The Chinese teachers comment with amazement on the unruly behavior behavior of the British kids and blame -- what else! -- the "generous" benefits of the British social safety net. Having welfare available made kids rude and lazy, one Chinese teacher claimed, since they knew they had the dole to fall back on.
Rod expresses some doubt about this theory. He thinks it's more cultural -- you know, some cultures teach people to respect education (he doesn't come right out and say white culture, but you know who he means) and some don't.
His readers, though, are all over the welfare = disrespect for teachers theory.
No one seems to notice where the real problem might be coming from. We've had, what is it now, fifteen years? Twenty years? More? of Far-Right Conservatives attacking teachers from the White House on down to the local level, blaming teachers for every one of America's problems -- what is this bullshit assessment craze, this nonsense about high-stakes testing, but claiming that teachers can't do their jobs?
I can't tell you how many times I've had Conservatives on FB and elsewhere tell me that if I've been in the classroom more than ten years I'm part of the problem, that I should quit my job and let a "new" teacher take over. This utter contempt for the craft of the profession runs through their party.
My kid was talking about this just yesterday. Her very words: "I just want the other kids to shut up and stop being rude to the teachers so we can get on with it. I mean, I get it, you think the teachers are shit. You don't have to keep making your point over and over every day. Can we just learn something?"
Who is leading the disrespect for America's teachers? Half the parents in America. Where do the kids learn this crap? At home. Are you surprised they bring it into the classroom?
Rod's right. That's cultural. And it's the culture of the American Right.
1 comment:
And the British right. Sigh
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