So, how much should a teacher be allowed to know about his/her student's personal life?

Teachers now get to know everything about a kid. At the beginning of the year, we got a print-out list from the Nurse of every long-term illness/condition any of our students have. This goes anywhere from ADD/ADHD to depression to epilepsy to Terretes. Then, going further in depth, teachers are privy to the entire story of the family - parents in jail, dad a junkie, mom beats him, etc. Then, teachers get told anything on a student's past record.

I have a student who repeadedly tries to kill himself. I have a student with fetal alcohol syndrome. I have a student who pulled a knife on other kids last year. I have a kid who gives me a secret sign we made up to let me know that he must go to the bathroom, no questions asked, because he'll wet himself if he doesn't. I have a handful of kids that could go into seisures. And don't even get me started on the "broken homes" (even though I hate that term). Parents are junkies, slobs, dirt poor and unemployed and alcoholic, etc.

The question though...does all of this information make me a better teacher for them? Obviously, if a kid needs to pee, he needs to pee, that's fine. But should I know what mom and dad are like? Should I know if the kid was dangerous last year, even though this year he has shown no signs of bad behavior? Should I know that a dad committed suicide or a mom left the family last week?

I'm not making this stuff up, folks. All these situations happen in the lives of kids I'm expected to teach this semester. I have my own ideas on all this, but am interested in what you have to say.

OK, enough taxes, politics and world issues. It is overwhelming. Everyone, don't reply with anything that will spark a tax/politic/issue conversation.

So, I am wondering how you all decided what you would do with yourselves after college. If you went onto grad school, why? Chuck, why PeaceCorps? Bethany, what are you doing these days post graduation and how did you decide that?

I'm slowly but surely getting freaked out by my impending future. It's not that I don't have options. I have a number of things I could do, including stay in Tucson and teach, or try to make a living here in town as an accompanist, or apply for the American Symphony Orchestra League Fellowship Program and work all next year at 3 different orchestras around the country (yes, that's 3 big moves in one year) , or move cities to wherever and try to do arts admin/playing/whoring myself.

What things did you weigh in your mind as you all made this decision? Location? Job? Not to mention what about relationships? Who goes where? Does someone follow someone else?

And how about a timeline? When am I supposed to have this sort of stuff figured out? Christmas? March? Now?

Now I'm all stressed out about it again...dammit.

Taxes and Politics.

So I want to get a discussion about taxes going. Both candidates talk of cutting taxes. They do this bevause it is a sensitive issue among voters. What I want to know is do you notice your taxes? Do you think your taxes are high or low? If you know the number, what % of your annual income last year did you pay in taxes? Do you think rich people should pay a greater % of their income in taxes? Do you think there should be an estate tax- i.e. a tax on the estate of dead people?

My bent is I really don't think its a big deal. The government takes say 25% of my income. Sure I loose that but I also get roads, national defense, education, etc. Is that a bad deal? A fact for thought. Todd S. pointed out to me recently that people who earned the quivalent of say $250,000 a year today faced a 60% or greater marginal tax bracket in 1960. in 2003 they face a 33% or so tax bracket. Thats a big difference. Do you think that is more fare?

Check out the pictures of John Edwards in Tucson.

Staci, Marc & Chris went to see him.

I don't know about you, but who can vote for Bush?

Listening to All Things Considered today I heard a story about teaching about "Gay Sex" in public school sex ed classes. They also mentioned just teaching or allowing teachers to answer questions about homosexuals.

What do we think about this. Hearing the story it seems there were some that are a little to frank. One teacher was teaching the class different ways lesbians can have sex.

I am all for mentioning being gay or gays and teaching the risks of any type of sex. But I am not sure we should be telling students all the different ways to have sex- either straight or gay. if we do that, whats left to learn in college?

Pictures from Chuck's Wedding are up under the personal tab, then Staci & Todd.

It was great fun!