It is Not a Teacher Effectiveness Problem. It is a Poverty Problem.
I read an article today on CBSNews.com that profiled homeless children in America. The families that were profiled were from Seminole County, Florida, where I live and work as a teacher. I recognized the name of one of the students, Destiny Corfee, who was profiled, but couldn’t remember where I had heard that name before. I called our school counselor and she looked up the name and told me that the young 11 year old went to an elementary school in a nearby town. Then it hit me where I had heard her name.
Months ago, my children and I had made a trip to McDonalds to buy some sweet tea. It was a scorching hot day and we needed something ice-cold to drink to bring home with us in preparation for some yard work. We saw a couple sitting on a curb near the drive through. The man was holding a cardboard sign that read, “Please Help: Family of 5″. To be honest, I was initially shocked to see people there in my middle-class suburb begging for