One more off-topic post from me with apologies to matthew330.
hiredgun: I teach fourth grade in Columbus, Ohio. Believe it or not, I have one of the better classrooms.
Ustwo: if you can believe this, I actually despise the teachers' union. From what I've observed, the only things they seem interested in is bad-mouthing those they disagree with and wasting money on useless crap that I don't want or need. Joining the teachers' union is a moot point because they deduct union dues whether you want their help or not. It's a racket.
I see on a daily basis teachers that have absolutely no business in this profession and when it comes to those teachers, I agree with your sentiments 100%. But the reality is is that those teachers comprise about 5 of the 30 or so teachers on our staff. That means that around 25 of them do an average to excellent job. Those 5, however, are the ones we often hear about. My whole point is that it'd be nice to once in a while hear about the ones who don't suck.
On the funding issue, it's not that we don't have any but the funding we get rarely makes it to the students. And now, thanks to this new legislation called No Child Left Behind, even less of it will make it to the students.
As far as vouchers go, comparing private Catholic schools to public schools does not pan out on closer inspection. A private school enrolls students at their wish. Private schools continually uninvite poor-performing students in order to keep their scores elevated. Public schools do not have that option. Charter schools, which receive many students under the voucher program, are unregulated and are not held to the same standards as public schools. Many in Ohio are now under investigation for test-fraud, financial fraud (inflating enrollment numbers to receive more No Child Left Behind funding), and hiring teachers and administrators without conducting criminal background checks. Many students who attended charter schools are returning to public schools within the year due to the conditions in the charter schools.
I'm done whining now. And btw, you win. I've got no clue as to what you do. I apologize for the assumption.
Maybe we could have these posts moved to their own thread so as not to interfere with this one anymore?