Education

by David Safier

When Mike and I worked together blogging the election integrity trial last December, I asked if he would give me the opportunity to blog about education on this site once the trial was over. He grilled me during a lunch break to see if I had anything to say, and I guess he decided I did. So here I am.

Let me tell you a little about myself. I taught high school, mainly in Portland, Oregon, for over 30 years. My field was English — I taught all grade levels and ability groups –- then I took a break for awhile to teach photography and advise the yearbook. I ended where I began, teaching English. When I retired a few years ago, I moved to Tucson.

I taught at three public high schools. Most students at the first school were at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale. The teachers were mediocre, the administration was mediocre, and the school’s budget was in such bad shape, we had to cut back from a seven to a five period day. The school didn’t do a very good job educating its students, and, to be honest, neither did I.

Read more about David’s calling to the blog after the flip…

David Safier will begin blogging on the topic of education on February 1st. Dave is a retired educator with a background in urban studies and graduate studies in education. Dave is deeply concerned with the status of public education in Arizona and keenly interested in bringing greater awareness and understanding of those issues to the … Read more

GOP legislative leaders have made their opening offer in the 2008 budget battles. They want to slash hundreds of millions from state programs including education. Faced with a deficit of roughly $800 million, Gov. Napolitano is proposing financing school construction over the useful life of the buildings (just like a mortgage) to save almost $400 … Read more

Our own Mohur Sidhwa, Chairperson the Democratic Party in LD 28 and First Vice-Chair of Pima County, recorded a commentary recently on science and religion and the necessary separation of the two. Mohur grew up amid sexism and religious intolerance in the land of her birth and escaped to a place she expected to be … Read more

UPDATE 10/30: The Arizona Education Association just issued a press release announcing that it has filed two complaints with the Maricopa County Elections Department regarding these incidents on behalf of their over 32,000 members. This is good news. A good scandal seems to be the only way to get voters to seriously consider a down-ticket … Read more