Teacher Complaints

Everybody knows teachers complain about pay, class sizes, planning time and job conditions. However there is much more that they complain about when the public is not around. Some of the issues are quite meaningful, like class sizes. While others revolve around other issues that are very petty and a simple waste of time.
An upcoming issue at our school is new instructional materials purchased, for the sum of 80,000 USD, from Houghton Mifflin. Wonderful materials (although I am not a fan of boxed "curricula"). Yet we are being stiffed on professional development regarding these materials, getting just 2 hours of learning time on the Friday of the first week of school. This was one of the most important pieces of obtaining new materials for our school. Educators need time to learn about what they are expected to use or they will use them wrongly or have excuses to not use them at all. Districts pay all of that money for materials and can support a staff with at least a day or two of professional development simply based on contractual obligations. You want your teachers to be able to most effectively use materials to educate a population of young people.
That is certainly the most pressing issue for all going in to the new school year. There are other issues that will come to the surface for some. One of those is the fact that specialist (PE and Music) and planning time have been changed for the first time in a few years. This is disturbing to some who find reasons to complain because the entire staff was not consulted first. There is also a theory that one group of team teachers gets "whatever they want." This is to say that the entire staff schedule was changed for them. SO WHAT! Nobody is getting hurt. Besides, when all you can do is find reasons to complain in the first place, nothing is going to make you happy.
Math WASL scores for our fourth graders have decreased by 15%. This sounds horrible. On the other hand we are just about to start our second year using Everday Math. There are those who do not like that math program and this gives them some fuel to add. However we were told by the Everyday Math consultant that it will take three years before we start to see results. You see, this program is reliant on prior years for experience in the curriculum and, ultimately, growth. This is how a spiraling curriculum works. Eighteen exposures over a period of time and a kid should obtain a given concept. Not only is this how we live but the concepts and how they are presented are also very true to life. Mastery can have its place but for children to fully understand and restate a given concept and its value is the most worthy merit of all. And research, lots of research, shows that this is an effective math curriculum. If we have a problem with it, the problem would be that not everybody at our school uses it as they should, skipping lessons and units, going so slow they finish just over half of the lessons, our special education teachers did not use it last year and, most importantly, we are not held accountable to use it as it should be used.
So, here is a sample of what you are going to be hearing over the next year. Personally anybody who complains about something but refuses to talk to the people who can do something about it is an enigma. Schools do not need these because it detracts from the children; the reason we are there. I intend to take it upon myself to defend Everyday Mathematics. I believe in it and have seen it work; it also matches my philosphy quite well but I will take on whatever program I am given. Some attribute this to being "youthful" and they probably think my enthusiasm will one day cease to exist. If this happens, I will exit from the profession.