Union County Public Schools 2014-2026

Departments of education and school districts always have to make decisions about what to include in their curriculum.  There are a lot of life skills that people need that aren't taught in school.  The question is should those skills be taught in schools?I teach high school, so I'll talk about that.  The typical high school curriculum is supposed to give students a broad-based education that prepares them to be citizens in a democracy and to be able to think critically.  For a democracy to work, we need educated, discerning citizens with the ability to make good decisions based on evidence and objective thought.  In theory, people who are well informed about history, culture, science, mathematics, etc., and are capable of critical, unbiased thinking, will have the tools to participate in a democracy and make good decisions for themselves and for society at large.  In addition to that, they should be learning how to be learners, how to do effective, basic research, and collaborate with other people.  If that happens, figuring out how to do procedural tasks in real life should not provide much of a challenge.  We can't possibly teach every necessary life skill people need, but we can help students become better at knowing how to acquire the skills they need.  Should we teach them how to change a tire when they can easily consult a book or search the internet to find step by step instructions for that?  Should we teach them how to balance a check book or teach them how to think mathematically and make sense of problems so that the simple task of balancing a check book (which requires simple arithmetic and the ability to enter numbers and words in columns and rows in obvious ways) is easy for them to figure out.  If we teach them to be good at critical thinking and have some problem solving skills they will be able to apply those overarching skills to all sorts of every day tasks that shouldn't be difficult for someone with decent cognitive ability  to figure out.  It's analogous to asking why a culinary school didn't teach its students the steps and ingredients to a specific recipe.  The school taught them about more general food preparation and food science skills so that they can figure out how to make a lot of specific recipes without much trouble.  They're also able to create their own recipes.So, do we want citizens with very specific skill sets that they need to get through day to day life or do we want citizens with critical thinking, problem solving, and other overarching cognitive skills that will allow them to easily acquire ANY simple, procedural skill they may come to need at any point in their lives?

Because they are often treated as if they were hourly employees.Teachers have sick leave, Most of us (speaking of myself in my career as a teacher) used it when we were sick. Being out of the classroom imposes a large burden on the teacher because we are expected to leave lesson plans (prepared in advance) and to take up the slack in grading when we come back. Yet there are principals and districts that say to all teachers that you must produce a doctor’s note every time you are absent, even if you know what is keeping you out (migraines, asthma, or other recurring conditions) and have in place a regime approved by your doctor to deal with it. So every time they get a severe asthma attack or bad migraine headache, they must drag themselves out of bed to go to the doctor, wasting their time and that of the staff at the doctor’s office.Most principals and districts monitor lesson plans, and require them to be submitted. But most of them know that classroom situations vary, and sometimes a teacher must wing it to deal with an unexpected complication. Some administrations make this complicated and time consuming, for instance, by requiring the teacher to submit a new plan to cover what has already been done, with a justification for departing from the original plan.Administrations remove disciplinary tools from the teacher, but do not back up the teacher’s disciplinary decisions when called on.Some administrators correct or berate teachers in front of their colleagues, and even in front of the students.I was fortunate to work in a very professional and well-run district during my career (Onslow County Public Schools in NC), but I had friends, relatives, and colleagues who did not.Finally, in the matter of salaries and benefits, teachers do not negotiate them individually with the system. We are dealt with en masse. If we do not band together to advocate for ourselves, we have no way to advocate individually.

My district has a window of time that allows students to transfer to chosen schools. Almost all transfers are accepted.There is a specific procedure to do this correctly.If the student lives in a different district, they have to officially notify that district that they are planning on going to a neighboring district. Paperwork must be signed by both districts.Please contact all the districts involved. They can help you with the steps.Each year the student must reapply for the transfer. My district only denies transfers when attendance or behavior has been an issue.

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