Comments on Aberdeener: I Respectfully Dissent

I want to quote your post in my blog. It can? And ...

2009-12-25T08:57:23.348-05:00

I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?

Had a conversation with a VP from the HS this week...

2009-12-19T10:46:29.385-05:00

Had a conversation with a VP from the HS this week regarding my son. Whoa- that woman is stoopid!
How in god's name can this district make any academic progress when you have brainless adminstrators.

Dear Author www.aberdeener.com ! It doesn't m...

2009-12-09T19:13:01.979-05:00

Dear Author www.aberdeener.com !
It doesn't matter!

I still don't see where Mr. Warren talks about...

2009-11-30T21:07:34.939-05:00

I still don't see where Mr. Warren talks about his fellow BOE members who have been around for the past 6 or more years who have voted for things Mr. Warren cannot stand.

When will you be a totally neutral party and tell my why Larry, Gerry, Jan, Chuck, and Dr. G get off with no blame for the ways they have voted in the past. DO YOU GET IT? THEY VOTED FOR the "villain" QUINN's programs!!!!!!!!!!!!! and the field, and the construction, and RTI, and tax increases.... where is that blame????

What, are they changed people now that you are on the BOE?

I find your answer to be unconvincing. You have pr...

2009-11-30T20:58:27.321-05:00

I find your answer to be unconvincing. You have provided me with no data specific to Matawan Aberdeen. It is simply your opinion and I have to say that there are not many people who are going to follow the opinions of someone who won't even send his own children to the school district.

You claim that you are familiar with some of the top teachers in the school district. What makes these teachers top teachers? Please be specific to teaching techniques, parent communication and involvement, student motivation, and anything else you think is pertinent.

Extra Cheese, Let's try this - In year 2, a t...

2009-11-30T20:39:37.730-05:00

Extra Cheese,

Let's try this -
In year 2, a teacher completes his Waldens Master
In years 3 and 4, he earns $7,180 per year above what he would've earned had he never attended Walden
In year 4, he completes his Walden 30 credits
In years 5 and 6, he earns $9,500 per year above what he would've earned had he never attended Walden

Where is my math off?

"A Walden masters is only 30 credits, which c...

2009-11-30T20:17:28.641-05:00

"A Walden masters is only 30 credits, which can certainly be done in two years. A teacher can complete his MA+30 at Walden in 4 years at a cost (after tuition reimbursements) of $20,000, which he'll make back in about two years."

I'm confused by your point. How will a teacher earn an ADDITIONAL $20,000 in 2 years? Sign me up! Maybe my explanation of how the salary guide works was not clear or misread. The point I am making is that teachers do NOT get the large raises you are referring to, and certainly not in a year. You cannot get a $10,000 raise in a year from your current salary. That is the key: current salary. You are making claims of “huge raises” by comparing new salaries to those in the BA column (column C) or alternately put, apples to oranges. Maybe at the next board meeting you should ask your colleagues to explain to you how the salary guide works.

Moreover, yet again you have circumvented the questions presented to you about supporting the large administrative raises. You claim that his raise is based on “the amounts saved, the educational achievements, and that we don't want O'Malley to leave”. Haven’t you been suggesting that there have not been significant achievement gains? Isn’t saving money part of a Superintendent’s job description just like it is part of the job for partner teachers who share a prep period to collaborate as you implied earlier? You often make valid points and take some very interesting positions on educational issues. That being said, this is not one of them. It is obvious that your inability to take a step back and reflect on other viewpoints has hindered any advantageous articulation on this site. You never know, Mr. Warren. You may learn something.

Hold the pickle, extra cheese and all you other te...

