School-wide composting at Parker? Cool.

Sigma.., what legit degrees do you have?

dtb - absolutely, a one size fits all federal approach always fails.

PanamaRed - Your 2:07 post “I think some place too much of the blame on teachers for the failures of both parents and students. They too must accept responsibility for the general decline in education.” is so on target. And to lay the total blame on the teachers only serves to demoralize and burn out the best and the brightest in their field. I know this for a fact.

raystone, a lot of that bar lowering was due to NCLB - GWB's pet program.

raystone - Our school board was very smart, TVs were not in any schools (and not in many homes either) in my day, I-pads had not even been imagined and most of my teachers were incredibly bright and talented. I appreciated my teachers and the ones that followed them. I do not denigrate them as the righties - based on their ignorance - wrongly do. See how wrong you are on your assumptions?

fordfan - based on your inability to follow the logic, I'm guessing you were taught by a Smart Board, classroom TV, and an iPad - but missing the great teacher.

raystone - the point is that teachers need tools just as any person does in most any profession. They cannot do their job without tools as you seem to imply. As you do not seem to get this, I am wondering if perhaps your teacher didn't have enough tools - it is showing.

"Would you rather have your child in a room with the best equipment in the world and an average teacher, or an empty room and Socrates ?"
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I would want both, a good teacher with good resources. I think some place too much of the blame on teachers for the failures of both parents and students. They too must accept responsibility for the general decline in education.

This is great! I know that most teachers spend their own money to buy materials. I know my son's first grade teacher once bought a girl(from a low income family) a winter jacket. At that school, all the first grade teachers kept some snack for children who didn't bring their snack from their home(whatever the reasons were, the teachers said "it's not children's fault") I hope Janesville children keep receiving good education from the great teachers!

panamared - a book fordfan - teachers develop minds, they don't build homes. Look at any statistic... minority graduation rates, math and science scores falling in world rankings, etc. The bottom line is that the system is broken, and the solution is hiring more gifted and dedicated teachers.
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"Would you rather have your child in a room with the best equipment in the world and an average teacher, or an empty room and Socrates ?" - Rafe Esquith.

raystone - given an acre of mature hardwoods and pines, an ample number of stones strewn on the ground and the clothes on your back, please build us a house that meets today's standards. You don't need more stuff like tools - just work smarter and harder. GO!

"Nero fiddles, while Rome burns."
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What resource did you use when discovering the meaning of that phrase, raystone?

saywhat - no, you don't get it. This year, with new testing standards, the percent of Wisconsin students who are proficient in reading will drop to 35%. Over the past years, between the union power grabs, and lazy, overpaid, bloated administration, the bar keeps being lowered for Wisconsin public school students.
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Across the state and nation, great teachers have been profiled who, with little or no resources, consistently graduate disadvantaged students who are standard deviations above the norm. All efforts and attention need to be focused on hiring more of these great teachers. In this case, Nero fiddles, while Rome burns.

Going out their way for the students is not in the job description. These people spent their own time and resources to get these things. Knowing some of these people personally I know they go the extra mile. I am sorry if some of you only see black and white and refuse to see good in people. That stress will kill you if you let it.

vnvet7071 - Why would I go back to school? School is how people of the old world learned. I can learn more online in one day than an entire semester at a school...and it will cost me nothing. Granted not everything can be learned online, the only reason school is so pushed is for financial reasons...School provides jobs, revenue,student loans, taxes and a nice flow of money. One of the legit degrees I do have, I had to take a bunch of nonsense classes to get...math..etc, even though I already know the stuff it was still required ($$$). And pay for it, this was before the internet. A lot of schooling (Post HS) is a money making scam.

Really good news. Nice to see teachers and the SDJ keeping their collective eye out for grant opportunities to earn extra materials for the classroom. Maybe small grants but still significant. Kudos.

raystone - You don't get it. These are great teachers who are looking for additional resources to assist them in the classroom. How can you complain when tax dollars aren't being spent. Please volunteer in a local parochial or public school before you comment about teachers.

Sigma, dare you to go back to school. It would be your worst nightmare, wouldn't it ? Nobody ever liked you, did they ?

We don't need more stuff in the classrooms. We need more great teachers in the classrooms.

Exactly... They are doing their jobs. Now maybe people will stop complaining that they aren't. Walk a mile in their shoes. You cant complain if you don't really know.
God bless all and Happy Thanksgiving!

This is their job... Not sure how this is news??

Congrats to all of the recievers! You didn't do this for yourselves but fo the need of the student. Thank you for your dedication!

I love it! Something positive educators are doing for students and NO responses! You're a bunch of hypocrites Janesville!