The 1%

99% of my students appreciate me and the job I do on a daily basis. There is the 1% who would want me to go "copulate" myself. Its this 1% that drives even the best teachers bananas. Our hands are tied with these students being ignorant, lazy, disrespectful and just plain dumb. If the mayor had any common sense, he would bring back the old 600 schools rather than having us teachers and administrators write out pages of anecdotals that seem to do nothing more than give us teachers hand cramps. My hands are tied, administrators hands are tied and the deans hands of tied-responsibility is placed on us to do the job parents are supposed to do but in 2010, parents of these 1% are just a by product of a gilded age society that seems to place the blame on schools and let them off without any reprecussions and that is pretty sad.

These 1% of my students think of school as socialization centers where they can walk the hall, curse at us, grab and manhandle other students while holding the 99% of my students hostage. In 8th grade, many of these students will wake up and find that they are not graduating. The one thing Bloomberg did that was positive was to tell the 1% if you fail one subject regardless of your ELA and Math scores that you are bound for summer school. Last year, the number of students attending summer school jumped dramatically and the number of students held over also increased dramatically. This year, I forecast the numbers will be even higher than last year. Last year, I failed five students and this year (as of today, I have over sixty) that number has increased 1200%.

I don't make it hard to pass my class. 30% tests, 30% homework, 30% projects, 10% classwork. If you fail the tests but you can do the homework and projects, I'll give you a 65. I give extensions up the wazoo. I have a website, a facebook page and three e-mail address but the 1% that occupy a seat in my class, well, that is of no issue to them. "Where's your HW?" I will state. They respond, "F**k you!" "I'm going to call home." "F**k you, my mom don't care."

They are right. The parents of the 1% could care less about their kids. They were probably young and naive. Many of the 1% are in the generation where the father walked out of the house or provide no support. The political demagogues who bash my profession believe that the sign of good schools are good teachers. This is partly true, yet Bloomberg, Cuomo and Obama never seem to place the blame on the parents.

I have made more phone calls (87) this year than at any other time in my career. Many numbers don't work. Many parents make empty promises that never pan out and if they do, it is usually for a day or two. Many parents state the bullsh*t Bloomberg answer, "Ain't my job to teach 'em!"

Really?

Parents are the first teachers of a child's life. Many parents of the 1% treat their kids like puppies and not parents. Some parents are in the idea that they should be friends with their kids and to spoil them. You know what happens...they take this piss-poor attitude that they can do no wrong and walk around schools to hold the 99% of the students who attend my class for an education hostage.

That has to change. Political leaders need to shift the blame from teachers and put more blame on themselves for creating the socio-economic problems found in public schools. They never will and that is a shame of this nation that teachers are asked to do too much while parents get away with a slap on the wrist from Bloomberg, Cuomo and Obama who cowtow to them because they vote.

Maybe one day teachers will be seen in a higher standard than babysitters. If that ever happens, public education in New York will be as great as it was when I went to school and not currently under the billionaire mayor who has done more to screw up the schools than Giuliani, Dinkins and Koch combined.

Hopefully this day comes before my union sells me out for making too much money.