Re: The Teacher Who Couldn't Read - True story
    Posted by: I don't buy this.. on 3/13/15
    () Comments

    Disclosure: My statement that this is just false and nfm
    got removed; I guess it was too controversial. So.. let's
    try again :).

    This story is just not credible.

    I taught English to Hispanics in Ecuador; I was bilingual
    but two other teachers hired were non Spanish speakings,
    making them illiterate in Spanish. The school (of course)
    knew this and the teachers had HUGE modifications for them!
    They could write up the required lesson plans in English
    and they wrote up students in English--or else a school
    monitor would write them up for the teacher. But know what?
    Even though they were NOT expected to use Spanish (the
    language they can't read) to teach, things weren't 100%
    problem free. We got our schedule in Spanish; it said:
    Subject: English
    Class: Intermediate I
    Times? Mondays 7:45-9:20, Tuesdays 12:00-1:45, Thursdays
    10:45-12:05. And guess what? The teachers couldn't read
    that.

    It is simply not credible that a teacher got by by (as
    stated on the internet) "giving tests with punch though
    brads that allowed for grading". HOW COULD HE KNOW WHAT WAS
    ON THE TESTS HE WAS GIVING? How could me "teach English" if
    he couldn't read anything the students needed to read? Yes
    he taught pre-common Core :) but if he was just having
    "discussions on current events" but never mentioning the
    books the students should have been reading someone would
    have noticed.

    So he was (as he says) "great at math and able to average
    grades". Well, awesome :). (That is NOT how dyslexia
    works!! People see both letters and numbers backwords, so
    math class is often their worst class..and I am dyslexic.
    But fine.. we'll go with this.) But even he admitted he
    couldn't read student names; you need to read names to give
    grades! I have given students a wrong grade because I mis
    read a name. Believe me.. the C student who I gave an F to
    because I confused him with his brother (same last name)
    wasn't happy.

    If this is true, then in 17 years he never had to "read or
    write outside of the classroom". So.. he never had to read
    an IEP report and sign it prior to a meeting? write sub
    plans? read a memo the district sent all teachers that was
    in his school mailbox..which he couldn't even find himself?
    "My wife did all of the reading..without grasping that I
    couldn't read" isn't credible.

    This man claims to be sorry for what he did, but he also
    claims to have been a "good" teacher. He further claims
    that no former student was upset to learn their English (or
    social studies..he taught multiple subjects) was upset to
    learn he was illiterate at the time he was their teacher.

    This "inspiring story" is just not possible.

    On 8/04/14, Teachers.Net Gazette wrote:
    > Difficult to imagine, but a true story! In the just-
    posted
    > August issue of Teachers.Net Gazette:
    >
    > The Teacher Who Couldn’t Read - By Owen M. Griffith - an
    > incredible story!


    Posts on this thread, including this one

  • The Teacher Who Couldn't Read - True story, 8/04/14, by Teachers.Net Gazette.
  • Re: The Teacher Who Couldn't Read - True story, 3/13/15, by I don't buy this...