Ed Boland, whose interview in the New York Times set off a flurry of negative responses, commented on the blog:
“With all due respect, Diane Ravitch, I did everything you suggested: I got my masters in education in advance of teaching, I did even more student teaching than was required, I sought out good mentors. This was not a silly whim. I may not have had the chops for the job, but if so I have plenty of company: 68% of new teachers leave NYC high poverty schools within 5 years. The school where I taught has had 100% teacher turn over, many of them were dedicated veteran educators. I’m trying to call attention to the fact that we are expecting teachers in high poverty schools to do too much. We must end the myth of the hero teacher.”
I’m with Ed on that last point. The idea that teachers are to blame for the ills of society is simply ludicrous. The idea that a “great” teacher can singlehandedly overcome all social ills is a myth. Why not have high expectations for both teachers and for society? We have for too long allowed politicians, pundits, and billionaires too divert our attention from society’s responsibilities and shifted the blame to teachers.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I don’t have the research to support this statement other than my personal experiences. I most higher poverty schools, you have some of the largest classes. I talking about classes of 35-40-50 are the norm. When there are excessively classes it reduces the chances of any teacher, no matter their greatness from having success.
If the powers that be would look at policies that require smaller class then it would make a significant difference, quickly. It is easy for a student not engage to check out. One teacher cannot oversee 50 students adequately.
https://davidrtayloreducation.wordpress.com/2015/01/22/the-scarlet-letter-again/
That is an excellent point. Can Ed Boland comment on how many students he had in a class? Were there 10? 15? 25?
I recall an article about a supposedly amazing teacher who taught a summer class in AP Calculus to a group of less than a dozen high achieving kids from at-risk families and the praise she was getting. Her “stellar” teaching was contrasted with the teacher in the next room teaching more than twice as many kids who had failed a basic class and were being forced to do summer school. It didn’t seem as if the kids in the 2nd class were learning that much, but the notion that if the first teacher had those same kids she would have been able to teach them was outrageous.
We all know that class size – especially when you are talking about high poverty schools with a large number of disinterested students — makes a huge difference. But the pro-charter “reformers” keep arguing that class size doesn’t matter when it comes to failing public schools.
In a K class of 30 (even 25 is pushing it), 3-5 may lag due to inability to get special needs met yet do well enough to move on. In a Gr 1, those 3-5 will need to catch up. 2-3 will probably lag seriously because they can’t catch up. The teacher will have to find extra 1on1 time to help. Meanwhile, 3-5 additional of the overcrowded 30 in the Gr1 class will probably lag due to the attention of the teacher being diverted and stressed. Grade 1 will probably be left with 5 who need a lot of extra help in Gr 2. Now the Gr 2 teacher is triple stressed and working overtime to help the struggling catch up. 8 may get passed into Gr 3 with serious reading and comprehension practice problems. Add to that stresses at home and lack of reinforcement and behavior problems detracting from effective learning time. By Gr 4 half the class can show up well behind where they should be, ready to get caught in a vortex of despair and doubt that education will ever work for them. How many have parents that have lived out that trajectory themselves? Teachers and parents can help some to pull out and find success anyway. Great teachers and parents can help many–but there are only so many hero folks to spare, only so many with reservoirs of the needed time and attention away from their own life stresses. The whole mess starts in the early grades with class size, resources and family services that are mis-matched to the real needs of real kids. Teachers are on the front lines. They know and speak loudly for redress yet go ignored or worse, are vilified as the cause of the problem. Give me a break. Do the math. There are only so many hours in the day to do what has to be done. The whining politicians all want something for nothing. Step up and do what has to be done!
My experience agrees. I also think that some underfunded, understaffed urban schools fail to adequately serve and identify their special needs students, creating more behavior problems due to frustration, attention issues, and more. Plus, hunger and instability do not happy, well-adjusted kids make.
It’s especially ironic since the affluent children whose parents can afford private schools are the ones with tiny class sizes and the at-risk kids who need them the most get bupkis.
It’s all part of the plan…those that have, get more. Those that don’t have any will continue to do without.
R. Davidson wrote: “In a K class of 30. . . ”
Are you kidding? A K class should be no more than 15 max and include an aide and SpEd teacher. Anything less is outrageous and unethical for the students.
