Most teachers know that teaching in a hot room is not conducive to good teaching and student learning. Of course school and DOE administrators would beg to differ since they have air conditioned offices. Now there is a study that proves that overheated classrooms result in lower test scores and less student engagement.
In New York City , the majority of schools have no air conditioning in most of their classrooms. Even when the classroom has an air conditioner, it is problematic whether it works or not. In one school I was in this year, an administrator received a brand new air conditioner for his office and then "donated" his ten year old air conditioner, that didn't work very well to a non profit organization that supplied services to a couple of students outside the school. While the air conditioner could not be used in the classroom, the "donated" air conditional would have been a welcome addition to the school's teacher work room which had no air conditioner. Is it any wonder this administrator is not well liked by the staff.
This study should show that the New York City Department of Education should give priority to upgrading every school's electrical system and install a working air conditioner in every classroom. That will help improve effective teaching and student learner and maybe the test scores will legitimately improve.
20 comments:
At my school, there is an A/C unit in every unit. It is a central system.
The A/C works about one day in ten.
The other days it doesn't, for inexplicable reasons.
When it gets real hot, the students literally are up-in-arms and do no work.
If I get observed, I'm toast.
Is the MOSL (student perfromance on state exams) part of the teacher evaluation plan adjusted for non-airconditioned classes?
Is the MOSL (student performance on state exams) part of the teacher evaluation plan adjusted for non-airconditioned classes?
Of course this would be too easy. Instead they spend millions on clipboard people who roam the school making unnecessary recommendations to improve teaching and evaluating bulletin boards which nobody looks at but them. Last year in my school during the Regents, a student who was a diabetic had to leave the room to throw up because it was so hot and uncomfortable. I had to move her to an a.c. room. I remember another year, when I told my supervisor at that time that students were extremely uncomfortable and were asking for water she said it shouldn't matter that it is hot. She was telling me this with the air conditioner blowing behind her back. The hypocrisy is disgusting in this system.
The cruelty of the system is unbelievable. The DOE got "Aussies" to come evaluate schools or whatever the heck they did, yet vulnerable kids sweated it out all day. The UFT had never, in the 33+ years I was actively working, addressed working conditions. I see nothing has changed except that the work environment got more hostile. It is far from a true activist union. Working conditions should be an issue of great importance.
I worked in a fairly new building. There was AC in some, not all, classes. The principal would fight with the custodian to turn on the AC. Once he gave the principal a bunch of malarkey that he couldn't turn them on before June first. The two hated one another and the teachers and students were caught in the middle. The custodian was a very disagreeable fellow.
Teachers need to remember the three most important people in the school are the AP/O, the payroll secretary and the custodian. I think most teachers would agree with me that many schools could run very well without a principal
The most basic of basics cannot be provided by the 30 billion dollar a year NYCDOE system. I mean the bathrooms in all the buildings are ancient - you have to hold the water knob to get water and the bathrooms are germ infested and poorly cared for. No parking for teachers, no food cafeterias for teachers, no air conditioning for teachers, bathrooms from the 60s........wow how much more dysfunctional can an organization get?
Right now the heat is blasting out of the radiators. It’s 73 degrees outside, going to 90 and at least 85 in this classroom. The custodians burn as much fuel as they can because their next year allotment is based on the previous year and we all get flash frozen if there’s no fuel.
When they closed the rubber rooms they sent a bunch of us to the school construction authority to bide our time and work for our check. The SCA sent us out to a list of schools measuring all the buildings classrooms and detailing if the rooms had air conditioning. I showed up at the buildings as requested and did a lot of guesstimates. Of course I’m making this up as a joke because if it were true they might be able to charge me with something.
Let's not forget that the avatar students that our real students are compared to DO have air conditioning.
Seriously, having no air conditioners in classes is a disgrace for any school especially for a city with over a 2 billion dollars budget. On the other hand, I have witnessed 100s of air conditioners in classrooms where students take pencils & pens and stick them in the air conditioner in order to break them. Sure, we can blame the teachers or the subs in the room. We can blame admins too for not disciplining students etc..
Bottom line is what idiot is breaking an air conditioner? How come there are no consequences to that student? Do that in the suburbs or in a white school and there are serious repercussions. Also, what is the IQ of a student who destroys an air conditioner in order to die of heat in June? Can that student really learn? Does that student belong in a school? Principal two years ago, called me because my son, DeShawn, "threatened to kill a bitch", who was destroying an air conditioner. Told that principal "DO NOT ever call unless DeShawn actually kills a kid." I have no time for stupidity especially when I am thankful that DeShawn does not burn my apartment down.
Test scores will never improve by allowing fraud by Leadership Principals.
When I taught in District 79 I had students who were clearly disturbed, who would break into the climate units and set them to "heat" during warm weather and turn them up to max (if I remember correctly, 89 degrees). Finally I walked out until the management blocked access permanently. However, management also wore sweatshirts into June, would claim it was "cold" when it was under 80 degrees, and almost never turned on the AC because "it makes the room brick".
A lot of Leadership Principals like Dwarka likes to change grades because the investigators usually overlook it.
I'm so angry, I may get a U rating for a bogus letter to file. I happen to see Sanchez today and approached him about this letter and the future of ATRs. He seemed to be annoyed and he had no real answers for me. He said yes I could be U-rated for the year for a letter to file and try to apply Middle schools instead of high schools. After twenty years, this is how my union and DOE treats me.
Samchez is useless. The Union does not know how to do their job.
The Union and the DOE are in collusion to get rid of experienced teachers.
Washington Sanchez is a useless piece of garbage who isn't fit to clean dog shit off the street. The only time he's of any use is when he assigns you a rep at OSI. Of course, you might end up with Steve Harris, who is the biggest degenerate lowlife in the entire UFT. He actively helps the investigators railroad innocent teachers and he doesn't even try to hide it. I'd give anything for 5 minutes alone in a room with him!
What are the specifics? I don’t know Washington Sanchez, but I’ve heard his name. I know Steve Harris, and have always found him to be extremely honorable, knowledgeable, and competent.
waaaaaaa, waaaaaaaa, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa its been fun watching all you babies cry about the nyshitty school system. and guess what nothing has or will change. all you horrible atr's who pinned your hopes on another buyout... oppppsssss! enjoy your short summers because your back next year!
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