This is an interesting first-person account by a young person who felt lucky to be accepted into the super-elite Teach for America and reports on her year in the Atlanta Public Schools.
Two observations. The five week training program drilled into her that children fell behind because of their bad teachers. She was constantly reminded that she would close the achievement gap because she was better than those ordinary–not TFA–teachers.
The other striking impression: her five weeks of training did not prepare her for reality:
“During my training, I taught a group of nine well-behaved third-graders who had failed the state reading test and hoped to make it to fourth grade. Working with three other corps members, which created a generous teacher-student ratio, I had ample time for one-on-one instruction.
“That classroom training was completely unlike the situation I now faced in Atlanta: teaching math and science to two 20-person groups of rotating, difficult fifth-graders—fifth-graders so difficult that multiple substitute teachers would vow never to teach fifth grade at our school again.
“I had few insights or resources to draw on when preteen boys decided recess would be the perfect opportunity to beat each other bloody, or when parents all but accused me of being racist during meetings. Or when a student told me that his habit of doing nothing during class stemmed from his (admittedly sound) logic that “I did the same thing last year and I passed.” The Institute’s training curriculum was far too broad to help me navigate these situations. Because many corps members do not receive their specific teaching assignments until after training has ended, the same training is given to future kindergarten teachers in Atlanta, charter-school teachers in New Orleans, and high-school physics teachers in Memphis.”
This made me feel sick… What is going on with this TFA program?? Disgraceful…There is one at our school that blames the “Old” teachers for the students failures… Get real..
Wasn’t there a movie with Michelle Pfeiffer from years ago where she was put into an inner city classroom. . .of course, in the movies all ends well, but this young adult’s (I won’t call her a teacher, b/c 5 weeks makes not a teacher) experience reminded of the incredible difficulties that movie so poignantly portrayed, including not just difficult interactions, but the actual threat of physical violence in the classroom.
Why isn’t TFA teaching their young adults about how to handle that? It is inexcusable.
Follow-up comment: How could TFA ever think they could teach someone to be in difficult situations, no matter their location, in 5 weeks?
These recruits are young and naïve.
As for those in TFA leadership: They are arrogant and believe the nonsense they try to sell (i.e., that teaching is “easy”; that teachers are incompetent; that “anyone can teach”; that teaching is not a profession).
Devil’s advocate. How many first year teachers from traditional teacher training programs report a class on behavior management?
Good question. I had such a course as part of my teacher education. And I still learned a lot more on the job.
Conflating two seperate issues: teacher prep and completely underresourced classrooms filled with the neediest children with the least support. In quality schools of ed, candidates have 100s of hours of experience working with students in a variety of grade levels and settings, 100s more hours of observation of experienced teachers, LOTS of work and practice with classroom management techiniques, and even GenEd teachers take at least one course on students with special needs. This is a bare minimum of work that should be already completed before even being allowed to be alone in a classroom with children.
I feel TFA often uses the fact that so many classrooms, especially in high-poverty urban and rural settings, are so criminially under-resourced that even experienced well-trained teachers may struggle. NO! I say the unequal conditions of the savage inequalities in our schools are all the MORE reason why it is unacceptable to place our neediest students with the least prepared novices. There is no excuse for TFA exacerbating inequalities.
I had to take a course on classroom management for both my undergraduate and Master degrees in early childhood and elementary education. It should be noted that I attended different schools for my degrees.
A few thoughts…
1. Professional teacher education matters.
2. TFA is essentially preparing long-term SUBSTITUTE teachers for 2 year assignments.
3. Apparently even the TFA training is not nearly as “practical” (a charge often levied at teacher ed programs). By the way, theory does matter as well.
4. While not all veteran teachers are necessarily “good,” they are not all “bad” either. They have a lot of wisdom to offer new teachers. I have fond memories of the ones who mentored me long before the days of official “mentoring” programs.
Kudos to this young teacher for detailing and recoiling from the lack of training and arrogance of TFA, and the educational malpractice of the charter schools that depend on these manipulated young people as a cheap, temporary labor force.
