One of my earliest encounters with the idea of gender that I can remember was in 1st grade. I’ll never forget. I had a girl friend who always wore blue, wore stickers that said, “Boys rule!” and constantly told me she wanted to be a boy and was proud to be a tom-boy. At 7 … Continue reading
Teachers: What are we doing for Leelah?
Advocacy in the Age of Colorblindness
A student of color is courageous enough to share his story, and what do adults do? Dismiss and invalidate his experiences by arguing what they believe he and students in similar situations need. Go ahead, say you are “fighting for students,” but you can’t truly fight for students if you aren’t listening to them–all of … Continue reading
Student Op-Eds on Teach for America
For the past couple months, I’ve seen an increasing number of student op-eds being submitted to university newspapers. In honor of our Students Resisting Teach for America campaign led by Students United for Public Education, I figured it’d be useful to compile a list of these articles. Feel free to check them out and share! … Continue reading
To All The Teachers Telling Us To Not Go Into Teaching, Stop.
Ever since I started my blog (exactly!) 2 years ago, I have been told a number of times: Stay away. You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into. It’s not what you think it is. In the past few years, there have been a handful of “Why I Quit” articles and essays, of exhausted–rightfully … Continue reading
Another Students for Education Reform (SFER) Chapter Disaffiliates
The other day I received a wonderful e-mail. A student and former Students for Education Reform (SFER) chapter leader from Loyola University informed me that they have officially disaffiliated from the national and asked if I could help spread the word. Joining University of Chicago and DePaul University, Loyola University is now the third university in Chicago … Continue reading
When the War on Teachers Hits Home Part 2
A few weeks ago I wrote about the conflict regarding my former teachers at Egg Harbor Twp. Last night I attended their board meeting. Which was, well, quite a show to say the least. It included the Board of Education‘s president, James Galvin, referring to the teachers as, “You people,” (Huh, I guess Chris Christie’s … Continue reading
When the War On Teachers Hits Home–Literally.
I never imagined I’d be writing a post like this. As many of you know, I often try my hardest to bring light to the attacks happening on teachers from various locations. We can’t deny that our struggles are all intertwined. Yet, never did I imagine I’d be writing to bring light to what’s happening … Continue reading
Student Creates Documentary On Current Education System
Ankur Singh, student at University of Missouri-Mizzou, took a semester off to interview and film various students, teachers, parents, activists, and all the alike from all over the country to get their perspective on the current state of our education system. What I personally found compelling of this film is, first, this is … Continue reading
![Student Calls Out Michelle Rhee at Teacher Town Hall [VIDEO!]](https://stephrrivera.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/1005489_10201954764334515_92953768_n.jpg?w=160&h=120&crop=1 "Student Calls Out Michelle Rhee at Teacher Town Hall [VIDEO!]")
Student Calls Out Michelle Rhee at Teacher Town Hall [VIDEO!]
There are some people who come into your life who remind you that the fight for public education is one to be won. Hannah Nguyen is one of those people. I “met” Hannah over the summer after she e-mailed me after she came across my blog. She shared how she went through almost the same … Continue reading
What In The World Are You Doing, CPS?
Yesterday I received a text that made my heart sink and made me absolutely sick to my stomach. Yesterday in Chicago, over 2,000 teachers were laid off–as if closing 53 elementary schools wasn’t enough of a draconian and heartless action enough to impose on the Chicago community. To take it even further, they have … Continue reading
