flexghost.The United States will spend $857 *Billion* on the military for FY 2023
The first 5 years my best friend was a teacher, she qualified for food stamps…and she still had to buy her own supplies.
1/13) 🧵
The Senate Armed Services Committee voted to add $45 billion to Biden's initial $813 for national military spending
There are 3.2M public school teachers in the US
Just the added military budget amount could give teachers a raise of $14,000 each.
2/13)
The average teaching payment rate is at least 3.1% lower than the rest of the US jobs
When compared to the rest of the world, the situation for United States teachers is dire
Even modest-paying Finland is leaps and bounds above the United States in regards to pay
3/13)
In fact, most of the world not only pays teachers more than the US, but teachers are payed close to, or above, what they would make in other fields with a similar educational background
4/13)
But it’s not just money that is creating a teacher shortage
Teachers face unprecedented scrutiny from far right groups. From Covid deniers to parent groups screaming about the CRT phantom, communities have made an already stressful career into something unbearable.
5/13)
Far right action groups have infiltrated school boards making CRT, which is not currently taught in K-12 schools, a point of contention
“The Dishonest and Harmful Right-Wing Attack on American School Boards”
6/13)
The conservative movement has politicized teaching in a way that is literally targets teachers as an adversary
Right wing groups take aim at diversity and inclusion labeling them as “agenda” and use that to pressure educators to resign
7/13)
After years of attacking teachers and public schools, the right wing has a payoff of sorts
The teacher shortage leaves a vacuum. Fascists want to fill that vacuum with the military industrial complex
States like Florida are looking to use unqualified veterans to teach children. Literally grooming kids to a life of military service.
Very few people saw starship troopers, so I’m going to leave that reference be
8/13)
According to a survey from the American Psychological Association, 40% of administrators and 33% of teachers reported being threatened with violence by parents last school year.
9/13)
https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2022/03/school-staff-violence-pandemic
At least 18% of school psychologists and social workers, 15% of school administrators, and 22% of other school staff reported at least one violent incident by a student.
10/13)
While mass shootings of students are too common of an occurrence in America, attacks on teachers happen as frequently, but are under reported
Every attack is a win for fascism, driving motivated and qualified teachers away from their profession. Every attack, it’s obvious close to nothing is done to provide safety for faculty and staff
Do I even have to bring this up:
11/13)
“Virginia School Where 6-Year-Old Boy Shot Teacher Reopens With Greater Security” https://www.huffpost.com/entry/richneck-elementary-reopens-abby-zwerner_n_63d816cae4b0c2b49ade1b51
In fact, almost half of all teachers reported they desire or plan to quit or transfer their jobs due to concerns about school climate and school safety.
12/13)
https://www.apa.org/education-career/k12/violence-educators.pdf
In America, we claim to care about our children and their future. But without standing behind our educators, our actions do not back up our words.
13]
steveb@flexghost I just can't even imagine having to live like this. And I say that having grown up in South Africa, a country unfortunately not well known for being peaceful and safe. And our schools, especially for poor families, were hardly paradise. But this just sounds insane.
@anselan what was primary school like there?
paulthe GOP like the mega churches need dumb people to fall for their lies.
they need to create fear and misery to prey on the vulnerable and hateful.
funny how they are the antithesis of christ's teaching.
funny old world.
at least they are not starting new wars abroad to feed their military industry donors but give it time.
'Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by rulers as useful.'
CUDA813@flexghost never have
Eric Grajo@flexghost Education starts at home and continues in the classroom. The problem is we don’t do a great job at home, with some even playing no part in it. This results in a much greater burden for those in charge in the classroom. And not standing behind educators only adds to this unfair burden.
TransitBiker@flexghost greater oppression*
John Carlsen@flexghost Just gonna throw this out there: In the USA, more people are now shot to death in K-12 schools than while working as police officers.
Helderweb@flexghost
RT:
According to a survey from the American Psychological Association, 40% of administrators and 33% of teachers reported being threatened with violence by parents last school year.
9/13)
https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/20
My Comment:
Could someone send this info to shower monitor Jim Jordan?
Bc Clarity Carlton-Martin@flexghost My last teaching assignment I was physically assaulted.
@Clarity that’s awful. May I ask what happened?
@flexghost I was subbing. The principal was on sick leave. The school blamed me for defending myself after being struck, I have PTSD and this was the last strike after being in a hit and run 5 years previously/ It's an invisible scar. 10 years later I got a disability discharge. Whicch is how i survive now.
Dr. Flowers@flexghost @LibertyForward1 Not at all surprising. When I taught high school, parents rarely threatened, this just acted. I recall the parent who dove across the conference table to try to put hands on a teacher. Fortunately, she was slow. Just a typical day in K-12.
A Concerned ScientistIn 2019, the last time my kids were in brick and mortar school, during the first week of school my son's teacher and a parent got in a fist fight outside of the school during morning drop off.
This is one of the things I love about virtual school. No school violence.
Also, because there's no building infrastructure to support the teachers get paid more, and they're generally happier and more pleasant to deal with.
Feygele Ⓐ Ⓥ🏳️⚧️🍉@flexghost The book Starship Troopers is probably banned.
Half Cocked Law@flexghost Veterans also don't want to work a thankless job for shit pay.
@halfcocked guess what…
nedhamson@flexghost it will end badly with pedophiles and abusers running amok in FL schools.
Kevin Russell
WhichOne'sPink 🇫🇮@flexghost ah yes. No voting rights until after military service.
Ted_Cville@flexghost GOP is doing its best to make a bad situation much much worse, because, of course, ignorance and stupidity are their best assets.
BJac@flexghost i taught for 35 years. Teachers were under payed, but they were respected, dedicated, autonomous, professionals. Now they are subject to the whims of ignorant politicians who cater to the ignorant masses for votes. I couldn’t work under such conditions
💉😷🌿🇺🇦🇺🇳🇪🇺Oiselarius (he/him)@flexghost @hridoy_khan there is no longer any reason to take conservatives seriously as anything other than a threat.
Rory@flexghost I realized a long time ago, that teachers have to be educators, child care, and in some instances, parents... And now, they have to put up with this, brought on by, extreme, right wing idiots, who, probably gave up on school, a long time ago...
@customer228 I didn’t love most of my teachers when I moved here. Some called me re***d because of my voice and some sided with popular kids and made fun of me for various things like the way I walk or dress. That said, they don’t deserve to be shot at and threatened with felonies for simply having books on the shelf
@flexghost I'm sorry, Flexghost!! I can't believe that a teacher would do something like that...
@customer228 seriously? Can’t you?
@flexghost Now, yeah. But when I was little, I probably couldn't... It's still absolutely crazy to think that a teacher could say things like that to a child...
@flexghost @customer228 Right?! Thanks to low pay and the generally dismissive attitude toward teaching as a profession, many of the better qualified individuals avoid it, which often leaves those who are the least qualified to teach!
@flexghost I also had eachers I didn't like. But compared to the ones you had...jeez...
@customer228 me experience among neurodiverse kids isn’t uncommon