Teacher’s resignation letter: ‘My profession … no longer exists’
m.washingtonpost.com
m.washingtonpost.com
I am a teacher in private practice. Teaching is going along just fine as an occupation if you are responsible for actually meeting your clients needs and the clients are all free to shop for the services of another provider. My wife has been a teacher in private practice for her entire working life, and it is from her that I learned actual entrepreneurship and a dedication to deeply understanding a subject in order to pass that understanding along to client learners. The huge claim on everybody's taxes that government-operated schools have (and the claim on young learner's hours that compulsory schools have) make it difficult for a teacher to thrive in private practice, but not impossible. If you have a fire in the belly to teach, roll up your sleeves and teach. If you would like to break the oligopoly of the current government-operated schools, fine, do that too, but recognize that plenty of people like the current system just fine because it protects their jobs from competition at equal out-of-pocket cost to potential clients.
" the clients are all free to shop for the services of another provider". I don't even know how to respond to this one. What percentage of people can afford private school? Did you even read this? He resigned due to the increasing amount of government regulations and his lack of control over his own classroom. How many "private practice" teachers even exist? 10%? 5%?
"recognize that plenty of people like the current system just fine". That wasn't the point of this article by far. It was one teacher's experience, not an editorial on how everyone hates the system. But if you bring up the point, please cite your sources. Show me what government employed teachers like the current system just fine.
I really can't believe you referred to a student as a client. It just feels to me completely against the spirit of education.
Actually, I can completely understand why the OP would say something like this, and I can see the value in it.
Calling a student a "client" can be a good reminder that, as a teacher, your main responsibility is delivering something of value -- knowledge and understanding -- to that student. I think that's more congruent with the "spirit of education" than thinking a teacher's primary responsibility is to whatever organization they're part of. (Note: I'm not at all implying you were saying that! Only that some poorer teachers seem to act that way.)