Teachers Cash in on Old Lesson Plans

In today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel there is a short article about online websites where teachers can sell their lesson plans and materials. Teachers then use those funds for everything from paying their mortgage, dinning out, or for classroom materials. The article talks about two key issues.

First, the question was, "Who actually owns these lesson plans, the teachers that created them or the school?" In many private industries, when you leave a job, your former employer is very careful to make sure you do not take anything with you that you accomplished while on the job. Teaching has never been like that. Each time I left my teaching jobs, I took with me a CD of all of my files along with many copies and paper files. If I had not been able to do this, it would have been like starting all over as a first year teacher each time which is not beneficial to the students at all.

Additionally, a large majority of the lesson plans and resources I have created were accomplished outside of school (over the summers, on the weekends, etc.). Does the mere fact that I developed them for use at a specific school entitle that school to the rights of those plans? Or because they were developed on my own time, are they truly mine? If so who keeps track of those plans I developed while on the clock verses those I developed on my own time?

Secondly, some were concerned that this sort of thing destroys the collaborative nature that is so prevalent in education now. There is definitely some truth to that. As a former teacher many of my materials came from colleagues or free sites online. And as a result, I have willingly shared many of my resources both online on my website and with colleagues. It is this collaborative nature that allows many teachers to excel at presenting engaging and worthwhile lessons.

In the moment of change...

It is only in the moment of change, that we truly focus on all the wonderful things of the past. It's almost as if in the face of fear of what is to come, we put on rose colored glasses as we reflect.

A chance to see if I really want to spend the money on law school

I have just accepted a job working with a non-profit law firm as a paralegal dealing with cases of domestic violence and child abuse. Although starting a new job, especially one so different from what I have done in the past, can be scary, I am confident that this position will give me an incredible experience to use and improve my Spanish as well as allow me to see what working in family law is like. I was a little apprehensive about how emotionally draining it will likely be working with this population but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this is a population that truly needs help and if I won't do it, who will? I strongly believe that in life it is so important to regularly step out of your comfort zone both for your own personal growth and for the good of others.

Immigration

Today the New York Times published an article titled, "Immigrant Jail Tests U.S. View of Legal Access." Click on the title of this post to view the full article.

This article detailed the serious problems seen at the Varick Street Detention Center among many immigration detention centers. Here immigrants (illegal and legal) are held for many months in poor conditions, lacking proper medical care, food and fresh air. Additionally, they are often denied access to a lawyer and are often not told why they are being detained. And they are often moved to other detention centers with no notice, making it hard for a lawyer to work on their behalf or make sure they get the medical care they may need.