Re: students rating teachers, by name, online
Posted by I wouldn't worry too much about "Rate My Teacher." on 7/08/04
A lot of kids probably go there to blow off steam. I can't imagine that anyone important (your principal, your kids' parents, etc.) would take those ratings seriously. (Honestly, do you know one adult who would evaluate a teacher's performance based on Rate My Teacher?) We all know how moody adolescents can be. And yes, I think they do tend to go easier on their male teachers, but again, that's just kids being kids. A lot of my students have fathers who have flown the coop, so I can certainly see why they might develop a special appreciation for their male teachers. Is it fair? No, of course not. Are teenagers fair? LOL...no, not always!
I understand that some teachers probably get upset if they're rated negatively, but I think the easy answer to that is not to go back to the site. (I've been there once. Quite honestly, the site moves too slowly and tends to choke my computer.) To me it looks like a site mainly accessed by kids. In fact, before reading what you've written here, I didn't know that other such sites existed. We are public servants, though, so I doubt the courts would much object to these sites. I'm not sure how you'd like it regulated, but will that really solve the problem? What's the real issue, that somebody writes "Ms. So-and-so's a mean old poopypants" on a website, or that whoever wrote it feels that way to begin with? Even if they weren't posting their complaints online, they'd still be voicing them to their friends, their parents, whoever will listen.
I don't know how a teacher can stay sane without very thick skin and a bottomless sense of humor. Honestly, I just don't think RMT is that huge a deal.
On 7/06/04, first-rate teacher wrote: > Dear Fellow Teachers: > Last winter I spent hours getting my first web site up and > working. Web site design was all new to me, but I could no > longer sit back while one teacher after another was put- > down and called names by students, on popular web sites. > > I began to look very closely at patterns at the school I > work at and found some things very disturbing. Most female > teachers, over 50, consistently received poor rating and > also received the worst comments. Single female teachers > were told repeatedly, "to get a life." Male teachers much > more often than female teachers were told by students, "I > love you, Mr...," and students were more likely to identify > themselves,usually using initials. Several other things > became obvious over time, as well. > > My goal, with my site, was to have a place for teachers to > unite, contact their union reps. and legislatures. I, > unlike most, did not view this new trend as a Free Speech > issue, but as a huge insult to a female-dominated > profession. Name me one web site where men, in a male- > dominated profession, are insulted and humiliated as women > are over and over on these sites? > > Then, we have at the head of the NEA, a male, and the > attorney for the NEA, another male; men who apparently > don't think our reputations and careers are worth anything. > Even the head of the U.S. Dept. of Education is a male, of > course, and once again we are subject to more gender- > biassing. > > I suppose taking this horrible injustice to court would > take 10 years and be very costly, something I'm sure these > men do not want. Why would they bother? My feeling is, > even if each teacher contributed $1.00, maybe we could get > one attorney in the U.S. to get such sites better regulated. > Teachers, take pride in yourselves and in our profession. > We have so much to be proud of and do so much good. I am > appalled by the apathy--have we reached bottom yet? Forget > about the dollar, just contact Washington, or the union you > belong to, whether it be the AFT (which has, at least, > supported teachers a little, or the NEA. > > My other problems are, and I will elaborate more, later. > Children are being used and exploited by these webmasters. > Yes, these people are probably getting rich off these > sites, and I know that's life, but what bothers me is that > the owners of these sites seem to be damaging the unique > student/teacher relationship. I feel that this > relationship has become strained and more adversaial, since > these web sites started. Certainly, a student's paradise. > More later. > > Oh yes, one more thing, my site is costing me about $20.00 > monthly. When I check my position on the Internet, I am so > far out in cyberspace, that I'll probably never be heard > from again. But, ironically, there are literally thousands > of magazine and newspaper articles, including the NEA > magazine, that have helped these web sites grow. Shame on > them, how about equal time, here! Sorry this is so long. > first-rate teacher
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