Posted by Marc on September 08, 2002 at 14:53:45:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Why should we have to defend teachers? posted by Cliff Higgins on September 08, 2002 at 13:57:15:
In one sense, you're helping to confirm my point. Certification doesn't guarantee quality of teaching. But (in my state at least) people like me are ignored *simply because* we don't have certification. I can't even get provisional certification! And then the governor complains of all the warm bodies... (BTW, I do agree that merely possessing a Ph.D. doesn't necessarily mean good teaching. But more and more Ph.D.s are having to focus on their teaching since the market is so bad in many fields. So what you have is a number of highly qualified individuals (*both* in teaching and research) who are teaching part-time or have adjunct positions and looking more and more at high school jobs. But they are not taken seriously. Here's the common refrain: What does teaching at the college level have to do with teaching at the high school level? My answer: A whole lot. Knowledge, wisdom, understanding and expertise are cumulative. I could have used some Ph.D.s when I was in high school. That's for sure!) Marc