A discussion of education in East Tennessee
Ron Lapekas's Discussions
Even Judges Hate Our Kids
Replied Oct. 31, 2007
Even Judges Hate Our Kids
Replied Oct. 31, 2007
Where Does The Money Go?
Replied Oct. 31, 2007
Ron Lapekas's Page
Profile Information
- Neighborhood:
- Northeast Knoxville/Corryton
- Are you a:
- Parent, Educator
- About Me:
- I am not an "educator" -- I am an unemployed "highly qualified" middle school math and science teacher. Unfortunately, there is no check box for "teacher" so I had to pick the closest category.
I taught math and science for the past 8 years in East Los Angeles in a 99.999999% minority, underperforming school were more than 90% of the students qualified for free or subsidized lunches.
My daughter attends Gibbs High School. She seems to be making the adjustment from Southern California -- where she would have attended a "Blue Ribbon" high school with more than 4,000 students -- to what must be to her a different planet. But I personally believe that Tennessee's teaching standards are more appropriate for kids than the overly demanding but unfulfilling standards in California.
I hate standardized tests -- I call them "SBT"s (Stupid Bubble Tests) because they substitute guessing for thinking. I never gave standardized tests in my class because they do not help you understand what concepts resulted in an incorrect answer or which students were "borrowing" the answers from a neighbor.
I have many opinions and criticisms regarding the "No Child Left Untested" law. I also have suggestions based on my personal experience watching students who did not know the multiplication tables learn to think and solve problems.
I look forward to sharing ideas in these areas.
By the way -- I am a "liberal", which I define as having an open mind, being willing to listen to others, and, most important, being ready to change my mind when supported by evidence, i.e., "flip-flop". I am also a "conservative", which I define as favoring a government that provides services that we, as individuals, cannot do by ourselves while maximizing individual liberties and opportunity. I am also an independent, having voted for both Democrats and Repuclicans and a few mavericks. I grew up in Michigan as a "Romney Republican" and actually knew Mitt Romney's brother in college -- but I do not believe that Mitt is anything like his father.
Finally got my license -- hope there is a school looking for a math/science teacher.
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