What Newsweek Gets Wrong
Newsweek seems to think repeating dramatic and trite sentiments about teaching is the way to improve the profession. We prefer thoughtful discussion of solutions that help create good teachers.
In "Why We Must Fire Bad Teachers," Thomas and Wingert not only downplay all the factors that help create good teachers, they rely on the opinions of a handful of think tanks, as opposed to talking to and quoting any working educators. Perhaps that's how they came to the cockamamie conclusion that much of the ability to teach is innate. In a letter to Newseek editors, ASCD Executive Director Gene Carter responds,
As a career educator and the executive director of ASCD, an education association of 170,000 educators worldwide, I have yet to meet a master teacher who would claim to have been born with the appropriate skills to successfully "inspire young minds as well as control unruly classrooms."
The (mostly educator) authors in the May Educational Leadership know that "supporting teachers is neither dramatic nor easy."
They discuss the lasting benefits of different teacher preparation programs, how to best support and evaluate teachers in their first few years, how teachers are driving their own learning, and working with communities to grow local capacity to improve schools.
We're not the only ones calling bull on Newsweek:
- Barnett Berry at Advancing the Teaching Profession
- Claus von Zastrow at Public School Insights
- Diane Ravitch at Bridging Differences
- Philly Teacher
- Robert Pondiscio at Core Knowledge
Is your school community on team Newsweek or team Educational Leadership?
