I Quit!

I just read this article on another blog and felt like I had to share my thoughts.  The mere fact that I am posting this to my blog should be taken as an indicator of my strong feelings on the matter, as I haven't posted anything to this blog since I started the school year.  I have lots of reasons for not posting, but don't want  to go into that now. 

I apologize for getting firmly attached to my soapbox in the following post; I don't mean to offend anyone.  My main reason for commenting here is to serve as a personal reminder of my thoughts in the days, months and years to come.  I sincerely hope that I can live up to my own beliefs!

Please teacher friends; take the time to read this article.  I know I probably wouldn't read it as I was rushing through my Google Reader trying to keep somewhat caught up and on the lookout for new great ideas to try in my classroom.  But I am interested to know what you all think.  Is this the direction we are all headed?  Is it really this bad in NC?  Is it only this bad in NC?  I teach in a private school; are we headed down the same slope? 


My thoughts:

I don't know what to think... I guess I am grateful that I don't feel that way (yet), but I can see that I am headed that way...  I have taken on many extra (unpaid) duties in an attempt to prove myself necessary to the powers that be...

I was especially moved by the comments that follow regarding our need to teach and defy the lawmakers; we do what we do for the students, and we need to be cognizant of our roles in their lives and less worried about the repercussions of testing.  On the other hand, many teachers cannot take such a stance without fear for their jobs.

So what's the answer?  I don't know; but we teachers have to stay strong and committed to our students.