Last Friday, as I brushed my teeth, shaved, showered, and dressed, I listened to the panel on MSNBC's Morning Joe program tell me how worthless I am.
We are approaching the end of the second year of NBC's Education Nation reports and last week I listened to the virtues of charter schools being extolled, the faults of traditional public schools being magnified, and the efforts that thousands of teachers make every day to connect with children being tossed aside like yesterday's garbage.
In order for Education Nation to exist, there has to be a crisis, and according to all of the experts lined up by NBC last week, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Bill Gates, and the rest of the usual suspects, the problems of education are limited to what happens once children enter the schoolhouse doors.
It is an approach that is beneficial to those who promote privatizing schools, those who peddle tests and tests to prepare for tests, and curriculum based on tests to prepare for tests. It is also beneficial to those whose chief goal is to eliminate unions of all kinds, including those representing teachers.
The only people who do not benefit are the children.
I have not watched every program the NBC stations have aired about education last week, but in the ones I have watched, I have seen little contribution from classroom teachers, other than the town hall forum on Sunday. Otherwise, the field has been restricted to union leadership (usually AFT's Randi Weingarten) or to those who have co-opted the word "reform," poisoning schools with their idea of "accountability."
When anyone mentions the real problems that face American schools, the ones that are not limited to what takes place on campus, that person is criticized for trying to shirk responsibility. It is much easier to ignore societal problems and shift the entire blame to classroom teachers.
Poverty exists:
It does not mean that a child who lives in poverty cannot learn, but it does add additional problems. Many times, students are more concerned with existing from day-to-day than they are with how well they do on tests.
Abuse is real:
All classroom teachers have worked with children who have been the victims of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. When this kind of abuse takes place in the home, many of these children can learn successfully, but others, understandably, are more concerned with survival, rather than school.
Absenteeism:
Teachers are considered failures when students who sometimes miss a week or two of school at a time are not able to learn. A student who is only in school a day or two a week counts against us as much as the one who shows up every day.
Transfer Students:
Many of the students who are in the most need of help are those who move from one school to another, never putting down roots long enough to benefit from having good teachers. Sometimes this is because the parents have jobs that force them to move on a regular basis. Other times, they have to move because their parents were unable to pay the rent.
These are not the problems discussed by Education Nation panels. They are simply the world that American classroom teachers have to live in every day.
While Education Nation lends voice to those who would tear apart public schooling and replace it with the same business model that put us in our current financial crisis, the voices of classroom teachers and the children who are being failed by this cynical "reform" movement have been silenced.
Sadly, not all children have parents who are invested in their education like those who were exploited in the movie Waiting for Superman.
For many of the students we deal with day after day, classroom teachers are their only advocates. Soon, politicians will finish crushing American public schools and ignoring the societal problems that are preventing tens of thousands of our children from receiving the best education possible.
No one will be left to speak for the children.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.