Where Are We Going and Why Are We in This HandBasket?
Posted by livininsanity on February 16, 2011
The title of this post is the name of the blog teacher Natalie Munroe was writing, until Central Bucks East High School suspended her for writing it. Within the confines of the blog, started in August 2009, the teacher called her students a number of names, such as lazy, whiny and unmotivated. Currently, the web is abuzz about the topic, since this brings up a question of free speech.
Natalie Munroe was blogging relatively annonymously. Her name on the blog was “Natalie M.” and never mentioned the school she worked at. However, in my estimation, the usage of the moniker “Natalie M.” is not all that annonymous. (But, I digress.)
Admittedly, Natalie Munroe raises a valid point that today’s youth is not the best, when stereotypically viewed as one entity. She seems to often blame parents, which is a valid point. However, it is also valid to blame the teachers, the school system, today’s mediated world and a number of other factors. Either way, complaining on an “annonymous blog” won’t change anything. Changing teaching styles could. A real teacher would attempt to change the students. A real parent would do the same. But, let’s stop passing the buck and let’s all take the blame. After all, aren’t we all at fault?
I’m reminded of a quotation: “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” I would expand the quote to include women, too.
In other words, Natalie Munroe’s students may be lazy and whiny, but Natalie Munroe is a lazy, whiny teacher.
livininsanity said
I understand that venting can be helpful and writing can be cathartic. But, when you put yourself in a situation (accepting and working at a job since 2006), shouldn’t you make a job change if you need such levels of venting and catharcism? Maybe they weren’t needed, just helpful. Either way, I just hope Natalie Munroe realizes that when she posts, she is also posting her failures, as a teacher. So, in a way, I feel sorry for Natalie Munroe. Although, I must also mention, this is totally within the bounds of free speech, in case I didn’t make my stance on that aspect clear.
Shari said
Livinsanity, I have to disagree with you… A teacher venting about how their students are rude or unmotivated does NOT point out her failures as a teacher. That’s an unfair assumption. Teachers have to deal with A LOT… Rude, disrespectful students who sometimes don’t want to succeed. Teachers are under pressure from schools while many parents fail to take responsibility for their kid’s actions. I wanted to be a teacher, but as I finish my last year of college, I’m seeing that career choice in a different light. We work so hard and hope to educate the youth and make a difference in the world, but the amount of disrespect given from students to teachers combined with people who don’t even try just makes the job seem like hell. Even in my own classes in a university, there are students who are outright RUDE to the professors blatantly disrespecting them and decrying that they “pay the professor’s salary.” That’s the kind of disrespect some professors I’ve seen take. In high school, I’ve seen students on two different occasions make female teachers cry. One of the teachers was pregnant and quit after the incident. I could only imagine the crap she must have been dealing with in her class in addition to probably begging students who would rather be on their cell phones tweeting and on Facebook to just try to get motivated in school.
livininsanity said
Shari,
You’re making an argument that the kids are undisciplined and unmotivated and disrespectful. If that’s a case, a teacher needs to make it intolerable. That’s part of what a teacher does – motivate and discipline. I had a teacher in high school how constantly had everyone on their toes, because that teacher doled out the discipline and was tough with grades. No teacher should be “begging” as you mention, unless they are a bad teacher. The cards are in the teachers hand and should be used, not ignored. As a non-teacher, if a student made a disrespectful comment about paying my salary, they would be told to leave the class. And, if it was anything like the majority of my University classes, then grades would suffer, because absences affected grades. Also, that high school teacher I mentioned before would not only have standed for it, but the person saying it might just end up peeing their pants that day. No joke.
livininsanity said
*not stood for it*
jfreakm71 said
I went to CB West, the rival school of East, and graduated in ’09. The people that go to CB East are some of the most wealthy and highly educated families in the state of Pennsylvania. Make her teach at a Philadelphia school for a semester and then she can legitimately trash talk. Honestly, she needs to take the plank out of her eye because she’s the whiny rude one.
Ms. M. Hudson said
Both of you have valid point, but I firmly agree with Shari that a teacher’s outburst does not denote his or her qualifications nor passion for the profession. I think Munroe’s faults are using profanity and ignoring discernment. It is important to motivate all kids. The students who present the greatest discipline problems usually have learning issues or have developed a negative perception of education. Sadly, those are the students who are usually in most need of the benefits of a solid education. Until I find Munroe’s blog post, I cannot make accurate judgement. I do, however, stand by Shari’s initial statement.
