I graduated teacher’s college with 6A+’s and 2A’s as well as three excellent references from host practicum teachers. However the in house university program itself had many flaws as my point-by-point synopsis below reveals.
The following is a list of personal conclusions reached during my one year period of pedagogical training..
1.The vast majority of in-class assignments were a complete waste of time and had nothing whatsoever to do with the actual practice of teaching.
2. 95% of the usefulness of the program is realized during the practicum. Regular Classes serve more a time wasting functionality than anything else.
3. University Education Profs know almost nothing about Class Room Management - Advice often centered on the fluffy and short sighted ethos ‘ that class room management problems disappear when the students are engaged.’
4. Education Profs for the most part are fixated on influencing areas of perceived social justice – Skill training as a primary focus often plays second fiddle to the first initiative.
5. There is almost no testing of content knowledge for subject specific teachers – no wonder so many students eventually find themselves at the receiving end of instruction by those whose competency is questionable.
6. Student Entertainment teaching ('Kewl' Education) has risen in status to a point where it appears to have trumped content.
7. Education of the Gifted has far less of a priority than that of the academically poor.
8. Harsh criticism should be avoided by teachers for fear of injuring the self esteem of the student.
8A. Modern educators don’t really believe in the idea of a due date or even a deadline for that matter.
9. IQ testing and the Genetic basis for Intelligence are concepts which are very much out of vogue.
10. Constructivism is seen as the pinnacle of education theory even though its application outside a strong academic class is largely limited.
11. Many Educators are obsessed with the idea of racism and like Diogenes searching for one honest man - Ed Profs are often on the hunt for racism in areas where it clearly doesn’t even exist.
12. Every student failure can be somehow excused.
13. Multiple Intelligence Theory is championed as the correct way of looking at the world despite the fact that not a thread of evidence exists for its foundation.
14. Failure of a child to learn is almost always blamed on the teacher in the trenches.
15. Mediocrity is commended. If students can’t make it - its preferable to lower the all-around expectations.
16. The Lesson Plans that are demanded from teacher students are excessively bloated, impractical and of no substantial value in real world situations.
17. There is hardly any course work instructing a person to deal with the bureaucracies of education system and day-to-day paper shuffling.
18. Many University Professors see teachers as Social Workers, Psychologists, Surrogate Parents, political activists, environmental advocates. As for being a disseminator of knowledge – don't bet on it.
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