GrreatTeacher

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Posts by GrreatTeacher

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  70

  Do you think that race is a factor in education in the U.S.

  by recovering in

  1. social
  2. current

  i was wondering if racial bias is a factor in u.s. education?.

  would you be concerned if it was?

  why would you be concerned?.

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  GrreatTeacher

  Recovering, I don't know! And that's the frustrating part!

  The only thing that keeps these schools functioning at all is the extra Title I money that provides for some equalizing and stabilizing. It provides breakfast for students. It provides extra staff for things like alternate learning areas for students who are disturbed so they don't affect the rest of the classroom. It provides extra teachers for smaller class sizes so the teacher has more time for personal (read remedial) help for each individual student. It can provide money for things like security cameras for safety. It can provide after school programs for homework help and mentoring. It can buy only what money can buy, which is a lot, but it's not enough!

  If my students could go home to a stable family, with parents not in jail, with dinner and bedtime on a schedule, with a bath every night, with parents reading to them nightly, with help with homework and monitoring of grades, with supervision that doesn't allow for involvement in gangs or neighborhood feuds, and with modeling of problem solving achieved without use of fists or other violence, achievement would shoot straight up!

  Do you also know how many of the parents from my school don't know this recipe for success? Is it our job to teach them? Would they listen? Could they? Or are they too mired in their own problems to be able to respond?

  What they will do is show up for the Halloween parade, even if they won't for parent conferences. They will find money for school pictures, but not for field trips. They will buy the class birthday cupcakes, but not school supplies for their child. Those are their values, those things are worth the time, money and effort to them.

  It's so frustrating!
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  70

  Do you think that race is a factor in education in the U.S.

  by recovering in

  1. social
  2. current

  i was wondering if racial bias is a factor in u.s. education?.

  would you be concerned if it was?

  why would you be concerned?.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  GrreatTeacher

  To the extent that minorities are more likely to be of lower socioeconomic status, and that society largely self-sorts itself into neighborhoods based on socioeconomic status, and that public schools are largely funded locally in the US, and that lower funding in more needy schools leads to poorer outcomes, then, yes, maybe...

  A bigger problem is that my students in a (violent) big city come to school less often (high absentee rates), come to school tired (less parental oversight to enforce bedtimes), come to school preoccupied with parents being in jail, come to school with less parental involvement in the education process and parents who sometimes don't care about grades at all, come to school and fight or throw gang signs or do other violent activities that undermine the educational environment.

  None of these things I can change. We call this being " unavailable for learning."

  What I could do was move out of that area and into a nice suburban area and send my child to a school with children who are rarely absent, have parents that enforce bedtimes so students are alert, parents who volunteer in the classrooms, care about grades and make sure their kids are not out on the streets joining gangs, and are most assuredly not in jail. Unsurprisingly, these schools have a better educational environment and higher achievement.

  People self-segregate by socioeconomic status. People tend to live in the nicest neighborhood that they can afford. Public schools are community schools, so they reflect the surrounding community. In fact, great public schools can increase real estate values, self-reinforcing the trend.

  What I wish people knew about teaching is that teachers in good schools work half as hard as teachers in poor schools. I work 10 hour days to try to make up for the conditions I described at the outset. Some students I connect with and they are success stories. I feel good that I've made a difference. But, I can't follow students home, make them do their homework, put them in bed at a reasonable hour and make sure they stay off the streets. I only have these students for 6 hours out of 24. It's no surprise, then, that their achievement is lower! It's frustrating to work twice as hard for lesser results, and this is, in fact, why there is such turnover, especially in lower-performing schools. My district micromanages the exact lessons that teachers use, almost down to the words to say. Achievement is fine with those lessons in relatively prosperous schools, but in poor "bad" schools, those same lessons do not produce the same results. Surprise! It's not the lessons!
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  15

  The Forgery of an Antique God

  by TerryWalstrom in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  in the world of antiquities, especially that of bronze art, specifically heads, would you be surprised or alarmed to discover that experts estimate about half of all the art sold at auction and donated to museums around the world.... consists of forgeries?while you're digesting the news of corrupt practice, let me raise a rather vexatious collateral issue for your consideration:.

  auction houses keep silent about this fraud.in fact, it has been asserted by investigators specializing in such fraud, it is largely the auction houses submitting these works at auction under fake identities so they cannot be directly held liable for illicit transactions.

  proving they've knowingly done so is too problematic to pass muster.one expert who exposed such a fraud was sued by the auction house and forced toward financial settlement out of court under the libel laws.now why mention all the above in the first place?for one reason only, the same thing occurs in the religious transactions of jehovah's witnesses.the auction house (watchtower corporation) represents its salvific theology as authentic and transacts with potential converts so's they pay for such art (ful fraud) by giving their lives, honor, and sacred service in exchange.when flaws are found, instead of owning up to the illicit enterprise, they seek legal redress or prosecute the accuser through coercive threats of disfellowship.now here is another insidious parallel.

