar workers such as, electricians, sanitation workers, carpenters,hair dressers, whatever, so do they have some sort of vocational program? How about a cooperative learning program, where the kids go to school part time, and work and make and make money part time? All I DO know is firing an entire staff is not the answer, especially when its all because of federal tax dollars. Take this money and use it to start viable alternative programs, set up some sort of program to ensure the kids are getting to school, and educate the parents so they understand the importance of their children's education, and perhaps educate the parents at the same time so they can learn some valuable life skills, such as reading and writing English.
What kind of support and training were these teachers given prior to their "termination" announcement? Were they given adequate tools and training to ensure that they COULD SUCCEED. These teachers are verterans in the field and they want to teach these children. Has this school helped them make transitions in their classroom pedagogy, enabling them to reach the children?
Clearly, the teachers are overpaid and underqualified. They have an above average salary for a far below average job success. A less than 50% graduation rate is absolutely terrible. They should be fired for not doing their jobs.
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