Dawn Cox was a bright, reflective, dedicated & generous person - she contributed so much to the edu community. I was able to learn a lot from her & I was thrilled to meet her in person recently at an event after years of connecting online. A very sad day.
2005 - 'You've taught for 5 years, and?'
2023 - 'You've taught for 5 years? WE NEED TO PRESERVE YOU IN A SPECIAL ENCLOSURE FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES RIGHT NOW YOU SUPERHUMAN'
I'm still AMAZED that anyone would get upset by this. It is standard procedure for 1000s of schools, a simple way of indicating where to stand, normal and necessary when managing large groups. It reminds me many people *in education* have no clue about the reality of schools.
I can categorically tell you after working in 10+ schools over 16 years as a classroom teacher, each for months-years, all ‘rated’ from Inadequate through to Outstanding, that the grade had absolutely no relation to the behaviour of the students, the happiness of the staff or the quality of the teachers. Absolutely none.
One very significant unmet need for a good deal of kids’ misbehaviour is ‘the need to muck about, make their pals laugh, and avoid work.’ The fact that so many grown ups forget this, and think it’s always all about a mental pathology or some tragic circumstance, is astonishing.
40% of new teachers leave the profession within their first 5 years. They arrive with a passion to nurture children - but leave because of the overwhelming task they face & the lack of investment in schools over the last decade crushes them. It’s time to invest our children.