2009-11-30T20:11:22.846-05:00

Hold the pickle, extra cheese and all you other teachers who are looking to drain the system have swallowed to much of the special sauce. Your union leaders have made you afraid of a person like Mr. Warren who asks questons about abuses to the system. I am out of work with no benefits and no children in this broken system yet you continue to defend your old ways and expect me to pay more. The times have changed for many of us, and thanks in part to the politicians your union money has bought and paid for we are in this predicament together. Raises for whatever reason should not be considered at this time and a substantial contribution to benefits should. Explain to me why in my current situation I should be asked to pay more with no income. I like many others in this town would be happy with a $50,000 a year job. Enough to clothe and feed my family in the home we have lived in for years would be acceptable. Keep up the fight Joey, for people like myself, and keep the kool aid drinkers honest and in the world of reality.

Pickle, I don't need to prove that a masters ...

2009-11-30T19:55:07.096-05:00

Pickle,

I don't need to prove that a masters in education from a no-name, cheap and easy, unranked, virtual school isn't worth $9,500. Let the teachers demanding the raises prove the taxpayers are getting their money's worth.

However, I'll tell you this - I've already cited one national study that a masters in education, on average, doesn't improve student performance and another study demonstrating that knowledge of the material being taught does improve student performance. Yet, nobody in our district with a Waldens degree has a masters in the course material being taught.

I'm familiar with several of our top teachers and none of them have Walden degrees.

As I said, I've seen nothing to demonstrate that a Walden degree is worth the taxpayer's money.

And there's been no scholastic improvement since our teachers began flocking to these cheap and easy online schools.

There are several good online programs. Walden isn't one of them.

There are no techiniques Joey is right. He is all...

2009-11-30T19:09:46.662-05:00

There are no techiniques

Joey is right.
He is all knowing.
We are all dunce.

He says Walden is useless and HE MUST be right, and if it could possibly be proven wrong, he would still say he is right.

He has NO IDEA what Walden asks of its students. He has no idea about the curriculum. He has no idea what teachers can get from a Walden education.

HE IS JUST RIGHT, no arguments.

The funny thing is, a Walden curriculum is mostly THE SAME classes other colleges are presenting, the same classes offered at seminars, and many of the same reading materials and books the state is asking teachers to read and/or become familiar with.

Is Walden Harvard or Yale? Certainly not. But time, socio economics, family, extra jobs, and many other factors contribute to why a Walden on line degree is obtained. I read here once before, checked it out, and if RUTGERS accepts Walden, why does Joey keep beating a dead horse? BECAUSE HE IS RIGHT -DAMN IT!!!

I teach in Middletown where some of my colleagues and I read this, and find it funny that a BOE member attacks his own teachers. But Joey is probably happy he has more people he can call "his readers" .... what a joke

You say you haven't seen any evidence that a W...

2009-11-30T18:47:09.319-05:00

You say you haven't seen any evidence that a Walden graduate is a better teacher.

What type of investigating have you done?

During your investigation, did you do any comparative analysis between Walden and other institutions?

What criteria did you use while collecting data? Were class size, socioeconomic background, parental input, and student placement considered when evaluating a teacher?

Please be specific. I am eager to evaluate your research techniques.

Extra Cheese, A Walden masters is only 30 credits...

2009-11-30T18:17:36.416-05:00

Extra Cheese,

A Walden masters is only 30 credits, which can certainly be done in two years. A teacher can complete his MA+30 at Walden in 4 years at a cost (after tuition reimbursements) of $20,000, which he'll make back in about two years.

However, the question is what are we getting in return for the $9,500 raise for that Walden MA+30? Is he a better teacher? I haven't seen any evidence of that. Is it for retention? Absent special circumstances, I would neither hire nor award tenure to a Walden alumnus. So, what are we getting for that $9,500 a year?

(con't from previous post)...plethora of obsta...

2009-11-30T16:10:05.601-05:00

(con't from previous post)...plethora of obstacles to overcome and real fundamental problems with this type of pay that are only recently being studied by researchers. For you to state that teachers who receive “huge raises” should be evaluated on performance instead of academic motivation is simply irresponsible and reckless. Your lack of understanding about the complexity of the subject is further demonstrated by your suggestions in past posts to base pay on test scores.

