Algebra Teacher Joshua Katz talks "Toxic Culture of Education"

Welcome back, a local

teacher

's YouTube video went viral after he talked about the state of

education

here in Florida, listen, they're in an

education

system that says if you don't go to college you're not worth it, so it's your only alternative. it's being underemployed to find illegal work or abuse welfare those students are marginalized by what I call a

toxic

educational

culture

joshua

katz

from university high school is an

algebra

teacher

joining us live this morning to talk more about that video and the response that you have received, first of all, welcome, thank you very much for being here this morning, you have received a great response, you even received a mention in the Washington Post shortly after, that speech went viral, what are your thoughts about what people are like?

Reacting well, I'm glad I can make my voice heard. I have had overwhelming support from fellow teachers, from parents, from many members of the community. I didn't expect it to be so big. Part of me hoped that would be the case because I just feel like The stakeholders that are the real stakeholders in education are not being heard, it's the students, it's the parents and it's the teachers, and I'm glad that it's able to come to light. . What do you fundamentally believe is wrong with the state of education? public education right now there are two things, but I focus on one: the word responsibility, we have a situation where the narrative is to compare education with business in business.

You have a simple question: what is best for the company and that can be measured very easily. the bottom line is a profit margin when it comes to education there is nothing that simple we are dealing with children we are dealing with human beings and the question has to be what is best for the student and I think that question is not being considered when It's about educational policy, is this in the best interest of the student? A one-time one-day test that will measure you and grade you and grade your teacher and grade your school and impact the value of homes around you based on one day.

The test is what is best for the student, so I think the bigger picture is how we are missing the boat. This is about human beings. We can't convert them into data points. What advice would you give to parents who have children? the public school system that can't afford to go to a private school, I would say they have to get involved, make sure they understand the state laws, make sure they understand the resources that are out there, there are ways to do it, they can work with their students. , teachers, can do it. Work with your students' schools and if you stay involved, you can see that you can play a very important role in allowing teachers to do what they do best and the public to teach.

Public school teachers do better when it comes to taking care of the students they work with. students make sure they get the best education possible because they are with them for the 180 days, so parents have to do a much better job of staying in touch with teachers, staying involved, knowing what's going on with the laws because many of Things are changing next year What do you advise parents about the end of year exam? What are you telling parents to do? There are a few things in the state that offer the opportunity for students in younger grades to have a teacher-directed portfolio.

It was developed earlier in the year that there are ways you can opt out of having your student participate in these high-stakes tests at a young age and can have an honest assessment of what your student is doing throughout the year instead of wait. That one-day computer-based test that still takes two months to grade, many parents will be nervous asking the teacher: Is it okay if my child doesn't take the test or I don't want to? have my child take the test, I should be prepared for rejection, I should do it and I think that gets into another question: whose education is this, this is the student's education and again, that's the stakeholder that's not being addressed. and we have to really think. about what is best for the student what is the best way to ensure that my student is learning what is the best way to ensure that my student is prepared for a dynamic and changing world, a dynamic and changing economy and whether that is the question that comes I think you will be happy with the answers.

How can people watch your entire YouTube video if they want to see what you have to say? So some resources just go to YouTube, type josh

katz

or

toxic

culture

of education and you. I'll sit down and have 17 minutes free. I hope you enjoy it. Opt out. Orlando has a website that has the full transcript of the talk so you can read it too. It's certainly fascinating and I know we could. we talk about it all day many parents are very eager to hear more about what you have to say josh katz thank you very much city high school

algebra

teacher okay it's 8 28 we're going to take a short commercial break we'll be there I come back