So everyone heard Obama's pledge to add 100,000 new science, engineering and math teachers, right?

[Godhumor]

-Adding those 100,000 over 10 years
-Making permanent a tuition tax credit
-Getting rid of NCLB (And replacing with Race to the Top...which I do have issues with)
-Allowing schools more leeway in deciding what constitutes academic progress


Really, not a bad educational shout out, and I am saying that as a former teacher.

[Bonhomme Richard]

1. I think some here on heard what they didn't hear last night.

It was disheartening to read some of the comments last night. Kind of reminded me of another place.

[DebJ]

2. My thoughts: no shortage of teachers around here. In fact

way too many, with more to be laid off this summer. In some cities where getting substitutes used to be impossible, there are now 2 or 3 teachers hoping to sub for every available sub job....and talk about teacher pay? As a sub, my maximum earnings per year would be $18,000 gross with no benefits.

[Godhumor]

6. I didn't hear him call for more of the "popular" teaching professions like

Social Studies (my old domain), elementary ed, etc.

He called for those that, nationally, have a need (And would also expand those departments in schools that, for example, don't teach any engineering classes).

And yeah, as schools contract there are more qualified full time teachers looking for sub work under the old belief that being a sub is the best path to getting FT employment. I fully expect that phenomenon to start dying out as people bite the bullet and transition to other careers.

[DebJ]

37. We even have excess science and math teachers here. n/t

[Godhumor]

39. Which is why I said nationally

Any area that is having full scale reduction in classes or enrollment is going to buck the grain.

[doc03]

17. My next door neighbor was laid off for months she finally

gave up on teaching and took a job in a supermarket deli this fall.

[somone]

3. There are many unemployed science and math teachers

And there are many unemployed engineers who want to become teachers but can't, because there are no openings.

[Godhumor]

7. Well, yeah, that is the unspoken part of this

Either the 100K will include out of work teachers and/or we'll see money thrown at schools to expand "technical" departments. I believe the later will happen considering he referenced the sudden increased emphasis on tech skills during the space race.

[Bill McBlueState]

30. I hope those unemployed engineers take a few courses in pedagogy

Very few of the engineers I've encountered could run a classroom in such a way that learning takes place. And I say that as a scientist who feels the same way about people in my own discipline!

[mmonk]

4. I'm wondering on a few items.

How will potential teachers be attracted especially with lower wages? What does allowing schools to have more leeway really mean given the different ideas on standards? And getting labor uninvolved speaks for itself.

[Godhumor]

10. The answer to your first question has always been the problem

Hell it lead to the old saying "Those who can't, teach." We'll see how that gets addressed whether through student loan forgiveness, sign-on or at need bonuses, etc.

Leeway should mean that schools don't have to say "regardless of where you started, if you don't hit xx% on this test than we can't count you as progressing."

And he made the speech announcing his plans, why would labor be involved at this time? In fact all the points he made were things the union was hoping to see (Commitment to teachers, elimination of NCLB, not having to pidgeonhole kids).

[mmonk]

16. I'm interested in determining what it means myself concerning teachers.

Or is it a declaration of what will be given more importance over other educational training and choices? As to leeway, I tend to look at it from my work promoting the interests and education of the disabled student. Will standards be something for or against their interests under "leeway". I tend to get nervous on the undefined.

[HughBeaumont]

5. AWESOME! Will there be JOBS for all of these students? HERE? In America?

What say you, United Snakes of CorpMerica? Are we still too expensive or are you still "too uncertain"?

[NNN0LHI]

35. That will depend on what the American citizens decide to spend their money on, not what Obama does

They want to spend their money on imported or scab built stuff over union American made? Fine, I will never tell anyone how to spend their money. But when there are no "JOBS for all of these students? HERE? In America?", we can thank the people who made those choices for the predicament we are in.

Don

[Bonobo]

8. That will be quite a feat considering he also proposed a 5 year spending freeze. nt

[Myrina]

9. ... but 0 art, music, literature or other critical thinking-based teachers ...

.... start marching, zombies. We don't need no stinkin' thinkin' going on here.

[PVnRT]

11. Wow, so science and math don't encourage critical thinking?

It really is amazing what some people think around here.

[Myrina]

20. Try a little harder ...

Note I said "OTHER" critical-thinking based. As in, philosophy, logic, humanities, law/civics etc.

Or were you so anxious to slam me (without THINKING) that you missed that one word?

[Godhumor]

12. There is a glut of the soft skills teachers, why call for more

If you don't mind a personal anecdote...

Even half a decade ago, when I accepted my last teaching position, there were 154 applicants for the one social studies job I ended up taking. This was in a mixed rural/suburban school in the depressed area of Syracuse.

It has always been much, much harder to recruit people who can go into lucrative careers (The hard skills people) than those who really only have academia as a choice.

[somone]

13. We've gone high tech now

People need to get high tech so they can work in the high tech industry. Could be hardware or software. Hardware in China, and software in India.

