Ok - I couldn't come up with a creative title! So . . . here's a little bit of what's on my mind about politicians, related to education.

Wouldn't it be great if those in power would seek advice from teachers before passing laws that shape what we do in classrooms? I believe MSTA has the ears of many of the movers and shakers in Jeff City. Many times we've spoken, and they have listened. But there are still people in control of our profession who never stepped into a classroom in their adult lives before entering politics and having more power over what we do in classrooms than we do. Including the US Secretary of Education!

As we turn for the homestretch of this year's campaigns, we are being bombarded with ads from people who want to control education. And isn't it great how many of them use "holding teachers accountable" as a reason they should be elected? And then they throw in "mandatory testing" to garner public support.

It's funny how the constituents who will vote for these candidates have no idea what they are talking about or supporting . . . but they are eager to vote for them because they're "improving education." Unfortunately, when it comes to education, we have a very uneducated public.

We had parent-teacher conferences this past week. As I explained MAP scores to the parents, many of them commented that 100% of the students achieving proficient or advance would be impossible. Hmm . . . .

How many people know that NCLB requires 100% of students in every school district to score either proficient or advanced by the year 2014 or else the state will take over? I would bet the only people who know that are teachers . . . and maybe their spouses. How many parents know that their child's "Proficient" score actually means they performed ABOVE grade-level?

Maybe we just need a little honesty in campaign ads! Maybe instead of saying, "I will hold teachers accountable," candidates should just be honest and say, "I will set unattainable goals for schools and then when they don't meet them, I will fire all the teachers and replace them with political appointees who will do a better job." Instead of saying, "I will improve education in all schools," they should say, "I will give schools just enough money to entice them to start programs that will help their students achieve, and then I will cut off the money so they will be forced to find it somewhere else or cut the program."

Ok . . . I'll stop now. Make sure you vote on November 7. Vote your conscience; vote your morals; vote for education!