Because there is anecdotal evidence that not all teachers are providing adequate instruction in our common schools, I hereby introduce the following bill. As I did the research for this bill I was shocked not only by the fact that situations like this can and actually do occur in public schools, but that there is no system of oversight in place to monitor its occurrence.
Without this oversight in place, we cannot even know how extensive this problem is.
Legislative Bill 1141-B
A Bill
1 FOR AN ACT relating to public schools to provide for evaluation of teachers
2 in schools which seek to meet accreditation or approval requirements.
3 Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
4 All accredited and approved public schools in Nebraska and all teachers
5 employed or giving instruction in such schools shall be subject to mandatory testing
6 and monitoring by the State Department of Health and Human Services,
7 with all information to be released to the public.
8 Such rules and regulations may include a provision for the visitation and electronic monitoring
9 of such schools and classrooms to evaluate teacher-student interactions and prevent the
10 verbal, emotional and even physical abuse of students in Nebraska public schools.
11 All observations, recordings and testing results will be turned in to the Nebraska
12 Department of Health and Human Services and be made available to the
13 public.
Opponents argue that anecdotal evidence alone should not drive policy, that there needs to be greater evidence of the extent of the problem before we subject every teacher in the State of Nebraska to electronic monitoring. But without oversight, how can we gather empirical evidence? I firmly believe that many, if not most, public educators are doing a fine job in their classrooms.
How will this legislation interfere with their instruction? I would think they would welcome the oversight as a chance to prove just how well they are doing in their classrooms. I just want to make sure that all children in Nebraska’s public schools have the opportunity to be educated by such professional and caring individuals.
(And just in case you are new to this blog and think I am completely off my rocker, please read this entry first. Then it will make more sense.)
[tags]homeschool, homeschooling, LB 1141, education, humor[/tags]
Oh, my lurch. YES! I second the motion. The Bill goes up for vote. All in favor?
Wow, both of you in total agreement! I’m impressed.
Ok, that made more sense before I deleted the duplicate. But oh well. At least one of you agrees with me.
Very savvy! Think it could set precedence
Hear, hear & I vote in the affirmative and all that. But I think your link is broken. I got the weather and then when I tried again, a piece on a rescue ghost.
You make your point brilliantly, as usual!
aye!
shoe on the other foot, pinches.
You don’t like the weather?
Fixing now, via Notes From a Homeschooling Mom
Appears this teacher graduated from the Katie Criss School for Proper Speech.
BRAVO! I was trying, unsuccessfully, to come up with just such an argument this morning, and you did it oh so brilliantly.
I don’t live in NE, but the same thinking exists elsewhere, unfortunately.
Fabulous bill!
Gracious, that teacher on the tape. Can someone in government just take the log out of their own eye first? It’s really baffling, with the amount of known problems in the public schools, that Ms. Schmimick or whatever would be on such an inquest against homeschoolers.
You know, our meter reader says that her daughter told her about her friend’s teacher wandering out into the hall during instruction time. I think we need a whole new law to deal with incidents like this! Thanks for bringing this up!
For your next bill, let me suggest that all public school children must be in the top 40% of their grade level on an annual standardized test, or they must be homeschooled the following school year. We need accountability and standards, after all.
The “Ayes” have it. Motion carried.
Send it forth to your legislatures!
My nine year old went downtown today to walk amongst the frat houses looking for Greek letters since she is learning the Greek alphabet.
To any passing meter readers, however, she would have looked truant. And had anyone asked her what she was doing out and about during school hours, she would have answered that she is homeschooled.
And then she could have entered into anecdotal evidence given by meter readers as to why all homeschools need more accountability to the state.
Loved the snark