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  GrreatTeacher

  Thanks for posting. I love when folks post interesting videos that I can get lost watching on lazy weekend afternoons!

  The value of these artworks are predicated by the belief in their value by others, not necessarily by the experts who can actually determine their intrinsic value...

  ...kind of like the stock market...

  ( In that case, then, are they really a bad investment if you buy them and flip them? )
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  56

  Spiritual "Protection" - a Menace on Psychological Development

  by Wake Me Up Before You Jo-Ho in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  not quite a week ago, @lost in the fog created a thread entitled: do you have this illness?.

  https://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/5187824140681216/do-you-have-this-illness.

  in my year of being on this forum, i have browsed many a disillusioned thread of ex-jehovah’s witnesses expressing similar symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder when detailing their awakening - my own story included.

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  GrreatTeacher

  WakeMe, I hope that you wrote that for a college class. I'd give it an "A."

  So insightful and synthesizes new learning in analyzing a personal transformative experience.

  It's wonderful to read something with length, and depth, and substance.

  It seems that many of us have made use of counseling and mental health help upon our exit.

  For us all, the "nurture" we got was unhelpful to say the least. Those of us, like yourself, with tenacious and fighting "natures" have been able to survive our exits and even go on to thrive.

  And you have! And for what it's worth from an internet stranger, I'm proud of you!

  Also, if you ever want to talk about Erikson's last stage of psychosocial development (ego integrity vs. despair) and how this could shed light on an aging Witness's psychology and likelihood of waking up, please hit me up. Trying to make sense of aging relatives' experiences.

  GT
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  18

  My failed attempts to help my brainwashed family

  by Addison0998 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  first of all i just want to say a quick thank you to all of you who’s been listening to my story and my little rants and dilemmas lol.

  this website has helped me so much to not feel alone and to keep me from feeling like i’m going crazy.

  anyways, i’m defenitly going to try much harder from this point on to play the part until i move out after this summer.

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  GrreatTeacher

  "The Catholic Church is worse!"

  "But officer, that car was going much faster than me. Why didn't you pull him over instead?"
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  13

  Nosey Brothers and Sisters

  by kennylazo1 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  please explain some of your past experiences of dealing with dealing with nosy brothers and sisters and how you dealt with them.

  also have you ever dealt with a brother or sister who brings up your past just as a new topic for a conversation?

  that happened to me once.

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  GrreatTeacher

  Would love to have a copy of this Bible.
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  26

  Not posted for a year because mum died did not want blood.

  by Witness 007 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i posted here weekly until a year ago when my mum died of a mild form of lukemia which is easy to treat with 2 blood tranfusions a month.

  you can live to 100 with treatment, but no my mum chose to die a faithful witness after 2 years of chemo and hell for her family and doctors.

  her chemo doctor cried when she only had weeks left to live knowing that she could be saved with one bag of blood!

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  GrreatTeacher

  Congratulations on the addition of your daughter.

  So sorry to hear about your mom.

  My parents were both in a bad car accident last year and the blood issue came up for both of them.

  I felt so helpless when HLC Larry walked in the room with the death warrant. (Medical POA)

  I angry at him. I am very angry at my parents, still.
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  36

  I've graduated at last

  by fulltimestudent in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  after a bit of a kerfuffle over a procedural matter, my university has awarded me a degree.

  (the procedural problem was caused by my independent selection of what i wanted to study).

  award : bachelor of arts.

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  GrreatTeacher

  Congratulations! You've been working hard on this for years!

  Go for the Masters! I'm working on mine now.
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  286

  Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Baker Who Refused to Bake Cake for Gay Couple

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. current

  seems like such an obviously correct decision to overturn the previous overreach - it should never have been necessary to go to the supreme court but happened because the rights of the religious were being ignored.. as the fundamental level, no one should be able to compel you to work for them or to provide services that go against your beliefs, and certainly not have the government be able to force you to comply.. if this was allowed there would be so many unreconcilable situations that would clog up courts over nonsense.. i also have little patience for these activists that intentionally look to be offended.

  it really doesn't do their cause any good to go round looking to make trouble for people.

  it's also misguided because it ends up strengthening religious rights over effectively stupid issues.. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/04/us/politics/supreme-court-sides-with-baker-who-turned-away-gay-couple.html.

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  GrreatTeacher

  The government is us, dude: we the people.
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  12

  Whoop there it is!!!!

  by James Mixon in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  walked into panda express for lunch the other day and there was a unusually long line.

  i notice a large group of folks that had a familiar dress and smile on their faces.

  the women dresses below the knees and the men wearing the top of line goodwill special suits.

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  GrreatTeacher

  They didnt "place" that magazine; they littered.

  I would have been tempted to say, "Oh, excuse me, ma'am, you forgot your reading material!" while handing it back to her.