Teacher gets fired for giving 0s

tikkalover

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2400's Liberal and Conservatives post in the Ha Ha forum made me think of this.

[h=1]Teacher says she was fired for giving zeroes to students who didn't turn in their work[/h]PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (WPEC) — A teacher in Port St. Lucie, Florida claims she was fired for refusing to give students partial credit for work that is never handed in.
“I got fired. I was packing my stuff, and I was not going to see the kids,” Diane Tirado said.






Mrs. Tirado didn’t get to say goodbye to her student physically, so she wrote her message on a whiteboard instead.

“Bye kids, Mrs. Tirado loves you and wishes you the best in life! I have been fired for refusing to give you a 50% for not handing anything in. [heart] Mrs. Tirado.”​
She snapped a photo of it and shared it on Facebook. Then, the messages from her eighth-grade students started pouring in.
You showed me to be responsible for my work and the things that I do. I hope you don’t forget me,” one student wrote.

Mrs. Tirado has been a teacher for more than 17 years. The 52-year-old began working at West Gate K-8 School this year as an eighth-grade social studies teacher.
She says she gave her students two weeks to complete an explorer’s notebook project but says some of them didn’t turn it in.
That’s when she says she learned about a no-zero grading policy, written in red in the school’s handbook, stating, “NO ZERO’S – LOWEST POSSIBLE GRADE IS 50%.”
Tirado says this sends the wrong message.
“If there’s nothing to grade, how can I give somebody a 50 percent?” she asked.​
Her Sept. 14 termination letter doesn’t cite a specific reason, only stating she was contracted as a teacher on a probation period, and that she can be dismissed without cause.
Her message on her classroom’s whiteboard has been shared hundreds of times, with messages from other parents and teachers congratulating her on standing her ground.
Tonight, she is calling for change because she believes the grading policy at West Gate K-8 School won’t help students in the long run



“I’m arguing the fact that you don’t get something for nothing. I want the policy changed, and it’s not just here,” she said.

There are zeros found in the grading scale above the “no zero’s” wording on the West Gate Student and Parent Handbook, which adds confusion, Tirado said.
 


Skullet

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Could this explain why some people expect 50% of a paycheck for doing absolutely nothing???
 

risingsun

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This is why the U.S. has become the laughing stock in the world. No one is held accountable for anything, if it things dont go the way they want then the lawsuits, allegations, and all other bs come out. Boils down to kids not being held accountable at home, and then the teachers get in trouble for disciplining the kids. Its just an ongoing revolving door anymore, and going no where but straight down a black hole.
 

zoops

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Very common scenario in ND as well (other than the firing part). Teachers are encouraged, and in some cases forced, to not give zeroes even when the student has been given every opportunity to do their work.
 

Retired Educator

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Very common scenario in ND as well (other than the firing part). Teachers are encouraged, and in some cases forced, to not give zeroes even when the student has been given every opportunity to do their work.

I'll guarantee that I never encouraged any such practice. No work, no grade. I wasn't even a fan of accepting work late. Wasn't on time, no credit unless there was a reason for being late.

I never did understand when some people would encourage "We have to prepare these young men and women for the work place" followed by "We can't make them feel bad by giving a failing grade for poor performance." Can't have it both ways.
 


deactivated

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She made this story up and ran to the press after she was fired for being a poor teacher and a shitty human being.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/florida-...alf-credit-to-students-who-didnt-turn-in-work

In another statement from the district to WPTV, the school denied Tirado’s claims and said she was “released from her duties as an instructor because her performance was deemed sub-standard and her interactions with students, staff, and parents lacked professionalism and created a toxic culture on the school’s campus.”
“During her brief time of employment at West Gate, the school fielded numerous student and parent complaints as well as concerns from colleagues, the statement read. “Based on new information shared with school administrators, an investigation of possible physical abuse is underway.”
 

Achucker

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Doesn't change the topic of this thread. The school still has a policy of no zeros. This is absurd!!;:;banghead
 

deactivated

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Doesn't change the topic of this thread. The school still has a policy of no zeros. This is absurd!!;:;banghead

Also from the article:

“There is no District or individual school policy prohibiting teachers from recording a grade of zero for work not turned in,” the statement read. “The District’s Uniform Grading System utilizes letter grades A-F, numerical grades 100-0 and grade point averages from 4-0."
 

dblkluk

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Also from the article:

“There is no District or individual school policy prohibiting teachers from recording a grade of zero for work not turned in,” the statement read. “The District’s Uniform Grading System utilizes letter grades A-F, numerical grades 100-0 and grade point averages from 4-0."

Pffft.. Whats this nonsense about facts? :)
 

JayKay

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I have to admit, that like many, I read a headline, form an opinion, and get righteously angry.