But it’s a really CONVENIENT, myth, right?
If it’s all up to individual teachers then everyone else is off the hook. Funny how these myths are so eagerly adopted when they serve a purpose.
Chiara,
I laughed when I read your comment, “Funny how these myths are so eagerly adopted when they serve a purpose”, because I was thinking the exact same thing. In fact, I was just thinking about all of the brainwashing in the school I worked at and even during my teacher training. Below are some examples:
1. It doesn’t matter if you have a class of 20 or 50 students. If you are a good teacher, they’ll all succeed. (this was told to me during my teacher training).
2. Only low quality teachers use textbooks. Develop your own unit and lesson plans teachers. No books. (this was told to me by my principal).
3. Data, data, data! What is this data telling you? Use it to DRIVE your instruction. Our kids need the test scores to get into the most elite colleges. If the kids aren’t getting the scores, you aren’t doing something right teachers! (this was told to me by my principal and her third party consultants)
4. Our kids need good grades to get into colleges. You can’t fail more than 15% of your students, need to offer extra credit to students who are doing poorly, and need to offer as many chances to retake tests, resubmit homework, redo quizzes, and anything necessary to let our kids feel successful. (also told to me by my principal and her third party consultants).
5. What good is this math? I know so many successful people who can’t answer these questions. You are being too hard on our students here. Water this down so the kids can be successful. This is too “RIGOROUS” (told to me by all of my administrators).
There are plenty of other examples, but figured everyone gets the point :). Like you said, Chiara, myths are adopted when they serve a purpose.
In my examples above, there was no money for textbooks, so all of a sudden TEACHERS were bad if they used them. TEACHERS were bad if students didn’t get “results” in 50 student classrooms. TEACHERS were bad if they weren’t teaching to the test “using data to DRIVE curriculum”. Etc.
I’m not sure that Ed is interested in addressing the idea that teaching should be, and in my experience, used to be, a very creative, Captain Of Her Own Ship type of career. While my work inside low-income schools was VERY hard, before the instigation of NCLB it was also VERY rewarding. As current statistics point to the fact that teachers, even “dedicated veterans,” as Ed mentions, are leaving low-income schools, is he willing to taking into account that (1) many teachers across the nation are now being viciously targeted, endlessly harassed, and forcefully (and very painfully) dismissed from their teaching assignments and (2) when you take creative agency out of the picture and run your schools in a top-down, non-collaborative, pre-scripted fashion, employees no longer wish to do the job. As our fanatic obsession with testing continues to rule educational policy, teaching becomes, as Ed says, very hard work — but there is now only blame as a teacher’s reward. ciedieaech.wordpress.com : Legalized Shame
Thing is he’s not helping public education in his current job. Merely giving kids scholarships to private schools is a “run away” solution rather than an improvement to what ails kids in poverty.
You know what? I went into a terribly challenging school in the South Bronx right out of grad school. It was extremely hard and I cried far more than I laughed but I didn’t quit at the end of one year.
I went back and I sought out professional development, read more books, took more classes, reached out to more parents, and got to know more kids.
That was over 20 years ago. I didn’t write a book and go on the rubber chicken circuit. I worked summers to earn money to buy books and supplies for my classroom. I cultivated relationships and grew as a professional.
Now I navigate shark-filled waters and try my damndest to survive the reformist cleanse.
I did it for the kids then and I still do.
Spread the word Mr. Borland. I thank you for doing that, I think.
Remember though that you were a quitter and a whole helluva lot of us aren’t. We deserve your admiration and thanks, not the other way around.
FYI: I would like this five more times if it was allowed. 🙂
I thank Ed Boland for helping the public see what goes on behind closed doors at a lot of schools (reporters never see but a fraction of it). He’s right: the job is too demanding. If you have to be a black belt at psychological jui-jitsu to survive the job –then it’s too demanding. Let’s hope the great Gates can find a solution to this problem -because sure as heck the solons in the ed schools have not.
I do not think Ed Boland deserves anything like thanks. Here is why.
Ed Boland has a book about his miserable year of teaching
and an agency that books speaking engagements for him so he can spread the word about a terrible public school.