The “data wall” photographed in the article demonstrates the public humiliation of students that is endemic in these schools.
Are these “laboratories of innovation,” or sweatshops for breaking the spirits of these children, all so the Wendy Kopp’s of the world can parade their superiority and serve their 1% masters?
On that note what the hell is “Data is not the destination, it is part of the journey” supposed to mean? Is this an internal teachers’ board?
I’m all but certain that board is on public display, since shame and humiliation are often pedagogical techniques in these sweatshops.
The next step in the deskilling of teaching is moving all teacher training to off-shore on-line providers. Countries that are now at the top provide new teachers with extended periods of student-teaching ( 2- 3 years) under master teachers before they are permitted to take over a classroom. Our reform efforts continue to backload the system instead of front loading the system. From quality pre-school programs to teacher training programs we end up remediating students and teachers rather than building upon solid foundation of sound early schooling and quality teacher training experiences.
I admire Olivia Blanchard’s honesty.
Consider just this one sentence near the end: “I have only completed one year of my two-year commitment, knowing full well that this kind of mission-shirking is seen as a very serious, selfish betrayal within TFA.”
Similar comments follow.
The circle is complete: leading charterite/privatizer organizations like TFA disrespect and have a low opinion of students, parents, communities, and even their own sacrificial lambs.
Any wonder that they cannot conduct themselves with honor when it comes to dealing with the owner of this blog and anyone else who questions their pursuit of $tudent $ucce$$?
That was a very good article. Thanks for posting it.
Just for fun watch this “TfA, Go Away”. A PAA member from Oregon made this funny video
http://www.greatschoolsforamerica.org/gsa-wp/go-away-and-stay-away-tfa/
And just think, a TFA’er is in four of nine school board races here in Atlanta.
That is what TFA is really all about: recruiting and grooming people for elected positions to protect and further Wendy Kopps’ brainchild. It has nothing to do with educating children.It never did.
To be a TFA teacher in today’s underfunded schools, one really must have to fudge it all day, every day. So unfair to everyone. I appreciate this TFA’ers candor.
I spoke with a pre-school teacher last week who said she has to post a data wall on her three and four year olds, using the colors: blue, green, orange and red. Guess what coloer the at risk kiddos are. She thought she would be able to teach for many moer years – now she is counting down to retirement
Pretend for a moment that classroom management were a minimal issue. Where is the slightest training in pedagogical content knowledge? I guarantee that it’s a term TFA never mentions. I doubt Wendy Kopp or the big brass at TFA even know what it is. And if they did, and recognized its crucial role in effective teaching, they would have to offer a much more intensive and extensive training for their recruits, or else get the hell out of the field of education. My preference would be the latter. We don’t need more people with a two-year exit plan going into teaching.
In Memphis, the state run Achievement School District is offering free drinks at happy hour to recruit Teach for America corp members to work in some of America’s poorest neighborhoods teaching some of the nation’s neediest children. It has all the makings of a very cruel joke. Link to video invitation is below.
A fine article.
I am a 2013 corps member in Memphis, TN (and work with the ASD, in fact) and couldn’t disagree more with these statements/comments coming from people making blanket statements after hearing the experience of ONE person.
As a recent grad from an undergraduate and then masters program in elem. ed., I was also very critical of the 6 week boot camp to prepare TFA teachers UNTIL I learned more about it. There is CONSTANT professional development provided throughout the year in the form of a one-on-one advisor, mandatory sessions, observations, feedback, etc. Compared to what my first year would look like had I not done TFA, I feel like I have a lot more support.
The majority of teachers are not running towards inner-city schools and fighting to teach in failing districts. Cut corps members some slack and recognize that they’re doing what most experienced teachers consider themselves lucky to get away from. You’re not helping educational inequality at all by bashing people that are ACTUALLY getting up every morning and doing something.
If you’re curious, this is my blog: http://snapsforfourth.blogspot.com/