Steve Strieker writes a blog called “Imagine Wisconsin.” Last year, after the teacher-bashing reached new heights in his state, he felt defeated. He was in a state of grief. All year, he was so disheartened that he wrote only two posts for his blog.
Over time, with the help of family and friends, he pulled himself out of his despair, and he felt revived, personally and professionally.
He writes:
“During the peak of the grief, however, I questioned my ability to teach. I thought about taking an extended absence. As the school year started, I didn’t know how I would survive. How could I meet the needs of my students when I was so needy myself?
“Through this despair, I have come to realize how strong I used to be and how much I give psychologically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually to my students. After the fog lifted, I could see more clearly now how much strength is actually required to help needy students on many levels. Teaching is not an easy gig.
“Like Boston Strong in the wake of the 2013 marathon bombing, Teacher Strong is my new mantra for 2015. Teaching comes easy to me when I am healthy and strong. I have been fortunate to have been mostly healthy and strong during my professional career.
“Teachers serve students, parents, and our communities in powerful ways. Teaching takes profound strength to serve an increasing number of students with significant socio-psychological needs.
“My period of despair has left no doubt. To teach, you have to be Teacher Strong. What teachers do is important and matters. What I do matters and makes a difference. In 2015, I will not take being strong and healthy for granted. What is my nature will now be nurtured.
“Goodbye 2014. Goodbye Grief. Hello 2015.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I love this! Sign me up for the Teacher Strong movement, please!
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There is a studentfirstalabama FB page set up for the big push for charters in the March legislative session. Could you make your followers aware and ask them to post by the thousands the truth about the charter school movement ? As you can imagine, the disinformation they are posting seems credible to a population unschooled in their ways. Thank you.
Sent from my iPhone
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CS, Read Jersey Jazzman & School Finance 101 blogs for respected research re results/effects of charters. Also, Hoboken, NJ former superintendent M Taback wrote public letter to NJ Dept Ed because charters created serious budget problems for a small town district.
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Yes. Teaching is a hard job, and teachers should be supported and respected–not attacked and undermined.
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I felt much the same way and blogged about it here:
http://whatsthebigideaschwartzy.blogspot.com/2014/07/good-grief.html
“I am getting back on track and focusing on what I love—my family, friends, and teaching. This summer I have been working hard, letting creativity infuse new ideas into my plans for the upcoming year, and recapturing my love of life. I have been in shock. I have sat in disbelief. I have felt pain & anger. I have tread through hopelessness. And now I feel acceptance—not acceptance that we will forever lose public education (though we may). But I feel acceptance that though this is actually happening, my energy and passion for public education and for joyful, high interest learning for all kids (not just private school students) cannot be stopped.”
Teacher strong – love it!
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Need wristbands!
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Love it!
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Acceptance is the worst thing we can do. That is what Reformers and their puppets like Walker want us to do. Acceptance invites more “reform” and we are again back to grief. Stay angry. Communicate anger to any who will listen. Make people understand the value of teachers, as America has forgotten. Express your anger at the ballot box. Support only businesses that support teachers. Let parents and students know you are on their side, not politicians, billionaires, and CEOs. It will take time, but good usually prevails over evil, greed, and lies.
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I love the idea of TEACHER STRONG. In Wisconsin, every teacher is afraid to move lest they be given the “handbook” solution to asking questions. We need teachers to not be afraid to stand up for their students and their practice if we are going to turn the tide of public disinformation. I say “disinformation” because it is not only misinformation but horribly negative. Thank you for starting this movement. I agree…we need wristbands!
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This is an important insight. Thank you.
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I would support a Teacher Strong movement because I will not support any education reform that does not have the majority support of American teachers. We parents are behind you if you begin to organize. As a parent who is diligent about doing homework with my fourth grader and who has seen some practice Common Core exams I’m absolutely baffled by how the homework prep does not reflect what is actually on the test. Nothing makes sense in public education anymore and there seems to be no logical progression of skill instruction. It is chaos on the battleground of education and unfortunately our children are the casualties.
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Sorry, but “Boston Strong” was a PR campaign to distract people from the fact that martial law was needlessly declared in Boston in the aftermath of the marathon bombing, and to validate people passively giving up their constitutional rights.
People are deluded if they think they can save public education by mimicking the language of national security/police state disinformation and social control campaigns.
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Somewhat off topic but a MUST READ letter to the (NYT) editor from the founder of CHARTER STRONG.
To The Editor,
Re “Cuomo Cites School Crisis; Data Suggest Otherwise” (news article, Jan. 24):
Some critics claim that the education crisis that Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has rightly called out is just a myth: You report that they say “it would be hard to justify describing the situation in New York as a crisis, unless persistent mediocrity itself were a crisis.” This reminds me of the difference between a recession and a depression: A recession is when your neighbor is unemployed; a depression is when you are.
Similarly, whether you believe that our school system is in crisis may depend upon whether you are forced to send your child to a failing school, which the crisis-deniers plainly do not do.
In New York State, nearly 800,000 students in grades 3 to 8 fail to meet grade standards. In a kindergarten class of 30 minority children, just two will graduate from college. In New York City, 143,000 children are stuck in failing schools, where less than one in 10 can read or do math; 96 percent of them are minority children, and 93 percent are poor.
To those who doubt that we have a crisis, I say: Enroll your child in one of the failing schools to which we relegate the poor and the disenfranchised. You will quickly change your mind.
EVA MOSKOWITZ
New York, Jan. 26, 2015
The writer, a former chairwoman of the New York City Council’s Education Committee, is the founder and chief executive of Success Academy Charter Schools.
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My response to EM at the NYT:
To The Editor,
Exactly which NY school districts did Eva Moskowitz suggest are in crisis? Bronxville? Scarsdale? Chappaqua? Byram Hills? Jericho? Manhasset? Great Neck? Or, did she mean, Buffalo? Rochester? Syracuse? Poughkeepsie? Troy? Binghamton? Schenectady?
Public schools are a direct reflection of the communities they serve. Schools that are in crisis can almost exclusively be found in communities in crisis. These are communities torn apart by crime, drugs, family dysfunction, and the dependence and hopelessness that chronic, generational poverty breeds. For Eva Moskowitz to paint the entire public school system of New York with this broad brush claim is not only misleading but irresponsible. And what she fails to realize is, that for the majority of the students living in these communities in crisis, the seven hours that they spend in their “failing” school is usually the very best part of their day.
Shame on you Ms. Moskowitz, for using this forum to inaccurately disparage New York’s public schools – while conveniently overlooking the root causes and potential solutions that would benefit all of NY’s struggling citizens.
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Thanks so much for reposting my post. #teacherstrong
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