The following was written by Christopher Eager, a close friend of our family, a member of our church and a gifted and talented teacher in the Independence School District here Independence, MO. My personal thanks to Chris for allowing me to publish his thoughts here on this blog. ~ JAK]

Schemes of so-called “educational reform” are gaining momentum throughout the country – including Missouri. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) – parts of which are also known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) – are up for reauthorization in the next Congress. Our profession will be a political football as these reform schemes are tossed about and pundits express opinions about “bad teachers.”

I offer this personal reflection for your consideration:

IN MEMORY OF A BAD TEACHER

You may not have heard about the teacher named Rigoberto Ruelas. This 39 year old veteran fifth-grade teacher in the Los Angeles United School District was a “bad teacher.”

How do we know Mr. Ruelas was a “bad teacher”? The test scores of his students “proved” it. On August 29, 2010, thousands of parents and students “knew” that Mr. Ruelas was a “bad teacher” when The Los Angeles Times published the rankings of 6,000 third- through fifth-grade teachers based on their students performance on English and math standardized tests. He was ranked as a “less effective than average” teacher. In other words, he was a “bad teacher.”

How do we know that publishing this data about Mr. Ruelas and his students’ test scores was a good idea? The US Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, said that it would be a good idea. In his address at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, on August 25, 2010, Secretary Duncan acknowledged the imminent publication of the test data and said, “The truth is always hard to swallow but it can only make us better, stronger and smarter. That’s what accountability is all about – facing the truth and taking responsibility and then taking action.”

By all accounts, this “bad teacher” took his job seriously. He worked at Miramonte, a large elementary school in south Los Angeles. Nearly 60 percent of the students are Spanish-speaking and are still learning the English language. The neighborhood is poor and gang violence is commonplace.

Despite all the problems that his students came to school with, Mr. Ruelas was a “bad teacher” because these students did not make sufficient progress on the standardized tests. The tests cannot lie.

This “bad teacher” lived nearby the school and had begun working there when he was 22 as a teacher’s aide. Later he became a teacher and worked in the school for nearly 14 years. According to the school district, he received the highest ranking possible in his last evaluation in July 2010. He rarely missed a day of work.

Despite an enviable work ethic, Mr. Ruelas was a “bad teacher” because his students did not progress when compared with the students of other teachers. The tests cannot lie.

We do not know exactly why this “bad teacher” called in sick on September 20 and headed out into the woods outside of Los Angeles. We do know that on September 26 the body of Rigoberto Ruelas was found and his death ruled a suicide.

Certainly, the decision to end one’s life is complex and the complete picture is often unknown or unclear to the surviving family and friends. Nevertheless, his family, friends and peers acknowledge that he had grown increasingly despondent since the publication of the rankings.

One reporter from The Los Angeles Times went to the funeral of this “bad teacher” and wrote this:

“But I got a different message in the church that night, from the burly man who broke down at the mike and the mothers wearing sunglasses to hide their swollen eyes. They told stories in Spanish that I didn’t quite understand, about bicycles and shared sandwiches and music lessons, but there was no mistaking the love in the air. To them, some things might matter more than a 10-point jump on a math exam. Ruelas earned their gratitude and their confidence; he reminded them of all their children could accomplish.” (Emphasis added)

Here in Independence, Missouri, this tragedy may seem far away, but personally I am desperately trying to create some meaning out of it. Yet such meaning may be elusive since Mr. Ruelas is not some hero or martyr to our struggles against ill-conceived “reforms.”

So today, I am going to remind myself how I create meaning in my life: I want to teach and to learn; to understand and to be understood; to speak out and to listen; and to love and to be loved.

Some things DO matter more than a test score.

~ Christopher Eager

From the floor of the Illinois Senate (Michael Tercha/Chicago Tribune)

I’m a little amused that they went with a serif font like Times. Granted, I don’t think Blagojevich rates the sophistication of an Arial or Helvetica.

Come to think of it, this actually may be one of those rare moments that justifies the use of Comic Sans.

[Link via the Funbunker.]

So long, George. Heckuva job. Best of luck with your ongoing Magical Legacy Tour. Here’s a little parting gift I whipped up last night, from me to you.

Seriously. What the fuck?

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

In case you’ve forgotten, throwing a shoe is quite an insult among Muslims. The last time you might have caught that one? Check this out…about 1:43 into the video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Let’s hear it for winning hearts and minds, Georgie boy. Mission accomplished.

Tonight I’m speechless. In this historic moment, I find myself nervous for the future but optimistic on what it could bring. I voted for Barack Obama, yes. But in the process I also promised myself to take a more active role in my community moving forward, to give what I could on a personal level to make my chosen corner of the world a little better. That’s a promise I intend to keep. 

So there’s a smile on my face and a bit of a knot in my stomach, but it’s a mixed feeling that I recognize.

This is what the beginnings of change feels likes. And it starts with me.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Crazy, but I’m starting to think think Miss Teen USA South Carolina would have been a better pick by McCain for his vice-presidential running mate than Sarah Palin. Check out this gem.

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It’s nice to know that while Obama, McCain and Biden are in DC trying to blunder their way through de-fuckifying our economy (sorry for the highbrow economic terminology), Sarah Palin is in Alaska keeping an eye on those pesky Russians and the Evil Empire to Alaska’s east. I’ll sure as hell sleep better tonight.

On second thought, time to see if I have any Jack Daniels sitting around…

[Thanks to @stevenb33 for the link]

It’s your own freaking money.

Anyway, I do have to laugh at the fact that like the game “Life,” you can get dollars for your kids if you land on the right squares. And in case you’re curious, here’s a little detail on how I thought about spending it and how the missus and I plan on really spending the money.

Click here to view the embedded video.

On a very related note (if I’m looking at this using the same middle school “mathematics for dummies” transitive relation approach of this current administration where 9/11 = terrorism and Iraq = terrorists so 9/11 = Iraq) I’m bookmarking this for reading later: Loss of Civil Liberties Since 9-11.