Comments by "upabittoolate" (@upabittoolate) on "Principal's Letter: Students Are "Stupid" & "Lazy"" video.

  1. Here's the deal: you can't be blamed for what teachers tried to do to you. But letting classmates shit on you is inexcusable. My point is that EVERY CHILD has the ability to powerhouse his way through opposition. I'm the son of a sharecropper & an orphan. I descended from slaves, Native Americans & Irish immigrants. That's my legacy. It's a very American legacy. Don't tell me what a child can't do. I've seen too many examples where they can & do. I can't tolerate low bars for my future.
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  2. Really? Have you ever taught school? I have. I taught math at a public high school in Chicago. I've in a college prep program. In addition to coaching there, I also taught at a "last chance" high school here in Denver. This country's intelligentsia is declining because parents aren't kicking their kids in the ass & the parents are getting pissed when teachers kick them in the ass. Sure, nobody wants our students to fail but nobody wants to do the necessary work to ensure success.
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  3. @OBLIVIOUSavior Define "abused".
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  4. I had more than my share of issues with more than my share of teachers. Often times they got mad when they realized I was smarter than them. They tried to belittle me but it never worked. I'd've been damned if the teacher tried to shit on me then the students think it was cool. Simply put, I fought... a LOT. But you're blaming 1 teacher for the outcome of your entire career (primary AND secondary) for the actions of a few teachers? That's counter-intuitive.
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  5. While I applaud the leaps & bounds you've made, I must simply ask if you've ever taught. Of course, it's your business. Of course you're allowed to opine because it affects us all. However, you must understand the desperate battle we're in. Most of Asia is kicking our asses academically because we're pussifying our kids. Zero tolerance rules are extinguishing judgment & critical thought. Instead of putting resources into education, most gov'ts, state & federal, are cutting resources
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  6. So your lack of self-respect is the teacher's fault? You let the kids walk all over you because of the TEACHER? Don't get me wrong, the teacher is the primary example setter in the classroom. But at what point did you tell your rotten classmates to fuck off? When did you own it? At the end of the day, a grown man doesn't need a kid's respect. At some point, the kids are gonna have to take ownership of their own educations. If they don't wanna be called stupid & lazy, they must SHOW something.
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  7. And I truly feel for you. I regret your bad experience. My own situation is unique in that my father is an educator & my mother spent much of her time in school whilst I was in school. Couple that with an inherent degree of intellectual curiosity & you get me. But I disagree that as a teacher, I can't expect a kid to be Rambo. Every kid has a little Rambo in him. I don't exactly approve of the principal's wording but he's looking for their inner Rambos.
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  8. I'm sure your parents gave you a sense of self worth. I'm sure your friends & siblings did the same. The last time I checked, even retarded kids make friends. Even retarded kids are capable of love & being loved. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how smart you are. Having a high IQ is kinda like being tall in basketball: it's an implied advantage but it comes down to the work you put in.
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  9. You're alright in my book.
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  10. I'm a fucking douche bag. Guilty as charged. But I'd rather be an asshole than a pussy. Yes. I had some solidarity & personal strength. Yes, I have a mean streak too. But as a teacher, I'm in the business of letting kids know that they're champions. It's a battle. It's a battle against all the negative forces that can do you in. In a foxhole, do you whip out the guitar, fire up the marshmallows & sing "Kum Baya"? Or do you rally the troops by not-always-kind means? America needs more Rambos.
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  11. I definitely had my share of bad teachers. In fact, we can always remember the names of our worst & best teachers. It's the 1s in the middle that we always forget. But I dare say that, while I got well beyond their subject matter, I may have learned more from the bad teachers.
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  12. Here's a nuance you're missing. I hate to allude to your learning disability but that's part of your problem here. You're not an active listener for starters. The principal never said a thing to the kids. The principal's letter, which was intended for internal staff, was sent to parents. Passive listening IS lazy because it's like you're letting something happen to you instead of seizing the reigns. (cont)
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  13. And no, I can't settle for less. If they fail then I fail. But worst of all, the next generation fails & eventually the country fails. Cal me a socialist but I believe in collective responsibility as well as personal accountability. I'd like to think that parents are as concerned about their kids' education as I am. But all too often I'm proven wrong about that. They're more concerned about their kids getting butthurt than about their kids reading level. Go figure.
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  14. Firing a low level administrator ain't gonna fix shit. Parents & teachers need to get on the same page and STAY ON THESE KIDS' ASSES. If there's time to program iPods, got to the mall, play sports, play Xbox & watch 300 cable channels, there's time for homework. But the REALITY is that more than 1/2 of hs graduates (given a 30-40% dropout rate already) aren't ready for college math. Why? No commitment. For AZ to be the 15th most populated state, why aren't the ACT composites close to MA?
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