I hate reading. I REALLY hate reading.

I have previously posted something of a diatribe/self-pity party about my ongoing experiences in education. While things have certainly improved and I am over my yearly funk, I am still rather saddened and frustrated with some of the approaches and issues that I am seeing daily.

Recently, in a faculty meeting to discuss the progress of our school's attempts to raise reading scores through the introduction of reading 'strategies' and a heavy use of those strategies (to such a degree that students have told me that they are sick and tired of them), I was informed by our reading coach that my content comes second; I am to put a heavier emphasis on teaching reading strategies for students to use later in life and in school. If I don't cover all of my material, if I skip over some parts of history because I am teaching reading strategies, well, that's okay. It's simply important that I am using and demonstrating and emphasizing and beating into them the reading strategies. No matter that I am a history teacher, my first love is history, and I have high standards and expectations for my students. I need to change my approach and fill up my day with strategies. Screw history.

have very rarely been so angry at someone (non-Yankee fan) in my life. It is so frustrating. You try to teach, you think you are doing a good job, your students enjoy the material, but no, you are doing everything wrong and you need to do it this other way.

'Your content comes second.' That's complete and utter horse&%$#!!!Please forgive the tone of this post. I still love teaching and the classroom; I'm just sick of priorities that take away from true learning.
(Crossposted by Bostondreamer at FloridaBlues)