Several people have asked you about your support for the “HUGE” administrative raises and particularly how it correlates to your position about performance pay to no avail. You claimed that your support for those raises (specifically the Supt.) is based on the future goals, motivation, and anticipated outcomes of their actions- or as you put it: “to create incentives for future performance”. How, then, should this same support not be given to teachers who wish to further their expertise since it can be ascertained from the above scenario that motivation is typically not fiscal in nature? (How could it be with the lack of any actual substantial monetary benefit?) Therefore, any avenue a teacher chooses to utilize in order to advance his or her area of expertise should be commended instead of criticized.

You seem to have discounted my point about teacher...

2009-11-30T16:09:25.000-05:00

You seem to have discounted my point about teacher raises by simply ignoring the clarification I presented about the reality of the “huge raises” teachers receive while continuing to portray your distorted salary amounts/figures as truth. There is no logical situation where a teacher would actually receive a $9,000 pay raise in one year. Let’s try this again and role-play, shall we? Let’s say I am hired on step 1 on the salary guide with only a BA. This puts me on column C and I am making $44,650 per year (Wow! Isn’t that huge salary such a great incentive to go into the teaching profession?). Two years pass (I’m now on step 3) and I’m making $45,250. I have decided to go back to school to obtain my MA. This will surely take me at least two years. However, after about 2 years I have only earned 30 credits which allows me to move from step 5 (where I’m making $45,850) to column D where I’ll make $50,850. But wait…. I’m still looking for that “huge” raise. So I continue my studies and a year later (when I’m on step 6) I complete my program and have earned my MA. Therefore, I remain on step 6 but shift to column E where I earn a whopping $53,330. So let’s recap. It took me six years, $20,000 in college loans (since I obviously went to a reputable school- not an online school) and numerous hours of hard work to improve my knowledge level, all to get a raise of about $9,000. And of course I’m thrilled because now I’m making the big bucks with a large salary of $53,330.

But I think to myself that there must be some additional extrinsic benefits to this profession because I can’t possibly be expected to support myself on this salary. Do I get a laptop? No. A company car? No. A cell phone stipend? No. Summers off at least I ask myself? No, because I need to work over the summer to pay off my college loans. Hmmm…. Then why DID I decide to teach? Then I remember. Because I love children. Because I want to positively affect someone’s life. Because I feel that my enthusiasm and passion for learning will motivate others to advance their own education. Because teaching is a noble profession in which I have the opportunity to influence so many young lives at once. These are the reasons I choose teach. Thankfully, this scenario is not my reality. It would not be possible for me to support a family, pay off student loans, and live on a salary that is not far from the poverty level.

Mr. Warren, I do agree with your sentiment that performance pay has its place in education and is not a futile concept as many believe. Similarly to all other professions, there are superior teachers utilizing highly effective practices and there are ineffective teachers who fail to provide students with a quality education. This is a fact that I am not disputing. I am sure that if you asked any quality teacher about benefits of certain types of merit compensation they would find some appeal about being rewarded for their hard work. Who doesn’t like to be recognized and acknowledged for a job well done? Before this type of program is implemented, however, I acknowledge that there are a... (con't in next post)

A contract is any legally enforceable agreement be...

2009-11-30T15:36:11.075-05:00

A contract is any legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties.

Dr. O'Malley's contract is on the school website's superintendent's page.

The relevant clause is on page 6 - Minimum Salary Increase. It reads "Additional annual increases beyond the minimum increase set forth above may be provided based upon the superintendent's performance at the sole discretion of the board."

Aberdeener, Would you mind posting Dr. O's CO...

2009-11-30T15:19:50.525-05:00

Aberdeener,

Would you mind posting Dr. O's CONTRACT, so that we can review to determine where the "incentives" are stated within the CONTRACT? BTW, why don't you post the definition of "CONTRACT" also.

O'Malley, Glastein, and Irons got a combined $...

2009-11-30T14:59:40.161-05:00

O'Malley, Glastein, and Irons got a combined $30,000 raise. Notwithstanding academic achievements, they cut $600,000 before the raise and then an additional $200,000 after the raise.