Ms. M. Hudson said
Ah, less than five minutes and I’m back. I found an article with excerpts from Munroe’s blog. While I still mantain that an outburst doesn’t give a complete picture of any professional, Munroe deserves her suspension. Actually, she deserves termination.
Here’s the link:
http://bit.ly/gaNdVK
livininsanity said
Mrs. M. Hudson,
Thanks for changing your stance after getting the full picture. What I was going to point out, and that you probably realized is that she didn’t say this about one or two students. She said these things about many students.
Wil said
As a teacher, I can say that your attitude towards your students comes out no matter what. No matter how well you THINK you are hiding them, students can very easily read your emotions, especially if you are as angry as Munroe seems to be. What she did was stupid. She should be fired immediately. Sadly, her union is protecting her as of now. If someone said such things about my kid, even if it were true, I’d be pissed.
NOTAFARMBOY said
Although I have not read all of Natalie M’s blogs, I do feel she is entitled to her feelings and 1st amendment right. With that said, the fact of the matter is she did not do enough to remain anonymous but hey at the end of the day we are responding in this internet frenzy. Her feelings are justified and rightfully so. I am a foster parent and have worked in this arena for 16 plus years and to be frank; her comments are not that far off.
You can provide a wonderful loving home, give them money to spend at the mall, let them go to the movies, drop them off at the library, let them go to dances or football games, let them talk on the telephone and watch cable TV, as well as eat dinner with them – barbeque for them – take them out for fun activities and treats, play basketball, football, wrestle with them, laugh with them and care for them when they are ill and what do you receive in return even with a fair but firm structure… “I don’t want to be here!” “F—K you!!!” “You don’t know me!!! – You’re not my mom/dad!!!” – that is usually followed by a chair being thrown across the room or running away because you hold them accountable for punching other kids at school, cursing out the teachers, failing their classes, having the campus police chase you, or for finding contraband in the home such as cigarettes and alcohol… Get their caseworkers involved and the kids will say, “We don’t do nothing here!” – blah, blah, blah – Some, very few will see thru the crap but most are enablers – We had one kid who complained my wife did not check if she brushed her teeth and the caseworker pulled her out the next day. She was 17 years old.
No one unless you have been on the frontline’s of society’s rejects will ever understand what it entails to not only raise kids that are not your own but teach them the skills they need to survive to becoming a better model or productive citizen once they leave their well catered care courtesy of the tax payers.
It is not easy raising kids in this day and age when you have filth on TV, radio, music (ipod, mp3, peers, etc… not to mention the devices such as alcohol/drugs/pornography. It can be draining especially when you share your knowledge with heart and soul and they do not want it. When you share your love and they reject it, and when you share your belief and they scoff at it… It is what it is – we’re dealing with a different beast – while kids strive for education, food, and just the basic necessities that would improve their life 1000% (i.e. food, shelter, clothing, etc)… – In third world countries… We have these kids (most not all) who are in a nut shell weak, too sensitive, and babied until they find out once they’re on their own by struggling, getting locked up, or worse death… oh the circle of life… Who is to blame? Maybe the entire village – one weak corner in the system of life and the inevitable is the end result… Failure.
batmansidekick said
You assume that she did not try to change the students for the better, I will assert that simply because she decided to be a teacher and express her feelings to the world that she was trying to change the students, both those she was working with as a teacher and those out of her ability to reach through those who read her blog. I have raised two step-daughters and now a step son and I agree that many of today’s youth do not understand putting real effort into anything they do not like and rarely for any real length of time. I think that all youth should be encouraged to take up a musical instrument to learn persistence at something hard and long term efforts. Also all youth should be encouraged to some sport that teaches teamwork and is coached in a manner that has emphasis on the teamwork. The idea that youth today spend hours watching TV or streaming video every day is disturbing, not have to think by using calculators and computers instead of minds. The imagination of the youth is dieing. Unfortunately, this has been happening for so long that parents are now almost as bad as youth. The reaction to the teacher being discovered was not to evaluate her to ensure that she is a good teacher but to simply pull the students from her class. The best teachers will give harsh criticism when you deserve it and great praise also.
Asian Tiger Mosquito said
2011…
Your style is so unique compared to many other people. Thank you for publishing when you have the opportunity,Guess I will just make this bookmarked….