| Among the clients who come to me regarding a | | | | The second incident involves a case of in-servicing |
| change in career direction, the ones who sadden | | | | gone amok as a result of the focus on |
| me the most are those who are choosing to | | | | standardized test scores. In Ontario, if test scores |
| leave the teaching profession. While a few of | | | | fall below a certain level, bureaucrats from the |
| them have been BEd grads who weren’t able | | | | school board parachute in to evaluate the teaching |
| to land their first job or weren’t really suited | | | | program and provide recommendations on how |
| to teach, the vast majority have been seasoned | | | | to fix it. For the record, the story was told to me |
| and highly dedicated professionals who entered | | | | by a colleague of the teacher involved, so I am |
| teaching out of genuine passion for helping children | | | | getting the information third hand. A grade three |
| achieve their potential. | | | | teacher (let’s call her Jane) whose students |
| So why are they leaving? It isn’t why you | | | | had failed to perform well the previous year was |
| would think. I don’t hear a litany of complaints | | | | assigned a so-called “expert” to help Jane |
| about “kids these days….”, “parents | | | | improve her teaching skills and lesson plans. |
| these days…”, “crime in schools…” | | | | “Karen,” my contact confided to me, |
| or any of the other psycho-social issues that | | | | “you have to understand. Jane is an awesome |
| make teaching a much harder job than it was 20 | | | | teacher. She has some of the most creative and |
| years ago. | | | | successful lessons in the school. I mean, she’s |
| Instead, they are burned out by an administrative | | | | our role model. The kids love her, the parents |
| structure that just doesn’t GET teaching. | | | | love her, and most years her students do well. |
| They mention the complete disconnect between | | | | But last year, she had donuts. I don’t know |
| those who teach and those who try to tell them | | | | why, call it a quirk of astrology, but some years |
| how to do it - all too often people who, unable to | | | | are just like that.” |
| make it in the classroom, opt for a career in | | | | Jane was pulled out of the classroom at least two |
| administration instead. They discuss the enormous | | | | to three times a month to take in-servicing |
| waste of investment in repetitive in-servicing | | | | seminars. The “expert” had her |
| programs, frequently at the expense of actual | | | | completely redesign the lesson plans. She threw |
| resources in the classroom. They lambaste a | | | | out carefully thought out activities and interactive |
| mind-numbing bureaucracy that is more interested | | | | lessons in favour of rote-work designed to |
| in standardized test scores than student learning. | | | | improve test scores. The entire year became |
| And mostly, they regret the fact that they just | | | | focused on teaching to the test, and critical |
| can’t be as effective as they would like to | | | | elements of the core curriculum were neglected. |
| be. Two particular anecdotes come to mind that | | | | Students became increasingly bored and |
| illustrate these concerns. | | | | disengaged, and it showed in their behaviour. |
| The first involves a client who opted to complete | | | | The net result? The scores went down even |
| a master’s degree in special education after | | | | further, and the school is now faced with even |
| five years as a mainstream teacher. He is a | | | | more “experts” trying to fix the problem. |
| passionate advocate for integrated learning, and | | | | Worse, an entire class of students started grade |
| developed some really unique approaches to | | | | 4 without having adequately covered the grade 3 |
| ensure that the needs of both typical and special | | | | program, and needed a lot of catch up work. Of |
| needs children could be met within a conventional | | | | course, there were no “experts” to help |
| classroom. After six years with a large school | | | | the grade 4 class; their needs won’t become |
| board in southern Ontario, he was throwing in the | | | | a school board priority again until grade 6, when |
| towel. He was worn out by the continuous | | | | the next standardized test kicks in. |
| struggle to ensure that the resources that were | | | | Why is this article in a career services blog? |
| committed on paper for each child actually got | | | | Because recruiters are coming to recognize that |
| used for that child. | | | | teachers represent a huge untapped candidate |
| I was surprised to learn that even though a child | | | | pool, and are developing strategies specifically |
| with an identified special need is assigned a certain | | | | aimed at luring them out of the teaching |
| number of resource hours by the school board, | | | | profession (see Dr. John Sullivan’s article on |
| the ultimate decision on how to use those hours is | | | | using “group targeting” to recruit teachers |
| left up to the principal. In my client’s case, the | | | | to become corporate employees ). According to |
| principal saw him as the school’s | | | | Sullivan, a thought-leader in the recruiter world, |
| jack-of-all-trades, and called upon him for | | | | teachers are highly educated, highly competent, |
| assignments such as lunchtime supervision, supply | | | | well organized, good at planning, great |
| teaching, and monitoring of children whose | | | | communicators, adaptable, dedicated, and eager |
| classroom behaviour was disruptive. My client | | | | for opportunities. They make ideal new recruits, |
| came to realize that each of the children he was | | | | and are ripe for the picking. |
| meant to be working with was receiving less than | | | | Of course, the recession has put the brakes on |
| 50% of the one-on-one time they really needed. | | | | employee raiding of any kind, and unhappy staff in |
| Rather than thriving and moving ahead, they were | | | | virtually all professions are opting to stay put until |
| falling further behind, and my client was left to | | | | the economy recovers. But the recession |
| explain to justifiably confused and frustrated | | | | won’t last forever, and when recovery mode |
| parents why the Individualized Learning Plans | | | | kicks in school boards may find themselves facing |
| weren’t working. He couldn’t do it | | | | an exodus of top talent who understand that job |
| anymore, he said, he couldn’t keep defending | | | | satisfaction requires more than a good pension |
| a school system that was failing the children he | | | | plan. |
| was committed to helping. | | | | |