Current/Recent Reading List

24 February 2007

Latest on PLC's; Also, The Curse Continues

A couple of quick updates:

1. On the subject of Professional Learning Communities(PLC's), and the big faculty meeting from last week (which I was unable to attend), I have vague news to report. It seems that there was no unveiling of any new school-wide initiatives or programs (keep your fingers crossed). The main focus of our principal's message, centered around some quotes from the wretchedly written PLC newsletter, was that of teacher collegiality. Unfortunately, I don't have many details on what was said, but I still have two cents to put in: collegiality is a wonderful trait for a faculty to have, but what do you do with those who won't play along? The answer to that question is essential.

2. The Curse of '06/'07 continues unabated, and it has once again struck our department. Our senior-most senior English teacher, the woman who was department chair when I started, and whom I would most choose to be like if I was going to be like another teacher, is the latest victim. For some freakish reason, she decided to ride a four-wheeler with her grandson. Apparently the throttle in the thing stuck, and they went into a ditch, where (I guess) she was thrown off. Two of her vertebrae, one at the top and one at the bottom, were broken, and following surgery she now will be in a brace for a couple of months.

Now, she could have retired after last semester, but chose to stay out of the goodness of her heart because it was going to be so hard on us to replace two English teachers in the middle of the year. But, in our Greek Tragedy kind of year, there was no averting fate, apparently. So now we will have to find a new teacher anyway.

I hate this for her, because she is such a good soul, and I hate it for her students (mostly seniors), who needed a tough old school marm to pound on them one last semester before the real world comes calling.

Oh, and in case you think this a bizarre injury for a grandma, one of our over-sixty math teachers broke both her legs a couple of years ago in a sky-diving accident.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The four wheeler accident may not be so bizzare, it's happening often with a certain atv. Can you find out what she was riding? If it's what I think it is, they need to be recalled. My husband broke his neck in 8 places.

lowcountry girl said...

Maybe not so bizarre. There is a certain four wheeler that should be recalled because of the stuck throttle problem. Can you find out what make and year of atv it is? My husband broke his neck in 8 places. thanks,lowcountry girl