2002-07-29
Summer School = Easy, posted at 4:09 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com Summer school has been absolute cake.When I signed up for it, I expected to be put in front of 30 disgruntled kids with nominal reading and writing skills, at one of the tougher schools in the city. That was the system I was getting into.
Instead, I was placed into my own high school, which is a decent school with smart kids who fail because of laziness, not lack of skills. I had four 18-year olds who failed senior english, and two 17-year olds who failed junior english. I've felt like a personal tutor most of the time.
I don't think this is a bad thing. The kids, I'm sure, are getting something from it. But the whole thing has been pretty unstructured. For example, there is no attendance policy. Kids can miss as much as they want, and there's nothing I can do. And the policy is also that the kids have to pass either the final or the course to receive credit. That any kids are coming is a testament to the work ethic of my students. Almost all of them have the skills already to pass any final the city could throw at them.
In addition, everyone is sort of chilled out because it's summer. Administration isn't checking on anything I'm doing. I don't make lesson plans, as it's nearly impossible with so few students. I have an idea of what I'm doing every day, but things always tend to happen. For example, in my class of two students, if one of them doesn't show, I have to change up everything. I still make something up because I have to turn it in at the end of the summer, but it's mostly BS.
In addition, I've allowed myself to become pretty lazy. I've arrived once on time all summer. School starts at 8:30, and we're supposed to be there by 8. I haven't shown up by 8 since day one. I usually get there between 8:15 and 8:20. It's just that I get all my planning done during school, during the mammoth 15-minute break between classes or during class. There are just a handful of papers to grade, and I always grade them right in class. No one cares that I come in late, and I've stopped sneaking in the back door. I just don't care any more. During the school year, I'm one of the earliest there, but summer is way, way different.
Anyhow, teaching summer school has been easier money than I ever could have hoped for. Today, we got out at 11:30 instead of 1:00 because of extreme heat. I could take it, but was pretty glad anyway.
Yet I got paid for a full day. I feel like I'm a textbook example of rampant, unintelligent spending by school districts who really shouldn't be throwing money away like this. I almost feel guilty. Almost. But it's their poor management that got me in this place.