Where did all the math teachers go?

Where did all the math teachers go?

By the BP Editorial Board

There is no doubt that having five different math teachers over the course of two years is not, shall we say, optimal.  Math is confusing enough as is without having to readjust to a new teaching style on average every four months.

Unfortunately, this has been the case for one of the sophomore math tracks. They’ve gone through four teachers since just last year, and with Mrs. Fuller now leaving for Maine, they’ll soon be starting with their fifth. While telling someone you’ve had five math teachers in two years is sure to garner a smile, no one will be laughing if they’re meeting their sixth halfway through second semester.

In the past couple years, Shalhevet replaced a math teacher for being-part time, hired a full-time teacher, replaced that teacher with another full-timer, then replaced that person with two part-time teachers, one of whom was the one originally replaced for being only part-time.  Now, the other part-time teacher is leaving mid-year.

Most of us have had excellent, long-serving math teachers –Malikov, Gidanian, Halloran, Buckley — but one position has been quite tumultuous.

So how come our math department—spearheaded by Mrs. Malikov, known for her amazing teaching abilities and saintly dedication to students —hasn’t been able to find a teacher good enough or faithful enough to our school?

There are several possible explanations for how we’ve gotten into this predicament.  One is that good math teachers are just hard to find.  This is possible, but still not an excuse for hiring this many teachers who won’t stay or don’t teach well.

Another possibility is that the math department is too picky—that they’re not just looking for the best; they’re looking for a certain kind of “best.”  They could be looking for a particular teaching style because they haven’t been successful with other types of teachers, or because the department is being too specific about what a good math teacher is.

Whatever the reason, here’s a suggestion.  Instead of looking for a teacher who will subscribe to a particular method and style, the administration should look for a teacher who is experienced and will honor a contract and stick with us for the whole year.

We don’t mean to discount all the work the school has put into finding the best of the best for their prized pupils (i.e., us).  But what we’d like now is a decent teacher who will stick with us for the whole year. Because the more times we switch around, the less time we spend learning about the Pythagorean Theorem.