TheCatSite.com › Forums › General Forums › IMO: In My Opinion › Teachers paid to do NOTHING
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Teachers paid to do NOTHING

post #1 of 17
6/23/09 at 7:42am
Thread Starter 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090622/...s_rubber_rooms

Very interesting article. And it is not political.

Quote:
NEW YORK – Hundreds of New York City public school teachers accused of offenses ranging from insubordination to sexual misconduct are being paid their full salaries to sit around all day playing Scrabble, surfing the Internet or just staring at the wall, if that's what they want to do.
Reply
post #2 of 17
6/23/09 at 8:26am
That is appalling--such a waste of taxpayers' money because the ARBITRATORS work only 5 days a month!!!! Where is the public outrage----if these were criminal matters, the accused would have the right to a speedy trial within 60 days!!!!
It sounds like a vindictive system in many cases - forcing people to be in those "rubber rooms" I'm glad that the story is being brought to light - the principals who streamline the teachers should be held accountable if the teachers are absolved.
Reply
post #3 of 17
6/23/09 at 8:28am
This is the bit that doesn't make any sense at all:

"Once their hearings are over, they are either sent back to the classroom or fired. But because their cases are heard by 23 arbitrators who work only five days a month, stints of two or three years in a rubber room are common, and some teachers have been there for five or six. "

It seems madness to have severall hundred teachers waiting for their hearings while at the same time have people only work five days a month on these cases.

regards,

christine
Reply
post #4 of 17
6/23/09 at 8:31am
Oh I could tell you stories about some of the dirty tricks that go on in school systems. Principals are sometimes put under pressure by the superintendents to get teachers chucked just before they get vested in the retirement system. There isn't much that they won't stoop to and I know this from a close family member. Can you believe - I mean people who have a desire and love of nurturing little kids in grades K-3 get it stuck to them and don't know what hit them sometimes.
Reply
post #5 of 17
6/23/09 at 8:33am
...bit odd that the articles titel is "700 NYC teachers are paid to do nothing" rather then "Arbitrators ony work 5 days a week- teachers cases not resolved quick enough" or something down those lines.

The title makes it sound like its the teachers fault.

regards,

christine
Reply
post #6 of 17
6/23/09 at 8:44am
When I first read this story, I thought someone must have hacked Yahoo and placed fictitious "news" on the site. It's so laughably ridiculous, it seems surreal.
Reply
post #7 of 17
6/23/09 at 10:58am
Not the teachers' fault at all....the UNION'S fault. They have made it almost impossible to fire bad teachers that these situations crop up. It's a shame, especially when School Districts are so short on cash and then to find out that these people are being paid their full salary to do nothing. Seriously, how do they sleep at night?
Reply
post #8 of 17
6/23/09 at 12:25pm
I'm not in favour of unions, but I'm not blaming them in this instance. Considering the politics and corruption that is endemic in schools, I'm glad that these teachers have a right to a disciplinary hearing before they are fired. These teachers may not be bad at all.
When teachers at my mother's school exposed the headteacher as a bully and an exam cheat the headteacher was swiftly replaced. As were the whistle-blowing teachers, including my mother.
Reply
post #9 of 17
6/23/09 at 12:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by valanhb View Post
Not the teachers' fault at all....the UNION'S fault. They have made it almost impossible to fire bad teachers that these situations crop up. It's a shame, especially when School Districts are so short on cash and then to find out that these people are being paid their full salary to do nothing. Seriously, how do they sleep at night?
I can't say I blame the teacher's union at all. The alternative would be a suspension without pay. If it takes 2-3 years to get a chance to defend yourself, that would be the equivalent of simply being fired because nobody (and especially nobody living on a teacher's salary) can afford to live for 2-3 years without a salary. No, if people like Michael Bloomberg want to get rid of the bad teachers, that's great, but he needs to fork out some $$ to hire more arbitrators and clear out the backlog.

