mshapiro

Dear Jaywalker, Unfortunately, reader comments are not made public on the site. However, I do collect comments that are sent via email -- such as yours. For articles that I write myself, I answer the emails directly. For articles written by guest commentators, I forward the email directly to the author. Generally, the author will reply directly. However, for the "Stop Teaching My Kid" article the volume of mail was so high that I doubt that Elise was able to answer all of them. Dr. S.

... The vast majority of Americans would be shocked to learn of one potent force that keeps the quality of public education low. Budget problems, you ask? No. I'm talking about parents. Why would parents want anything but a rigorous curriculum for their children? I honestly don't know. In my experience, however, most parents want an easy pass (in some cases, an easy A) rather than a course in which their children acquire real knowledge and skills. ... Those lines are from a recent guest commentary in The Irascible Professor by high school teacher Elise Vogler (pseudonym). This particular commentary generated more page views and more reader comments than any previous commentary published in the five-year history of the site. Although the commentary was aimed primarily at a U.S. audience, I'm posting the link to it since it might be of wider interest to the education community. http://irascibleprofessor.com/comments-03-04-04.htm Sincerely, Dr. Mark H. Shapiro Editor and Publisher The Irascible Professor

.... After 40+ years in the classroom there are certain rituals that accompany retirement. One is emptying your office so that the person who's had an eye on the campus view outside your window can, at long last, move in; another is the sudden realization that your carefully labeled course syllabi and class notes no longer matter a fig. The list goes on and on, with every item making it clear that you are yesterday's news. It's enough to give a person the willies. .... Read guest commentator Sanford Pinsker's humorous look at retirement from academia in its entirety at: http://irascibleprofessor.com/comments-02-01-04.htm Sincerely, -- Dr. Mark H. Shapiro Editor and Publisher The Irascible Professor http://irascibleprofessor.com

Please be careful to read Nils' article in its entirety. The list that has been quoted from the article is one that Nils criticizes in the article because of its omission of important characteristics such as subject matter competence. Sincerely, Dr. Mark H. Shapiro Editor and Publisher The Irascible Professor http://irascibleprofessor.com