Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays

While I enjoy holidays as much as anyone I do have a problem with having them all mixed and confused with each other.
New Years Day - Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Presidents Day - Memorial Day -
Flag Day - Independence Day - Labor Day - Columbus Day - Veterans Day - Thanksgiving Day and Christmas are our Nations official holidays.

Now would anyone think it inappropriate to yell Happy New Year on Veterans Day? Should Memorial Day, a time set aside to honor those who died in service of this country, be celebrated with fireworks and parades of union workers?
Should Thanksgiving Day, a time officially proclaimed by President Lincoln to be "observed as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens", be celebrated by honoring Columbus?
Would there be anything appropriate about the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. being celebrated with a big dinner and called turkey day?

So now comes Christmas the time set aside to celebrate the birth of Christ and we think nothing of substituting Christ with Santa Claus. Even that hasn't been enough, today we have holiday trees instead of the Christmas Tree, Season Greeting Cards instead of Christmas Cards and wishes for Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. Many of the same people who bemoan the idea that God has been moved out of the classroom think nothing of moving Christ out of Christmas His Birthday.

This year let us celebrate each holiday with appropriate attention given for the reason for that holiday and let us begin with Christmas. Merry Christmas everyone may you always be surrounded with the blessings of God. Allen Barrett

Teacher Evaluations And Test Scores!

For possibly the only time in history I find myself on the same side of an issue as the Tennessee Education Association though not for the same reasons.
It seems the governor wants to tie teacher evaluations to student test scores and even plans to have a special session of the legislature to approve his idea.
I believe it is counter productive to tie teacher evaluations to student test scores because as we have seen with No Child Left Behind, the Bush/Kennedy solution for improving education, the pressure becomes so great that teachers are simply forced to teach the test.
It's past time for the public and the teachers to band together and force the unions, politicians and administrators to get out of the way and let teachers do their job of teaching. When teacher unions put as much emphasis on discipline in the classroom as they have traditionally put on pay, things will begin to change but not until then.
Teachers must become fearless in demanding not only a fair wage but working conditions that are safe and productive for both them and students.
Parents must become more involved with the school system and the teachers in order for realistic goals to be set and accomplished.
The legal system must become more active in dealing with the parents of delinquent students and forcing them to be responsible.
The numbers of administrators must be reduced with resources redirected away from administration and into the classroom.
Teachers should be evaluated not on the manipulated test scores of students but on such things as student interaction, student involvement, discipline in their classes, interest generated in students to learn, number of days absent from class, developmental thinking and creativity, etc, etc.
Schools should stop the social experimentation and social engineering and get back to the basic goal of teaching students to think, process, learn and explore knowledge.
Allen Barrett

Is Zero Tolerance or Totally Ignored The Only Options School Problems?

A caller recently asked, "what kind of program does Richland School have in place to deal with the unusual number of extremely violent crimes that have been committed by students from there".
The question is whether some students and possibly staff may have known about the horrendous violence that took place by two students prior to it actually being committed? If this was known or suspected why wasn't it taken more seriously or did those involved feel there wasn't anyone they could tell. While hindsight is twenty/twenty and the past can't be changed, certainly every effort should be taken to prevent any possible future problems.
So now the question is asked, what kind of classes have been arranged so that all students and staff might be better equipped to deal with statements and behaviors that could indicate potentially severe problems. What classes have been arranged to help students and staff deal with the trauma caused by such problems?
It seems presently that there are no classes or training programs for both students and staff and that there is little interest in developing such programs, why?, are they thought to be unnecessary, unproductive, unmanageable or just no time?
How do you feel about this situation? What can be done to insure a more free flow of information between students, staff and the main office? Allen Barrett