Labor Day Blues #250
By Hank Silverberg
Labor Day marks the traditional end of summer. For the most part vacations are over, schools are back in session, the baseball playoffs are looming and the campaigning season for the off-year elections in November is now getting hot.
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I'm back in the classroom as well at Northern Virginia Community College where I teach, and for the first time since late 2019 the desks are filled with students and my Zoom account sits unused. That's the good news.
But there is a growing teacher shortage across the country. A study done by the Annenberg Institute at Brown University last January indicated there are about 36,000 vacant teaching jobs in elementary and secondary schools across the country, and as many as 163,000 teachers are holding jobs for which they are not technically qualified.
Why is the shortage so large? Salaries are part of it, but certainly not the major reason. No one goes into teaching to become rich. Depending on where you live, a teacher can start working for $36,000 a year and never make more than $60,000. Some districts, particularly in urban areas and the inner suburbs do pay more, but teachers across the country often can't afford to reside in the communities they teach in because of housing costs.
A survey done last June has some good examples of why the shortage exists. You can check out details at this link:
2023 Teacher Shortage Statistics Prove We Need To Fix Education (weareteachers.com)
Here is a summary:
*55% of educators indicate they are ready to leave the profession earlier than planned because of burnout. The pandemic factors in here.
*80% have increased work load due to unfilled job openings in their district.
*78% cite low pay as a big issue.
*84 say they spend their own money on basic classroom supplies.
*45% say they do not feel respected by the public-- a figure that is highlighted because of all the discussions about book banning and curriculum distortions. (That statistic is down from 77% in 2011.)
*65% agree that bureaucracy interferes with their teaching.
*94% say they need more help with student health and behavioral support.
And here's the kicker.
Only 10% say the would strongly recommend the profession to a young adult.
Add to all this the harassment they are taking from so-called parents groups on the fictional "indoctrination" curriculum nonsense and you get the picture.
There is no question parents should be engaged with their children's teachers and what their children are learning. But engaged does not mean harassing and undermining people professionally trained as educators. Teachers have no hidden agenda.
Which Gets Us to A-I
Did an actual human being write this blog? I can assure you I as a human being exist. Check out my bio. Yes, I know, that can be falsified too. But it's not.
It IS getting harder and harder to tell what is real, what is fake or what is real but has been produced by Artificial Intelligence.
We have gone way beyond automation that puts a car together faster than a human assembly line. We
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| (Sophia, an AI robot courtesy Wikipedia Commons) |
In the short run, jobs are at stake. The Hollywood writers and actors are on strike because of the way Artificial Intelligence has seeped into film making. It threatens their livelihood, and in the case of actors it's a threat that could actually steal their physical likeness.
Teachers (see above) are now dealing with essays written by A-I instead of their students, making it hard to evaluate actual student progress. The military is talking about, and in some cases using, more robots and drones on the battlefield.
There has been some minimal pushback. Gannett, the newspaper chain, had fired sports reporters and had been using A-I to write some sports stories. But it backfired because the computer just could not put a human element into its writing. The article in The Washington Post linked below goes over it in detail.
Gannett backtracks after readers ridicule AI-written sports recaps - The Washington Post
The A-I simply could not write like a person--yet. There was no human element in something as straight forward as high school football games. And sports writing needs passion and detailed descriptions of the action.
Don't get me wrong. I am all for progress. Computers make things much easier for us all. But where do we reach the point of no return in human values and communication?
This threat is real. And like climate change, if we don't start doing something about it now it could change our basic way of life forever.
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It was written as Science Fiction by Isaac Asimov, but these three laws of robotics now seems highly practical as a starting point on A-I which often does not come in the form of a robot.
1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2) A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such order would conflict with the First Law.
3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law
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What Do Russia and Texas Have in Common?
Take a look at this map! It is the internationally recognized map of Ukraine. And it is now illegal to show it or use it in Russia.
The Russians now occupy Crimea and a good portion of southern Ukraine, and they consider that land part of the Russian state. It's not. But in Russia, where there is limited freedom of speech and stiff penalties for dissent, saying otherwise can land you in jail.
Take a look at this map! It's Texas, officially recognized as one of the 50 states in the United States of America. Freedom to travel anywhere has long been recognized as our undisputed right.
But in some parts of Texas, it is now illegal for an American citizen to help a woman travel if their intent is to take them to or from a clinic for an abortion. This presents all kinds of issues on how the law will be enforced and by whom. But every day, Texas is looking less and less like one of our 50 states and more and more like Russia.
Texas highways are the next anti-abortion target | The Texas Tribune
Dumbest Quote Of The Week!
This week's dumbest quote comes from someone you probably never heard of. She is an off the scale, right-wing internet wacko named Laura Loomer. She was echoing the ghost of the late Rush Limbaugh and news anchors on Fox News and Newsmax when she commented on Donald Trump's arrest in a Georgia jail after his fourth criminal indictment.
Loomer said:
that Trump being booked in "the blackest jail in the state of Georgia" made him:
"the most relatable man on the ballot for the Black community."
This particularly racist comment implies that Black voters relate better to people who have committed crimes and end up in jail.
Loomer is 30 years old and claims to be an "investigative journalist." But she seems to speak and acts like a teenager who knows little about the real world. She is one of those people they call an online "influencer." I submit that she isn't influencing anyone. And if she is, she's a bad influence.
(Your comments and suggestions are welcome)
My recent book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at:
HankSilverberg@gmail.com for instructions on how to get a copy at a reduced price and with my signature)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084Q7K6M5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-campaign-hank-silverberg/1126429796
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