I just ran into this article in the Huffington Post’s College Blog, “Why I Said No to Teach for America and Why You Should Too”. I have always liked this program’s basic premise, but Sandra Korn raises some interesting questions here, questions that are related to some of the issues we have discussed in class – “charity” vs. “social justice”. The article also questions the ways in which we measure student success and reminds us of the importance of long term engagement. I leave it here as food for thought and look forward to your reaction to the ideas presented.
UMass Spanport Integrative Experience Blog
Hello! This article was really interesting to read.
I think the concept of TFA is awesome; it gives graduated seniors a chance to explore their own capabilities and interests- helping them decide what they want to do with their futures. However, I do find it odd that TFA does not require any teaching experience/ prior education classes in order to be selected. I know the selection process is incredibly selective- my older sister applied last year and it was a lengthy affair. However, the selection process is based off of a paper resume and interviews- rather than a way of seeing a student’s ability to direct and care for an entire classroom day after day.
There were several reasons I decided not to go through with my application. The most important reason was that it was a two year commitment, and I would not have any time to get experience in the medical field- which I have been told plays a huge part in acceptance. I also wouldn’t have time to go visit schools/ have interviews with schools, and that really is something I need to focus on. Another reason I didn’t apply was because I had some of the same thoughts as the author of this article. To be thrown into a city completely different than your own and to be expected to teach and help these students excel is terrifying. The TFA recruiter I met with said she taught in a 12th grade class where most students had 5th grade reading levels. It is insane- and I do not think I would be able to give these students the help they need and deserve. There are an abundance of college graduates that have Masters and other impressive degrees in Education, yet TFA is recruiting fresh undergraduates. I don’t know, but to me it is a little strange.
On the other hand, I think any teacher is better than no teacher in some of these inner city public schools. I think if the student is willing to commit to his/her class – then a difference can be made. I would hope that the TFA staff is supportive and easy to contact in order to provide guidance and advice. All in all, I think it is extremely important for TFA to highlight the difficulties ahead because teaching is not an easy task. I admire those who are selected and dedicate themselves for two year- I can only imagine the challenges they face, but also the abundance of accomplishment and gratification they feel when changes occur within the classroom.
Happy to hear your thoughts on this post. Indeed, programs like this are complicated. They do give important services, but require much more thought than the simple act of volunteering.
Hi! I just came across this article, and the author definitely makes some interesting points.
When I first read the title, I was thinking that it seemed way too harsh and assumed I would be completely against what she would say. However, after reading the article, I can understand why the author is so against TFA. The idea of new college graduates being chosen to teach a class without any experience or qualifications does seem a bit concerning. I would think that the most difficult years of being a teacher would be the first years, since you may not have a routine or teaching style developed yet. This obviously wouldn’t be beneficial for the students, and could be very discouraging to the TFA teachers as well. Maybe the idea behind this is that students can relate better to a new, young teacher, instead of an older teacher that has been burnt out. However this brings up the idea of TFA teachers replacing these older teachers. It is possible that the TFA teachers maybe be better than the older teachers, but it obviously isn’t fair for the older teachers, and I don’t think it would build a strong fondation for a school to be having inexperienced teachers coming and going every 2 years. Another point she made was that they are sending teachers to neighborhoods different from where they are from. For the students it may be difficult to relate to a teacher that is different from them. It could create an idea that people like the TFA teachers are the ones that succeed.
However, I still like to believe that TFA is a good program that is helping the American education system. If you are applying for TFA you have to know that your teaching experience may be very difficult, so I would assume that the applicants are pretty determined people. Also, the TFA selection process is pretty selective, so they aren’t just throwing anyone into the classrooms. Clearly TFA has many positive and negative aspects to it.