From a letter of resignation by Gerald J. Conti, a high-school social-studies teacher in Syracuse, New York:
My profession is being demeaned by a pervasive atmosphere of distrust, dictating that teachers cannot be permitted to develop and administer their own quizzes and tests (now titled as generic “assessments”) or grade their own students’ examinations. The development of plans, choice of lessons and the materials to be employed are increasingly expected to be common to all teachers in a given subject. This approach not only strangles creativity, it smothers the development of critical thinking in our students and assumes a one-size-fits-all mentality more appropriate to the assembly line than to the classroom.
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One size has always fit all in the gulag, stalag and slaves' quarters.
It's even crazier in the world of special education, where one must write *individualized* education plans with goals for every student and then be able to demonstrate via data and evaluations that progress has been made. So much more than learning facts or mastering skills goes on in the best classrooms; writing goals for everything would take every bit of one's time! And teaching only to the written goals would result in an incredibly impoverished program. I still miss the students and the thrill of teaching very badly......but not the craziness of the paperwork burden. Resign? Nope. We have been DRIVEN out.
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