BloggeRhythms 4/22/2010

I guess the most appropriate word for today's musings is "clarification," because I'm going to try to add some about entries made here before.

In a visit last night to one of my favorite oases, I wound up on the periphery of a discussion regarding education, and more specifically...teachers. That's because a person sitting alongside a friend of mine happened to be one. This gentleman joined our conversation because he overheard a part of a discussion between my friend, myself and my wife.

What I thought was quite odd at the outset, when the gentleman first leaned over and interjected a comment, was that he apparently has some points of view regarding policies of the current national administration that differed from their rhetoric. In fact, I got the sense he may have voted for their opposition, though I have absolutely nothing valid to support that ascertainment. Regardless, however, he was quite willing to volunteer opinions that were far more in line with ours than I would ever expect, considering he was employed as a teacher. I've always believed that all teachers are dyed in the wool, knee-jerk, guaranteed, fall-in-line democrats.

So, that brings me back to my plan to add some clarification about prior blog entries. First and foremost, I realize that "all" is far to big an assumption to make about the practitioners of any occupation when it comes to how they vote. For example, you might even find a civil servant or two who didn't vote democrat.

Additionally, if all was quiet around the voting booth and not a soul or recording device was in sight, there might even be a wayward union member who disobeyed the party line and snuck in an opposing vote. But that might be stretching the point a bit I think, because, no matter how much a union employee wished to vote the other way, few, if any, I imagine would really vote their conscience and risk becoming the target of some thug with a baseball bat.

Continuing with my original point, however, that you can't just make gross assumptions and include everyone under one umbrella simply because of their occupation, there's another consideration. I read somewhere, and am pretty sure that even if I'm not exactly right, I'm somewhere in the ballpark, that roughly 15% of those employed in any occupation do about 99% of the work in endeavors that require some intellect. Now, that may or not be true across the board, because I have the sense that in my former industry the percentage of exceptional performers was closer to 5% than 15, except for my own organizations where practically everyone involved was waist, head and shoulders way above the norm.

But, if the statistic is true, that only 15% of those employed really perform and the remainder just slog along, lets apply that data right back to teaching. By definition or formulation, almost nine out of every ten educators are duds. Now, I have no reason to question that arithmetic conclusion because although I attended so-called exceptionally good schools at every level, I can't remember a soul who either taught me or was in administration that I can point to and say "that person really helped me." I guess that means that either I never encountered anyone who'd been part of the teaching elite 15%, or that I didn't recognize brilliance, caring and nurturing when it was foisted upon me.

Whatever the case, though, I really am sorry if I offended any educators out there who really care. But, in the end, the basis of my opinion was formed by personal exposure to educators and I'm one of those people who judge others by what they do, not by what they say. And in my case, whatever their original objective was they've done nothing to change my method of judgement. In fact, for me, no matter what the discussion's about, teachers have done nothing at all.

That's it for today folks.

Adios