He makes points that others have made for a very, very, very long time, granted with colorful writing.
Ed Boland agency’s PR says: Ed Boland left a career as a fundraising exec to become a teacher at a tough NYC school. “He reminds us that it’s not up to individual teachers, or schools, to solve national issues. He touches on apartheid schools—institutions with one percent or lower white population—and the general crisis of re-segregated schools.”
We also learn that he is now “a senior administrator at the nation’s premier educational access program, which places gifted students of color at leading private schools.”
….and that “premier” access program is not named, but it is Prep for Prep. Here is more from the Prep for Prep website.
“REACH FOR THE STARS, BECOME ONE OF OURS!
Thank you for your interest in Prep for Prep.
Below is an overview of our application process, which varies depending on grade level. Visit the appropriate page through the links below or through the Nominate/Apply button above.”
“Prep for Prep is the nation’s foremost program for academically gifted African-American, Latino, and Asian-American students. We place our students in New York’s independent day and boarding schools, which provide scholarships that fully meet every family’s financial need. We also offer our students life-changing opportunities, great activities, and support from middle school all the way through college. Prep charges no tuition for its services.”
Here is the Prep for Prep pitch for parents/caregivers who want to sign up early.
“The earliest point that a student may be nominated to Prep for Prep is in fifth grade. However, there are several early steps you can take that may help make the student a good candidate for Prep for Prep, including:
Research the Gifted and Talented programs or magnet schools in your area and advocate for the student’s admission.
Monitor the student’s grades closely and check homework regularly.
Whenever possible, enrich the student’s life with trips to museums, cultural activities, and any travel.
Make sure the student is always reading worthwhile books outside of school. Encourage them to read books above their grade level.
Summer is a time when many students actually lose ground academically. Find an academically oriented summer program or actively participate in your local public library summer reading program.”
Ed Boland is now Vice President for External Affairs for Prep for Prep—a crème de la crème program that preps students for crème de la crème schools.“ http://www.prepforprep.org/staff
And all of this (says the PR for his speaking) means that “Boland is helping revitalize the debate over American education.”
“…it perfectly summarizes what is wrong with public education in America, and how we can fix it.” Publishers Weekly
How to fix it? Look at the Trustees who collectively pay a healthy proportion of the costs for students to attend Prep for Prep—McKinsey & Co. Goldman Sachs, etc.
Anyone else see something here that smacks of earnest self-promotion? touches on the issue of apartheid schools? fuels the eagerness of the press to condemn public schools?
No, but he is helping some students that voters have no desire to help at this time.
If one does not have the cojones for teaching in difficult schools, you will be run out by the students. They know when you lack “grit.” If you are determined, you can succeed in educating students to meet their goals, if not the deformers’ goal of standardized test scores.
Good Post. Thanks
To quit does not always mean that one has failed. It takes a strong and wise person to leave anything that s/he knows he can’t do or doesn’t have the heart to do. There is wisdom in letting go. We must let go of the myth of the hero teacher but we must also let go of the idea that quitting is always indicative of failure.
I’m not surprised that someone had to jump up and defend Mr. Boland’s quitting. It’s how it works in today’s ridiculous ‘both sides do it’ world where no one is to be held accountable except those least responsible for outcomes.
No, there is no shame in quitting and yes, there is wisdom in knowing when to walk away from a failed attempt.
But that does not an expert make and Mr. Boland, with his book deal, reviews in major media outlets, guest spots on talk shows, etc. is acting like, and being treated like, an educational expert.
He is not. A teacher who stuck with it and didn’t blame the kids for their own failures will never get the red carpet treatment Boland is receiving, and that is my point.
There is little equivalency, in my mind, between the ‘hero teacher’ myth and the ‘quitting is always failure’ meme, especially in this context.
There is a body of literature about the current generation’s insistence that they start at the top and instantly achieve what only time and experience can reward. This is a real problem being addressed by real employers. Mr. Boland seems to be one of those who, if they can’t have what they want when they want it, walk away.
That’s not admirable nor does is confer expertise nor celebration.
Empathy, yes, and pity.
I am saying this in a general way. I don’t know all the aspects of Mr. Boland’s case. I don’t know Mr. Boland personally.