[LiberalEsto]

14. My daughter gave up her dream of being a math teacher

She was working on an associate's degree in elementary ed. Getting her 4-year degree would mean borrowing at least $30,000 in private student loans, gambling that there would be a job for her that would enable her to start paying back the loans.

Her boyfriend and his aunt, who work in our county school system, advised her that hiring was at a standstill and that there would be teacher layoffs, which is happening in school systems all over the U.S.

She ended up switching her major to general studies for her associates, which will shorten the amount of time she needs in order to finish at the community college. She's hoping to substitute teach for the foreseeable future. but anything else depends on the economy.

As a result, the schools are losing a potential math teacher, because we just can't afford the tuition or the loan payments for her to finish at a state college.

[d_r]

15. I heard it

there was one thing that concerned me about the statement, he didn't say *how* these new teachers would come about.

I really, really liked his challenge to young people to become teachers, and his comments about the importance of teachers.

I wasn't sure if this meant there would be more support for college education programs to train teachers, or for college students to get teaching degrees, or if this meant there would be more support for alternative licensure routes for people without educational backgrounds to get teaching certification. Or for things like Teach America.

Honestly, I think it is great for people to consider a second career in teaching, wonderful. But I think courses in pedagogy and actual formal educational experiences to prepare teachers are a must. I am concerned with programs that would basically allow folks to "test in" to becoming teachers without adequate preparation for the field. That's just mho.

[MilesColtrane]

18. I sure hope that that each and every one of those new teachers joins the union.

[DebJ]

38. I sure hope that there are unions left...our city discussing

going all charter...will eliminate the union...and wages at the charter that's been here just a few years run from $24k to $35k...not enough to support a family if you want to own a house someday, even in south central PA. I'm sure their benefits are just as lovely as the salary.

[doc03]

19. Haven't we pretty much got that pledge from every (D) President

for the last several decades? They just announced another closing of a Catholic school in my area and now we will have more laid off teachers next fall. All the school districts around here are hurting for money and have been cutting teachers every year. The reason since NAFTA and the WTO all our industry has moved away and we have no tax base today.

[Godhumor]

22. Catholic school is not public school

That's up to the dioces. Even if those teachers enter the unemployed workforce, they're not coming from the public schools. I do hope for their sake some are good enough at their jobs to find better positions in the public school system.

[doc03]

23. That still puts more teachers out there on the unemployment

line. How do we have a shortage of teachers when I know of several myself that have been laid off for years, my next door neighbor took a job in a supermarket deli this fall.

[Godhumor]

27. What subject, how big is the district, what was her seniority, etc, etc?

Obama didn't call for the hiring of just 100,000 teachers; he called for those in areas that need expanded care and coverage (Again, I think, though we'll have to see, that part of hiring these teachers will require expansion of departments and programs in many schools.).

Laid off Catholic school teachers, who will be overwhelmingly liberal arts teachers, will have to compete in the glutted public school market, find another private school or find other work.

Over the next few years, I think you're going to see a lot of former teachers doing other work, and I don't think you're going to see a true need for hiring in most subjects until boomers retire en masse.

[WinkyDink]

21. All from Teach for America?

[Godhumor]

24. I wouldn't call TFA permanent additions to the teacher workforce

But, that doesn't mean there won't be some. We'll have to see.

[Erose999]

25. Thats what I was thinking. Also, who would even want to be a teacher now that the Neolibs like

Fauxbama are trying to eliminate tenure, teachers unions, and benefits.

Adding teachers alone won't fix the problem.

[Marr]

26. I heard GW Bush promise to send men to Mars.

The State of the Union is just a very long commercial, laden with slogans and popular platitudes. I'm neither encouraged nor discouraged by anything I hear in State of the Union speeches, because they are political advertising with zero connection to reality.

[Johonny]

28. we are going into year three, I want hear he did that

not I'm going to do it and over 10 years. I got a guess, the Republican house isn't interested. Why isn't this done already?

[Sabriel]

29. How about working on retention, instead?

As people have pointed out above, the issue is often keeping good teachers, not creating them.

Working conditions--which include bashing from the media and general public--drive out half of the teaching force every four years.

[msongs]

31. we need more minimum wage non union teachers asap nt

[somone]

32. Bingo!

[Starry Messenger]

33. This.

There are plenty of teachers already, needing jobs.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

34. As the economy improves, without some sort of salary differential how does he expect the schools

to attract qualified technical people to teach those classes?

[no_hypocrisy]

36. How to get one-tenth of 100,000 new science, engineering, and math teachers?

I really want to know.

Wholesale, public school teachers face states and municipalities that want to void their unions and their existing contracts, pay them less money when the teachers are at will employees (can be fired for any or no reason at all), have their benefits reduced, have no pensions they've paid into, have to teach to standardized tests which ignore innovation and high calibre learning, etc.

Why would a student with a 4.3 average, who is in the 1-2% of all college students smart enough to understand and appreciate science and technology give up a career in research, e.g., NASA, universities, foundations, and become a teacher who has to justify his/her existence every day s/he teaches?