BTW, one thing the article fails to tell us is what percentage of the teachers who finally get their hearing are eventually fired. Is it 90%? 50%? 20%? It's hard to get a feeling for whether these are truly bad apples or if it's just a matter of every accusation goes to a hearing regardless of merit.
Reply
post #10 of 17
6/23/09 at 1:47pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Keycube View Post
When I first read this story, I thought someone must have hacked Yahoo and placed fictitious "news" on the site. It's so laughably ridiculous, it seems surreal.

Well it is the title of the Yahoo article. What can I tell you.

I wasn't making a judgement call.

In fact reading some of the teacher's stories I wasn't blaming the teachers.

Esp the one teacher that got suspended for saying a "bad word" because a student attacked her. Good grief, I would probably say a bad word also.
I sure don't think a teacher should be suspended for something like that, IF that is the way it went down.
Reply
post #11 of 17
6/23/09 at 4:43pm
You would think they could be grading tests or fileing papers, doing data entry. Something.
Reply
post #12 of 17
6/23/09 at 7:43pm
Looks to me like the entire system needs to be refined, especially the arbitrators only working five days a month.
Reply
post #13 of 17
6/24/09 at 5:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Well it is the title of the Yahoo article. What can I tell you.

I wasn't making a judgement call.
Uhh, yeah, I had read it prior to your posting it, and was commenting on the general absurdity of the story. Wasn't referring to the validity of your post. But you probably knew that.
Reply
post #14 of 17
6/24/09 at 7:57am
Thread Starter 
I take it you meant the "absurdity" of paying teachers, for years, to sit around and not work.

It is stupid stuff like this that is the reason the states are broke.
Reply
post #15 of 17
6/24/09 at 7:59am
Why do the arbitrators only work five days a month?
Reply
post #16 of 17
6/24/09 at 9:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by cata_mint View Post
Considering the politics and corruption that is endemic in schools, I'm glad that these teachers have a right to a disciplinary hearing before they are fired. These teachers may not be bad at all.
The lady pictured in the article was attacked by a student with scissors, and she said a 'bad word' ummm... hello? was the student suspended/reprimanded at all? She was probably an excellent teacher, but because some kid has anger issues and attacks her, she gets sent off to these rubber rooms? What a load of cr**.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Grogs View Post
It's hard to get a feeling for whether these are truly bad apples or if it's just a matter of every accusation goes to a hearing regardless of merit.
I'm sure there are some bad apples waiting in those rooms... but I'd guess the majority of them are in there for ridiculous reasons... The truly bad ones (pedophiles, etc) are probably still teaching, laying low, because they know how to be stealthy... while these others are booted out of classrooms...

Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Esp the one teacher that got suspended for saying a "bad word" because a student attacked her. Good grief, I would probably say a bad word also.
I sure don't think a teacher should be suspended for something like that, IF that is the way it went down.
That's the one that got me... If i were attacked by a student with scissors, I'd let more than one 'bad word' loose... are you kidding me folks? The kids say worse than she probably said and they don't get reprimanded like she has.

Our school systems across this country needs a MAJOR overhaul... this is just one sign of a badly damaged system. it's sad... some of these teachers could be in their classrooms inspiring kids to go to college, become more than just drug dealers and gang members, and they get suspended for BS...

~A~
Reply
post #17 of 17
6/24/09 at 4:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
Well it is the title of the Yahoo article. What can I tell you.

I wasn't making a judgement call.

In fact reading some of the teacher's stories I wasn't blaming the teachers.

Esp the one teacher that got suspended for saying a "bad word" because a student attacked her. Good grief, I would probably say a bad word also.
I sure don't think a teacher should be suspended for something like that, IF that is the way it went down.
I like the original title of your post - it gets the attention that this situation clearly needs and you also made it obvious that the post wasn't politically motivated
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: IMO: In My Opinion
TheCatSite.com › Forums › General Forums › IMO: In My Opinion › Teachers paid to do NOTHING