Thank you for the clarification. Your comment was made in the context of this blog posting about Mr. Borland and the discussion about his response to Diane. I did not read it as generalized.
Thank you Dr. Ravitch to post this thread.
Thank you Mamie Krupczak Allegretti for your wisdom in the sentence:
“It takes a strong and wise person to leave anything that s/he knows he can’t do or doesn’t have the heart to do.”
This strong and wise attitude is equal to being sharp EXPERIENCE to know oneself’s body, mind and spirit limitation.
Most of all, I profoundly salute Dr. Laura H. Chapman’s wisdom, knowledge, and experience. Teacher Boland is a business career minded tool for corporate.
It would be disaster for future of public education in the American society. Yes, there will be more “ACADEMIC” leaders to be puppets who are controlled by corporate from program PREP for PREP. There is nothing FREE that is paid by capitalism, fascism and communism except PURE humanism.
Today, we have few of examples like Campbell Brown, Michelle Rhee, John King, Arne Duncan, most of governors, and many higher profile business leaders in Tech sector.
Please educate and cultivate parents and students to be aware of “”if anything is too good to be true, then please be aware of bad consequence or bad trap.”” There is NO SHORTCUT for any real glory. Beauty, Fame, and Success must earn from individual intelligence, hard work, self-discipline and perseverance. Therefore, please be aware of CONDITIONAL HELP from external sources. Back2basic
agreed
Dr. Ravitch, I completely agree. Teachers shouldn’t be punished for the problems they can’t fix. Society is quick to blame teachers when student performance is less then favorable, and praise teachers who get god results. Another key thing to consider is the student. The student who has their own means of getting resources already has the edge on students who might not have those resources available to them, they don’t need a “hero” teacher. Society as a whole should realize that we can’t expect teachers to be able to prepare for and deal with every situation thrown at them!
Mr. Boland,
You tried your best and have the intelligence and integrity to know and articulate that teachers alone cannot overcome children’s disadvantages, but are only one of many, powerful factors. Many of the other factors have to do with what happens to children when they are born and what befalls them prior to entering any kind of school setting . . . .
Europe gets this, which is why Northern and Western Europe have such low child poverty rates while that in the USA remains a a scandalous and heinous 24% . . .
I’m with you, Robert. He tried and was smart enough to realize that it wasn’t meant to be. My own administrator told me later that he initially thought I was doing “charity work.” I wouldn’t have made it without the help of support staff and fellow teachers. I had a lot to learn in an environment that was totally foreign to me. Fortunately with strong paras and students who were willing to give me the benefit of the doubt, we all made it.
I am glad you made it. I have also.
I fear for today’s younger generations of teachers, as there are fewer and fewer coming into the profession as a result of teachers being a targeted, propagandized group.
Teaching in an urban school is hard, no doubt about it. I also am at second career teacher but I’ve been teaching 10 years in urban schools.
There are lots of ways to teach at urban schools successfully, but essentially giving up on your students in your first year is probably not the best approach. I actually read Mr. Boland’s book yesterday and while it is an engaging narrative, I am puzzled as to why he is now considered an expert in education policy.
I am a fat, white, middle aged, middle class woman who has great success teaching English in an urban school. Last year in a title one school in California out of my 170 students exactly 2 of my students did not pass the CAHSEE, the very highest pass rate in my district.
How do I do it? Structure, procedures, relationships and what I call relentlessness. It’s taken me a while to get here, and I’ve read literally hundreds of books on the topic of urban education and classroom management. What is the most important element of classroom management? Predictability and building a relationship with your students. If you tell a kid something, mean it. If you want something to happen, make it happen.
In general, my demographics could make me a target, just as Mr. Boland’s demographics made him a target. I find by being authentic and competent the kids respond to my teaching. I tell them about myself up front and take some weapons away from them before they even try it …. Yeah, I’m fat. Yeah, I’m white. Yeah, I’m old. And I’m not your mother, I’m somebody else’s mother.
“I tell them about myself up front and take some weapons away from them before they even try it …. Yeah, I’m fat. Yeah, I’m white. Yeah, I’m old. And I’m not your mother, I’m somebody else’s mother.”
Chuckle. I used this strategy, too. Very effective.