With FCAT results coming in, know that everything I have said inside our DCPS org and to others outside about our FCAT slips were heartfelt and reflect what I know so many of us want for all our kids in all areas of academic achievement. Know also that I do feel very passionately about the important place and stature that all teachers should be regarded in our school system. The job you all do is indeed profound and among the hardest of all the roles in DCPS.
I do work hard to reflect daily on my work and lead the organization firmly to continuously improve how we support teachers. We have made great progress and have far to go.
All that said, we do have some teachers who need extra support to become fully effective and some who should leave the profession. (I can certainly say that with as much certainty about some administrators and some superintendents, and even some school board members as I look around our nation at our profession as a whole.)
Our focus must be on strengthening our practices in all 8500 DCPS classrooms. We must strengthen the teaching and learning and the ways in which we support that core work in all 8500 venues. We must increase the level and frequency of teacher-teacher collaboration, and we must bring use of instructional technology practices into modern day equipment, resources, and practices. We must also greatly improve our level of engagement and excitement for each child as we dose them in all areas of the curriculum.
You are right when you say that we must each be reflective about what each of us can do to improve this work—me included—you included—everyone else included. I feel strongly about responsibility, integrity and accountability. For now that means meaningful response and reflection to what went wrong as in this year’s 3rd grade reading and math performance and in 4th grade writing performance in 79 schools.
What are your thoughts?
About Me
- Dr. Joseph Wise
- Joseph Wise is Superintendent for Duval County Public Schools, an appointment he began on November 17, 2005. A former Duval County Public Schools’ student and Florida teacher, Dr. Wise leads the academic plans and programs and directs all strategic efforts designed to produce high-quality results for the district’s 160+ schools, 130,000 students, and 14,000 employees.
5 comments:
Research (let me know if you need sources) indicates that judging teacher performance without regard to such things as student characteristics and attributes and school culture and climate, is faulty. Other factors that also contribute to student performance incude the motivation level of the student and/or the teacher, job satisfaction for the teacher, the leadership style of school and district leaders, and the policies and/or procedures implemented (or ignored) at the district and school level. I think teacher morale is impacted when blanket statements are made to the media regarding the quality or effectiveness of instruction provided by the teachers in DCPS. Many teachers were insulted by statements printed in the Florida Times Union and felt their individual and collective efforts to prepare students for the FCAT were not valued. However, when any blanket statement is found to be unsound or wrong, I think character and integrity are displayed when one acknowledges openly his/her mistake(s). I do not believe that district leaders understand completely the pressure that teachers are under when preparing students for the FCAT. We should find ways to encourage our teachers collectively and work harder to ASSIST teachers whether great or not so great to be experts in their content and skillful in their craft. Unfortunately, while pushing those teachers who are thought to be "unsatisfactory" away from DCPS, we are simultaneously turning away some of our brightest educators to neighboring districts or away from the profession.
I agree with "anonymous". Thank you for verbalizing the thoughts of many lunch time teacher closed disussions. Teachers in Duval County were spending extra morning and after school time tutoring students for a one time test deciding promotional criterion and school grades.Teacher morale and student progress are both concerns for our Duval District.
I concur with the original response as well as another emphasis that should be considered is when school policy makers institutionalize digressive behavior that makes my teaching job even more difficult. The Example is the "DCPS Attendance Policy", or lack there of, as well as the farce of "Grade Recovery" in replacement of summer school. We all know as professional educators there are extenuating circumstances that are legitimate cause for the infrequent student absence. But for the habitual skipping & and blatant truancy offender the district must document with firm consequences because this virus is spreading (at least on a High School level) to students who would have never considered this deviant behavior. There is a mindset evolving of "Why come to class when I can achieve the same grade spending time malingering in an unstructured or dangerous environment". The bottom line is, I as an educator can not teach whom I can not touch. And if the definition of an educator is evolving to volunteering to walk unsuspecting neighborhoods and knocking on doors looking for students, please advise us of this in plain language and make sure that the tasks are spread equitably in all clusters.
Thank you Dr. Wise for allowing a candid venue.
After speaking with an administrator who was in the group you addressed, and reading about it in the paper, it reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw that said, "The beatings will continue until morale improves."
One of the best things about growing up in Duval County schools, for me, was that my teachers and principals were genuinely concerned about my well-being -- everything about me, not just my academics. Those teachers inspired me to become a teacher and my memories of them serve as models for me now. I have a profound respect for their dedication and their impact on the lives of their students. When you first came to this county, you wanted to visit every school, and assured everyone you didn't want to come in and make a lot of changes. I was hopeful that your vision for our county would be about what is best for children. You never visited our school and the many changes you have made in this district have negatively impacted me and many of my colleagues. I don't believe that you are genuinely concerned about the "whole-child" or interested in investigating the real problems with a focus on real solutions for the children of Duval County. From what I have learned about the Partnership for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, NWEA, Fast ForWord, and "Grade Recovery", I can't help but wonder about the possibility that you are profiting personally from these "partnerships" and programs.
Although I appreciate a forum such as this, I am embarrassed that I must post anonymously for fear of any "morale-boosting" I might receive.
These candid reponses are very much appreciated. There is a GREAT gap between what the TU reported and what was conveyed when I spoke with them about teaching and learning in DCPS. I do hold our teachers at a very high level of priority. I also hold the recruitment and RETENTION of top teachers high on my own list of priorities. There are many examples of this playing out, including the severe slashing of central budgets when I arrived so that we could fund a first-ever 2-year contract with our teachers and all employee groups with a 14% salary increase for teachers over the 2 years--unprecedented in our school system here. To keep from re-opening the teacher contract this year, I again am slashing central budgets (mostly due to lower revenues coming from the state). Net-net we must do all we can to support and pay teachers well--and we still have a long way to go on that front.
With all of our vendors and even with those we do not do business with, I do not ever accept funds, reimbursements or gifts. That is against the law in our state and is unethical by my own standards. It can be hugely damaging to our school system to allow that sort of rumor to be spread about its superintendent, especially since so many of us are working hard to restore the reputation of DCPS among all JAX taxpayers. In an era of declining enrollment, we must do all we can to recruit families back to our public schools so that our revenues from the state do not continue to fall. Each of us serving as good ambassadors and moving the academic performance of ALL our students to higher levels faster will help with the recreation of a great reputation for DCPS.
Have a great summer. We shall be working hard to ready all our campuses for your return in August.
Joseph Wise
Superintendent of Schools
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