tattle: –verb

1. to let out secrets

Public education today is a mess.  As an institution, it’s uneven, irregular, unresponsive, wasteful, ineffective, unfair, unequal, and. . .  You get the picture.   What do kids do when they feel trapped in a situation like that?  When someone’s bullying or cheating or stealing or not doing her job?  They tattle.  They tell their parents.  They tell their teachers.  They tell anyone who will listen.  Tattling is a form of power.

Kids who tattle are doing their bit so that the bully doesn’t get away with his behavior.  So that the little thief doesn’t get to keep her illicit proceeds.  So that the kid in the cooperative group who doesn’t do his work doesn’t reap the benefits of everyone else’s efforts.  Tattling is a form of social justice.

As a teacher and a mom, I’m not sure why we frown so severely on tattling.  It’s what kids resort to when they feel powerless to solve problems on their own.  They talk to a higher authority, the grown-up.  They feel that someone at least is listening to their hurt.  Tattling is a form of relief.

TattleTeaching is a place to tattle about public education. To let out its secrets, both bad and good.  To clear up misunderstandings and raise disagreements and offer suggestions and air wounds.  In some places things work.  We need to know about them as much as we need to commiserate over the things that don’t work.  Parents, teachers, students, concerned citizens, please come tell your classroom and teaching tales.  And please come and read mine.

Hopefully, together, our voices can do something about the mess that is public education today. One tattle at a time.

Site Guide

The Daily Classroom follows a year in the life of a classroom in a high poverty school in Los Angeles: the crises, achievements, creativity, and conflicts that power the daily lives of 1 teacher and  a bunch of kids in a 180 day marathon.  Last year it was 2nd grade; this year, it’s 5th.  Last year it was 20 kids; this year, it’s 34.  Please comment and offer your own experiences.

EduTales addresses general issues in public education, many of which concern management and mismanagement of schools and school districts.  It’s the place to post your tattles, especially if they relate to the mucky mess that is LAUSD.

EduTales also includes EduSites, suggestions for great teaching tools and websites, especially technological ones.

Share your edutales, your tattles, as well as your own teaching tools and edusites, please.

Join the TattleTeaching community!