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negirl1981

So I will have been there from 8:30am-6: 15pm, which is almost 10 hours A DAY!!! I will not be able to give my students what they deserve the next day or the next because I will eventually reach the point of total exhaustion.

Moral of the story is: ALL of these things directly affect the quality of education that children are receiving. This is NOT ok!!!! With 45 children in a classroom at one time or 37 children, it doesn't matter. There is not enough quality time to spend with children who have special needs, need extra attention or just simply need to feel that school is a place where people care about them. This diminishes chances that some children have of not only gaining a quality education, but to grown into mature adults who are productive members of society. Lets stop point fingers at teachers and others; insinuating that we can do without these "privileges" that we have and own up to the fact that OUR public education system in NEVADA is broken. By taking any of these cuts, making these and taking concessions we are not doing our students any favors. After all a large majority of teachers became educators because we love kids and want to help them and foster a nurturing learning environment so they can grow up to be productive and educated members of society. We need to be adding to the quality of our education here in Nevada and working on what we can do to make it better. Taking away money and adding more children to the classrooms across Nevada is not doing this AT ALL.

Further:
To address this

"That said, Carpe Diem charter school in Yuma Arizona has 52 students per teacher yet scores above the 90th percentile in mathematics..."

Do they get private donations? Has their funding been cut? What requirements do they have to go to this charter school? How large are their classrooms? Can they hold that many students? Do they have books for every student? Books to take home? Desks for 52? Technology? Paper to make copies? Do their teachers have a prep period?
Welcome to NEVADA, we DON'T are not going to !!!!

To comment on this: "Nevada has between 17 and 19 students per teacher. The reason why class sizes are so much larger than that is because we give teachers duty periods where they may or may not do anything related to student learning."

I currently have 173 total students in the five classes that I teach, at the secondary level. At our school we have a 6 period day. If you take that total amount of students and divide it by 6 you still have 29 students in a class. So that number of 17-19 is unrealistic. That average that you are using is most likely coming from the elementary level, however you cannot take these teacher "duty periods" away. These are times when the students go to their specials, such as Art, PE, music ect. So if you take away elementary "duty periods" then you are eliminating these classes. BIG MISTAKE.

Also the district average at the secondary level takes into ALL classes that are taught by ALL teachers. Meaning that this includes classes that are or, socially and emotionally disturbed student (or other special needs students) and only have 10 students or less in them. So the realistic average of a regular classroom is about 32-37 ALREADY. They want to add about 8 students to that in this new budget. BIG MISTAKE!!!

It is not that we don't want to give up our rights to collectively bargain because we are being selfish; it is actually quite the opposite, we CARE ABOUT KIDS. If we give up the right to our "prep period" and they increase class sizes we are now going to go from teaching 173 students to 270. (45 in a class times 6 classes!!!)

Let's say that NEXT year we are going to have 45 students in a class even if you DON'T take away my "duty period" as you call it. (Actually it is called a "prep period" meaning that is my period when I prepare lessons and grade) and divided my now 225 students into 6 periods that is right back where you started at class sizes of 37-38 per class. Either way it is a losing situation.

If you take away teacher prep periods or increase class sizes, now you have teachers getting prepared and grading for even longer periods of time after school. Which is fine, however grading one assignment a day for that many children will take about 2 hours a day or more depending on the situation that plays out. So now since they changed our start time to 9 and end at 3:15. I will be at my job from 8:20 when I am supposed to report for opportunity period to help students (which is never the case I get there early about 30 minutes, to put grades into the grade book and set out materials) and then stay through the afternoon opportunity period of 3:30.

Then after 3:30 I will be able to start my grading (if all kids are out of my classroom, which is never the case) I will be grading from 3:30 till 5:30 or later. THEN I need to prepare labs and lessons for the next day. So lets say that takes another 30 to 45 minutes. I will be leaving school at around 6:15pm.

I live about 100 feet from the dog fanciers park. I am sitting on my couch right now and I do not hear a thing, nor have I ever heard a single noise coming from there!Our neighborhood does not smell of pee or poop either.
It is open from sun up till 11pm, the lights or nosie have never been an issue. The we have was bought for 205,00! whoopy do. The value is less than that now I am sure, but it isn't lower because of the park. I fact we moved here because of the park. We do have a backyard and it is just nice to have it so close to the house.
I am sure that most of the people in that neighborhood would like the convience of the park and these are a few people who oppose it. I see many of my neighbors walking thier dogs nightly to the park.
It makes for a better community because people get to know one another and thier pets too. If anything it makes our neighborhood better than any other I have lived in in Las Vegas, it is more of a community. These people probably like thier solitude and are the type of people whoe can't be bothered by knowing thier neighbors!

For someone to suggest the problems that Nevada faces are the result of the educators is just plain out of line. As an educator myself I am highly offended in the comment to “get back to the classroom and shut up." Excuse me, but my opinions count just as much as those culinary workers. Mind you that I have spent a lot of time and not to mention money in order to achieve my career goals. I went to college and paid for it out of my own pocket. Growing up here in Las Vegas I could have went directly into the culinary workforce and probably been way ahead financially then where I am at, but I chose not to. I went to college so that I could educate and make a difference in life of children.
Did anyone ever consider the fact that it isn't entirely our fault and that our town perpetuates a system of failure, some of these parents don't set the best example for their children. Why graduate from high school or do well in school when you can go get a job in a casino and make more money?
Special at large precincts are just another privilege that the workers in other industries and professions don't get, is that fair, NO. I have to go to my precinct to caucus just like everyone else. If I was working that day, too bad. Right? Yes!
Oh and I will be working that day, at my second job because I am not paid enough money as a teacher here in Nevada! But my opinion isn't as valued because I am not in the majority and most important workforce here in the state. So who is disenfranchised? I just have the unimportant job of educating your children and apparently I am not good at it!