Math, chemistry and physics teachers are in short supply. A new MIT-based program is trying to turn scientists, engineers and programmers into teachers, reports Hechinger’s Jon Marcus.As long as those engineers don't wear sexist shirts, I guess they'll be ok. (BTW, the woman who designed the shirt modeled the women on it after "Vampire Women From Mars!"-type movie posters from the 1950s. And here's the shirt.
Now that we've gone through all this, let's hope MIT's teacher training program includes a "dress for success" course. While I don't find the shirt sexist at all, I find it, uh, "distasteful". Ah heck, let's just call it what it is--hideous!!!
3 comments:
Isn't part of being a teacher 'relating to students', ie appearing to be on their side? I too an not a fan of athleisure or looking like one just came in from the Appalachian Trial, but it does work for some student's emotional needs.
The major problem is more likely the union agreements. The large list of those to be recalled take priority over any new hires, so the odds of getting a newly trained math expert is fairly tough. Remember when IBM tried to divert their laid off employees into teaching, and basically were rebuffed?
Another issue is compensation...by the time you bounce around and settle in a district, how much retirement pension will be available, taking in to account your nongovernmental first job's retirement? One has to work quite a bit of time to get around that windfall provision; its stopping a lot of ladies who stepped out to raise children - far better to contract professionally than teach in terms of retirement cash.
Today our Tech Systems teacher-the one who has won awards and taken kids to national TSA competitions-announced his last day is next Friday as he leaves to work for Northrop-Grumman. This is the fourth tech teacher we've lost in the last two years. And I'll be honest, I'm looking to see if my design skills can move over to a corporate gig so I can get those ten quarters that will help my retirement.
I'm a "female latina" science teacher (like my ethnicity and gender make a difference... ) and I wonder about all this stuff injected into teaching. I'm contemplating moving to a private school so that I don't have to deal with a lot of what I call PC garbage. I work with a lot of moderate democrats who secretly feel the same way. sigh...
Btw, I feel like I'm writing to a rockstar, here. I follow one of your colleague's physics blogs! Too bad I don't live near Sac because I'd love to meet you both. Wow!
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