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A Teacher's Blog by Chris Burns
November 17th, 2009
School reform is neededWhy is it that the most powerful, the richest nation ever can’t get it together to educate their children?
October 21st, 2009
Teacher salariesNo one ever gets rich teaching. I doesn’t matter how good you are or where you work, the rewards of teaching are not financial. That said, I can’t complain that much about my salary. The party line is that teachers are poorly paid, but the truth is more nuanced. It all depends on your perspective.
September 14th, 2009
The Bell CurveIn 1994 Richard Herrnstien and Charles Murray wrote “The Bell Curve," a book that explored the implications of intelligence. The central thesis was that native intelligence, what we call IQ, has a greater effect on the outcome of an individual’s life than any other social or economic factor. In short, the smarter you are, the better you are likely to do in your life. As if that wasn’t a controversial enough idea, the authors went on to say that based on their research there were significant differences between the races in intelligence, although they also pointed out that it is debatable whether nature or nurture account for ethnic differences.
August 11th, 2009
Kids these days …The other day I was watching a teenage couple as they walked by my porch. Her in baggy pants, tank top showing her navel, which was pierced, along with her lip, nose and eye brow. He in pants held up by magic, but his boxers pulled up so you knew he had them on. He also wore a white tank top, showing off his tattoos, his hair shaved. The “I just got out of prison” look. That started the internal rant: I hate the way kids look today, the way they talk, their music, and so on.
July 28th, 2009
Are teacher's unions good or bad?Anyone who knows me knows I have a love/hate affair with the teacher's union.
July 9th, 2009
Schools and the ConstitutionIn its last session, the Supreme Court made a ruling about the 4th amendment rights of students at public schools. In the case is Safford Unified School District v. April Redding, the Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that the strip search of Savana Redding, then a 13-year-old 8th grade student, was unwarranted and violated her 4th amendment right against unreasonable search.
June 22nd, 2009
Summer school misses its markSummer School
June 16th, 2009
What is school for?The other day I was in the middle of a wood working project and I had a problem – how to make a piece of wood completely flat and square with hand tools. I thought: What would Mr. L'Hommedieu say?
June 5th, 2009
What's school for?The other day I was in the middle of a wood working project and I had a problem – how to make a piece of wood completely flat and square with hand tools. I thought: What would Mr. L'Hommedieu say? Mr. L'Hommedieu was my 7th grade shop teacher at IS 74 in Bayside, Queens. He taught wood shop, and metal shop. I learned how to make a lamp, a metal box and assorted other things. I can trace my love of wood work back to him, although it took nearly 15 years to discover that I have a knack for working with my hands and that I enjoy it immensely.
June 3rd, 2009
I'm here to school you on educationLast March the Register held a contest to “Win Your Own Blog.” Of course I entered, I’m opinionated, well informed on some topics, a good bluffer on others. I like the give and take of the online and I am passionate about my beliefs, particularly when it comes to education. I thought that would make a good blog topic. Well, the very capable Ms. Phoebe Harper won. However, Dan Ross e-mailed me a few days later and said he could be persuaded to have a blog about education.
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