Althouse: "At the moment if you want to become au fait with what this department thinks on how to keep order in class you have to read the equivalent of War and Peace."

October 2, 2010

"At the moment if you want to become au fait with what this department thinks on how to keep order in class you have to read the equivalent of War and Peace."

"There are about 500 pages of guidance on discipline and another 500 pages on bullying. We will clarify and shrink that."

12 comments:

traditionalguy said...: The problem is renegade parents who have not raised the brats enough for anyone to control them. The schools answer has been to sweep the problem under the rug but hide that in high brow double speak. That problem is exacerbated by the ingrained British habit of expecting everything to be done for them for free like air is free.; 10/2/10, 10:50 AM
Lincolntf said...: As usual, the Founding Fathers were right on.

"... It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood."

From Federalist Papers, #62; 10/2/10, 10:57 AM
Unknown said...: Au fait???

This is where American academia gets its tendency toward snooty obfuscation.

PS War and Peace is sexier, I'd imagine.; 10/2/10, 11:01 AM
Anonymous said...: One general problem academics have is they really believe that simply by reading some instructions, you can gain 'experience or practical knowledge'.; 10/2/10, 11:15 AM
GMay said...: "Au fait???

This is where American academia gets its tendency toward snooty obfuscation."

Hey, with all the French phrases in War and Peace, I think this was apropos.; 10/2/10, 11:30 AM
Anonymous said...: You should every once in a while have the Pavlograd hussars charge in and give the troublemakers a taste of the saber. That'll teach 'em to behave.; 10/2/10, 11:32 AM
Anonymous said...: Best quote from that nutter at the Children's Alliance saying that if teachers just made the lessons more interesting than children wouldn't be discipline problems. This woman has clearly never taught in a classroom or spent time around children. How do these crazy people even have a voice in this conversation? Schools are being run by students not by teachers. We have spent billions of dollars trying to 'fix' the schools in this country but a little common sense is brought to the table and the crazies come out. Perhaps if teachers could have dealt more effectively with bullying the tragic situation at Rutgers might not have happened. The students that used their webcam to humiliate another dorm mate (not once but twice) had years of practice in this sort of behavior before they went off to college. Put teachers in charge of their class rooms and the school and see the changes that can occur for the better.; 10/2/10, 12:37 PM
The Dude said...: I just read War and Peace. I think it would be more effective if you made the little brats march out of Moscow in the winter, barefoot. Just sayin'...; 10/2/10, 1:22 PM
Anonymous said...: "Au fait??? This is where American academia gets its tendency toward snooty obfuscation."

They're homos.

Cut them some slack, hater.; 10/2/10, 1:30 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: LIES!!!!

War and Peace is 1,400 pages, this is only 1,000 (and I would bet double-spaced).

A teacher touched me once on a field trip to Baton Rouge. Put his arm around my scrawny little shoulder and I froze. He was just being paternal but the whole time I sat frozen thinking, "What a paedo."; 10/2/10, 3:01 PM
jr565 said...: If I had to read the equivalent of War And Peace, I'd in fact be reading a great work of literature, instead of guidelines on how to keep order in class. So, this is closer to reading the equivalent of a phone book.; 10/2/10, 5:37 PM
Kev said...: Put teachers in charge of their class rooms and the school and see the changes that can occur for the better.

I've been saying this for years. Require all administrators to continue teaching (one class a day is fine) when they become principals, superintendents, etc., and a lot of the problems we currently have with education will start to be solved. It's not the only thing that has to happen, but getting non-teaching admins (who ultimately turn into politicians/bureaucrats) out of the process will be a big help.; 10/3/10, 1:17 AM