Thought for the Day

Despite the fact that Cathie Black, our new "chancellor", spent part of her first day on the job reading to a first grade class, she was still the person who had spent the least amount of time in a city classroom of anyone in the building.

Black is the New Green!

Perhaps it's my imagination, or perhaps it's because Cathie Black has obviously been called upon to be the hatchet person for Bloomberg, but lately I've had the nagging feeling that I've seen Ms. Black before. You be the judge:

Rhee for Chancellor!

According to Norm, the UFT has wussied out on a resolution to urge David Steiner to refuse to grant a waiver to Cathie Black. Apparently, the Unity people have been whispering the R word in an effort to get people to fall in line, as in "Yes, Cathie Black may have no experience in education other than teaching couples potentially back-wrenching sex positions, but at least she's not...you know...the R word!"

What they mean, of course, it that as bad as Black may be, at least she's not Michelle Rhee. The thinking is that Rhee is the worst person possible for the job. I humbly disagree. I think that Rhee would be the best person possible for the job, and I urge Mayor4Life Bloomberg to reconsider the Black nomination and immediately recommend Rhee for chancellor of the NYC public schools.

And no, I'm not crazy. Does anyone believe, even for a minute, that Black was chosen because she'd be better for teachers than Rhee? In his application for a waiver for Ms. Black, Bloomberg comes right out and says that one of her scant qualifications for the job is her known ability to fire people left and right and layoff entire departments to save money. Isn't that where this is headed?

And Black is a fresh face. She looks about 100 times friendlier than Klein or Rhee. In other words, she could fires scads of teachers with a big smile on her face, and the local press would eat her up.

Rhee, on the other hand, is damaged goods, despite her ill-gotten celebrity. She's already been voted out of office by proxy from her DC job. She'd be as divisive and disliked here as she was in DC. And that's why I want her for chancellor.

Think about it. She might be the only person who could unify the UFT membership. She'd walk into town with her broom and apathetic teachers might finally decide to wake up and fight against the reform movement. Even Mulgrew and his cronies might decide that they needed to mix it up a bit with Rhee as chancellor. But can you even picture Mulgrew saying a mean word about Cathie Black, even as she sticks the layoff knife in our backs?

So, far from being afraid of Rhee should Black's waiver be denied, we should be clamoring for Rhee to take the reins. If that happened, maybe we could become a real union once more and fight these reform people, sending them back to hell where they belong.

All we'll get from Black is a smiley face as she plunges the knife in our backs.

Cathie Black: "Cheaper than a hooker"

Suppose you're a NYC teacher and you publicly support an IPhone app that teaches sex positions. Let's further suppose your comment is viewable by any of your students. And then, let's say that you tried to sell that app by claiming that at $2.99, it's "...cheaper than a hooker"? How long would it be before the Office of Special Investigations led you out of your classroom in handcuffs (which should not be confused with position #30 on the app)?

Never fear. Even if you lost your job because of your indiscretion, you'd be able to apply to be the Chancellor of the NYC public schools. Yes, Cathie Black made the above hooker comment with regard to the Cosmopolitan Sex Position of the Day App.

Now, there's nothing wrong with what she did if she wants to continue being the editor of Cosmo. But if she wants to lead 1.1 million schoolchildren, these things matter. When students Google her, they'll find that she supports an app that shows you how to do the "G-Spot Jiggy" and "Rock-a-Bye Booty."

I launched my own personal investigation into this app, and all I can tell you is that it isn't befitting a chancellor of the public schools. Although Mrs. Talk kind of liked the "Flip Side Boogie".
(Thanks, Cathie.)

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Sign the Petition!

Sign the petition to deny a waiver to Cathleen Black. An email will be sent to David Steiner to show your disgust at a non-educator being put in charge of the largest school system in the nation.

Thanks to the indefatigable Leonie Haimson for the link.

Harbinger of a New Contract?

Could the Klein resignation be the harbinger of a new contract? I'm not sure, but it just may be.

Klein would not want to be the one to give in to any of the union's demands. Signing a new contract with Cathie Black at the helm would give her a leg up and allow Klein to slink away like the slug he is. It would also give Mayor4Life a way of justifying a pay hike because he needs to usher in a new era of (fake, of course) cooperation with teachers.

Speaking of that, it may just be that with Klein gone, the release of the TDRs may be a moot point. Ms. Black can swoop in, put the kibosh on that idea, and become an instant hero with the union and Mulgrew.

Of course, if she releases the data and holds the line on the contract, we'll know we got a new Klein in a Black sheep's clothing.

Are You Teacher Material? Take the Quiz!!!

Not everyone is cut out to be a teacher. This quiz is designed to help you decide whether you have “what it takes” to embark on the long, arduous road toward teacher certification. Take the quiz and discover whether a career in teaching is truly for you!

DIRECTIONS: Print a copy of the quiz below so that you can easily circle your answers. For each question, choose only the best answer. Circle the letter A, B, or C as appropriate, using only a #2 pencil. Do NOT use a pen. You have ten minutes to finish. The answers appear below the quiz. You may NOT look at the answers beforehand. Let’s begin! Good luck!

Question One. In your own school career, you mostly got:

1. Placed on the Honor Roll
2. Good grades
3. Wedgies

Question Two. What’s your primary motivation for wanting to be a teacher?

1. I enjoy working with children.
2. I want to share my love of learning.
3. I was kicked out of Charm School.

Question Three. Of these educational giants, who best represents your own philosophy towards teaching?

1. Socrates.
2. John Dewey.
3. Mr. Kotter.

Question Four. What quality best describes your personality?

1. Patient
2. Caring
3. Split

Question Five. A child begins projectile vomiting in the middle of your lesson. You immediately:

1. Clear the area, open the windows, and notify the school nurse.
2. Call the custodian to clean up the area so others won’t be infected.
3. Join him.

Question Six. If you do opt for a career in teaching, where do you see yourself in ten years?

1. Still in the classroom, reveling in the joys of my chosen profession
2. In an administrative role, helping new teachers acquire the skills they need to succeed
3. In a straitjacket, tearing at the straps with my teeth

SCORING THE QUIZ: Look at the answer sheet you printed when you began this quiz. If you bothered to print it, you are teacher material. You obviously enjoy doing pointless tasks at the behest of others. Your unquestioning nature makes you an ideal teaching candidate in today’s hostile educational environment. If you did not print the answer sheet, you clearly value your independence and would be better suited toward a career with fewer actual requirements, such as Secretary of Education or Senator.

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Special Radio Broadcast

Make every effort to catch tomorrow night's internet radio broadcast from South Bronx School. His VERY special guest is long time blogger Fidgety Teach, who has spent three years in the rubber room at the behest of Leadership (??) Academy Principal Mustillo, who I blogged about some time back.

For more of the story, read this post from the South Bronx School blog.

To listen to the radio broadcast Tuesday night at 9PM, go here.