The idea of getting fired for not giving a kid a zero, for not turning in work, chaps my hide. I think she's a martyr/hero.

But, as often is the case, there is much more to the story. A person gets pissed off, spouts nonsense and half truths on social media, and a responsible entity like a School System, comes out the loser. A school system takes the high road, and doesn't spout off about lies, they just quietly say that she was released for other reasons, or that the investigation continues. And a bunch of armchair detectives smell blood, and start howling about the school.

I guess, as is often the case, incendiary headlines get the clicks...
 


WormWiggler

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Very common scenario in ND as well (other than the firing part). Teachers are encouraged, and in some cases forced, to not give zeroes even when the student has been given every opportunity to do their work.

Can you provide evidence that this is true, or this your opinion?

Sorry if I offend you, the internet stomped my ability to trust like a spider on a fat woman's porch. If any school districts have a policy like this, should social media be used to bring about change?

I dislike the idea of sticking my nose into the situation in a different area, but in reality it seems parents will often support things that benefit their offspring vs. the good of the population.
 

espringers

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my experience is that late work is much more commonly accepted than in the past. often times with significant deductions of course. sometimes not though. seems to be teacher dependent. but, best i can tell, if you don't turn it in eventually, you get a zero. in DL anyway. grade school thru high school.
 

zoops

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I'll guarantee that I never encouraged any such practice. No work, no grade. I wasn't even a fan of accepting work late. Wasn't on time, no credit unless there was a reason for being late.

I never did understand when some people would encourage "We have to prepare these young men and women for the work place" followed by "We can't make them feel bad by giving a failing grade for poor performance." Can't have it both ways.

Agree with you. I would also agree with the other side a bit that we can't just dump a kid on the scrap heap because they don't want to do their work. But there do have to be consequences so it's a tough dichotomy. Just curious as to when you retired?

- - - Updated - - -

Can you provide evidence that this is true, or this your opinion?

Sorry if I offend you, the internet stomped my ability to trust like a spider on a fat woman's porch. If any school districts have a policy like this, should social media be used to bring about change?

I dislike the idea of sticking my nose into the situation in a different area, but in reality it seems parents will often support things that benefit their offspring vs. the good of the population.

No offense taken. I'm a high school teacher. I've heard several times from other teachers of a large middle school in ND that has had a no zero policy for quite a few years, so I'm guessing others do as well. Although with the standard-based grading being used in many places, grading overall is quite a bit different at those levels than it was 10 years ago, in some ways good some bad. Have heard from many middle school teachers that are urged to do what they can to get a kid passing. I have not a had an administrator tell me straight up that I can't give zeroes but it's commonly communicated that we need to do more to reduce the number of F's that kids receive. I am certain that if you wanted to dig your heels in and not allow retakes of tests, late work, etc. you'd get lots of parental complaints (I have colleagues that have) and most administrators would not support your stance in this day and ago.
 


remm

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Teachers are in a tough position these days. Dam standardized testing means they have to try to get every kid to a certain minimum for the school to achieve their requirements for awards/funding etc. Problem with that is the vast majority of the teachers time is spent trying to get a few of the kids that for whatever reason- lazy, bad home life, just plain not smart- to get up to the acceptable level at the expense of the rest of the class. The kids that are smarter, more motivated, willing and able to go on to bigger and better things aren't given the resources to excel as they are already at the "good enough" to pass the exams.

Hate to say it to you snowflake/liberal parents, but not every kid is going to be valedictorian. Reminds me of when we lived in GF and son played hockey at 3-4 years old. Every goddam parent in the rink thought their kid was gonna play for Sioux.
It's by the book liberal/social thinking. Try to get all the kids to think they are equal and life is fair for everyone, that way nobody will ever work any harder than anyone else and life will be glorious and everyone will be rich.

But I digress, sorry to get off topic. I wouldn't last a month trying to be a teacher, thank you to those who do and make a difference in kids lives. Unfortunately there are bad teachers out there too, just like bad cops, bad doctors, bad priests etc that keep f'ing things up for the rest of us.

;:;rant
 

Phill Latio

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on a side note, I heard from a student there was a high school English teacher in Jamestown, that is very liberal of course, that kicked a kid out of class for wearing a make America great again hat.. and supposedly she has kicked other kids out for voicing support for trump. Is that possible a teacher can get away with that BS?
 

deactivated

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on a side note, I heard from a student there was a high school English teacher in Jamestown, that is very liberal of course, that kicked a kid out of class for wearing a make America great again hat.. and supposedly she has kicked other kids out for voicing support for trump. Is that possible a teacher can get away with that BS?

I heard the school policy is you cannot wear a hat indoors. Just kidding, I looked it up. It took about 1 minute. Page 7 under the heading "Dress Code".
 


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