Fortunately, we live in a world where communicating couldn't be any easier. With the click of a button, information can move from one computer to another - or several others. It is through free-flowing information that others can become more involved in their community and more engaged in the real issues that matter to real people.This blog site has been chugging away for more than 14 months and is rapidly approaching 500 entries. The Navigational Labels to the right make the evaluation of data quick and easy. If you select a topic and read the entries contained therein, you will be well positioned to effectively consider both sides of district issues - the standard drivel flowing from the Community Relations spigot and the more powerfully dissected assessments from this blog and its many contributors.
Sharing is free and simple. At the bottom of each entry is an icon that resembles an envelope. With one simple click you can send our entries to your Aunt in Kansas, your Brother in California or your half-sister's ex-husband in Ephrata. Of course, they can also be sent locally, to concerned parents in our district.
Please take a few minutes and send your favorite entries to your favorite people. Informed people make better voters. Informed parents make better PTAs. Informed district staff may tell you not to preach to the choir.
Thank you again for your support.
Mark Zandberg
7 comments:
Hello, is anyone listening? Does anyone care? The School System is suppose to be about educating our children, the future leaders of tomorrow. If they were to read this blog, what would they learn? That we as adults can not act like adults? That we are employees in the education system and are only there for the money and titles that we can get or hold. How sad we are. Is it any wonder that kids have, and are losing their way in this world. Many of them come from broken homes and they come to school hoping for a ray of sunshine, only to find in some of their schools, the Administrators are worse than the parents they have at home. Some of these young ones will drop out, some will turn to drugs, some will end up in jail and some will commit suicide, all because they don't see any hope.
Are we guilty of these children failing? You better believe we are. Some of us are self righteous and will say, not me. We are the main ones who will have the blood of these kids on our hands. We do not care. I think it is time for the Supt. Staff, Administators, Teachers and All Support Staff to ask ourselves these questions. Am I in the school system for the right reason? Can I be an effective leader? Can I teach all children, regardless if they come from poor families, minority familes, rich familes, or have a learning disability and so.
There is all kinds of HATE(strong word, but so very true) being praticed in the district. Racial hate is on the rise, bullying is on the rise and these are just a few. The folks in charge are so concerned about their titles, money and building empires to themselves that they can't see they have left the door open for all the evils to enter.
We can blame Marla, Nick, Supt. Staff and School Board, and they are truly guilty, but so are all of the rest of us. We have been caught sleeping on a very critical watch. Is it to late to fix this mess? It is never to late to start again. It will be very hard, because there is one big question we must all ask ourselves. Can we forgive? Forgiveness is the key to living a healthy life. Now I did not say forget, but forgive. We can only change ourselves and no one can change us, but us. Next, Are we willing to work together and respect each other and really build a team? BABY STEPS is what it will take. Find something good in everyone and always look for the good. We can change our school district! We can make a difference! Can we meet each other at the cross where it all begin? Let us gather there hand to hand, sword to sword to fight for what is right, fair and good. Edmonds School District #15 we have a challenge ahead of us for the 2008-2009 school year. Are we ready to make a difference?
Are we ready for a change?
Forgiveness would be a nice place to be able to go. This, however, is an active issue of power-its use and abuse. As long as abuse and bullying continue, there can be no forgiveness.
Some examples: When you find that you have six or seven of the most socially immature students (usually boys) in your last class of the day and and you find that the guidance counselor specifically recommended that they NOT be put in ANY classes together, who is to be held to account? When the only other person with the authority to change schedules to achieve this lose-lose situation is the principal, what are you to think? Why would a principal sacrifice student learning in such a manner? This is a bullying technique-set the teacher up to fail, then when they fail, discipline them.
When your principal pushes to eliminate the "best practice" of teaming because "the parents see that there is a 'smart' team, a 'dumb' team, and a 'regular' team", but refuses to understand that it is the result of having an itinerant orchestra teacher requiring all orchestra students to be scheduled on one team to have elective time when the orchestra teacher is in the building (i.e., it is not a function of teaming but rather a function of the itinerant music schedule), what are you going to do? When the principal caves to "parent perception" rather than standing up for "what's best for students," what are you supposed to do? (Or perhaps the parents aren't objecting at all but the principal uses it as an excuse in order to create chaos among staff so they will leave the building. "If you don't like it here, go someplace else.)
When the principal sets up the assignment board for the following year in a public place where it can be seen by all, declaring that this is his idea of being "open" and "transparent," but then refuses to accept any educationally based reasoning against his decisions and argues with only his non-education related opinions for his choices, what are you supposed to do?
The educational culture says that the principal is the ultimate authority, no questions asked, but you know that the emperor has no clothes.
When the principal bullies teachers, they are not only setting on a course to diminish the teachers, but they are also diminishing the students under those teachers. Is this "what's best for kids?"
The morale level in this District is in need of improvement. Teachers and parapros-the people on the front lines in the classrooms-are tired of fighting everything from poor State funding levels to poor management decisions which seem to have little concern for the classroom realities that they deal with everyday.
Forgiveness is a difficult place to go when you have been beaten and bullied for three years and when you have watched others in your building subjected to the same behaviors. Forgiveness (or at least giving up) is where the administration wants you to go; then you will leave them alone and they can continue the same bullying behaviors on someone else, misusing and abusing the power that they hold over their employees. Forgiveness is easier to ask for when you haven't been a target; how can you forgive when you know that your tormentor will simply continue their behavior toward the next poor schmuck who crosses their path? How do you live with yourself then? Forgiveness is much harder to acheive when you still wake up in the middle of the night thinking about the bullying treatment that you endured when no one stood up for you, especially upper management.
Bluntly, I continue to read and write on this blog because I DO care. One of the few regrets I have about the situation is that I left my colleagues and students open to continued bullying; my "by-the-book" actions ultimately failed to protect them. It was only after I went to "unapproved" methods, that I got some results, however, the cost for the deviation from the rules was steep.
Is the warehouse supervisor really going to give 2007-2008 evals? Stay tuned everybody. Lids gonna blow up on Hells Kitchen! Do it big boy!
Please tell me you're kidding about evaluations at the warehouse. I'm on the phone right now!
April 24th 2008 ring a bell you unintelligent POW?!?
This guy has got to be out of his mind. What would he gain from doing that with only a few days left?
Don't blow up on district property. Let that continue to be part of HIS legacy. Three more days, and most of the nightmare will be over. Sorry you guys continue to go through that. Just outlast him!
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