The board awarded O'Malley an extra $9,000 above his guaranteed $3,000 raise. So, instead of $9,000, what would be an appropriate reward considering the amounts saved, the educational achievements, and that we don't want O'Malley to leave? (O'Malley still earns less than most of his peers overseeing similarly sized districts.)

Being a parent, I do understand what you are sayin...

2009-11-30T14:26:14.735-05:00

Being a parent, I do understand what you are saying about rewarding positive behavior- but a little incentive not a $30,000 incentive. He cut $200,000 and then received his raise (positive reward)- now lets see how much he saves us this year. I guarentee the budget will go up and taxes will go up. Are you going to give him another little positive reward then? How much this time????

They were done improperly by past administrations ...

2009-11-30T14:14:38.246-05:00

They were done improperly by past administrations is the fact. Just like the SCC in Trenton where government officials failed to watch the money and billions were wasted.

The saddest and most telling thing is the fact that no one from the SCC was indicted and sent to jail. What they did and what some of our past leadership has done with our money is also a crime.

That is the truth.

I can't believe any of my readers are this ign...

2009-11-30T08:07:52.635-05:00

I can't believe any of my readers are this ignorant or clueless so these last two comments must have some other intent.

We don't reward future performance. We create incentives for future performance. If you're a parent, then you know what I'm talking about. You reward good behavior to encourage future good behavior. If you don't believe in rewarding good behavior, try it on your kids first and let me know how it works out for you.

As for the children, have you forgotten that their parents are taxpayers too? Since awarding $30,000 in raises, we've cut around $200,000 in expenses without any service cuts and more savings are in the works, not to mention additional improvements in curricula and services.

When we cut expenses and improve services, we're helping everybody, kids included. When you object to merit raises in the face of massive improvements, you're not being penny-wise, pound foolish. You're just being foolish.

Your idea of rewarding future performance instead ...

2009-11-30T07:45:18.677-05:00

Your idea of rewarding future performance instead of proven past performance is what Wall Street does every day and look at the fiscal mess we are in because of it. You must reward past performance to inspire a continuance into the future (A carrot per se). If you are going to say Dr. O'Malley saved us money it's because all the big expenditures (roofs, energy saving windows and lighting, paving, field improvements,special programs,etc.) were all done by prior administrations.

Hey, "tests scores in the basement" so y...

2009-11-30T07:45:12.210-05:00

Hey, "tests scores in the basement" so you think that spending 9.3% on raises is a wise use of your taxes monies. Because that is what Aberdeener voted for. Even the most uninformed mind can see that that is just plain wrong in these times, and of no practical use to the children.

Where do I begin? Test scores in the basement fo...

2009-11-30T07:01:10.807-05:00

Where do I begin?

Test scores in the basement for years

Millions spent with minimal results

Turf field and lighting $2M

Yet many seek to blame the Aberdeener

Why?

Did he cause the above?

He has been on the school board for some time yet is attacked for not having children in the system. I am thankful he is there to represent those parents who pay their taxes and then pay for private school due to all or part of the above. Those of us without children in the system deserve a voice. We seem to be outcasts and devils for wanting our tax dollars spent wisely and with significant results. Their is after all enough blame for the mistakes, programs and misspending by our local educational leadership as well as our town councils.

Think about it.

Anon, Who among the school board, past or present...

2009-11-29T22:43:51.853-05:00

Anon,

Who among the school board, past or present, do you believe was a great advocate for the children? I've only been on the board 7 months but let's match records and see who fights for the children.

"Extra Cheese" says that Aberdeener &quo...

2009-11-29T22:24:33.632-05:00

"Extra Cheese" says that Aberdeener "misrepresents" facts. I agree and add that he speaks the same board member gibberish that he used to accuse BARZA of, as evidenced by this quote... " I've gone through the math. If there's even a 5% chance that, absent the promise of future raises, we wouldn't see a repeat performance, then it's fiscally prudent to give the raises" Whoooooo is he trying to impress with such fancy circular talk. If he gets any better at it, then he can run for mayor, as least there it would not matter that he doesn't give a hoot about our children.