Recently I received flack about a comment I had made about Dr Gallons erudite speeches to the public. I was amused to read that some of the commentators to Plaintalk's cynical reference to his letters also felt that they were in the presence of an evangelistic preacher.
In a sense they may be right, Dr. Gallon may perceive that only an evangelist for quality education using a tight knit educational core will return Plainmfield's school system to a level where the majority of its graduates can hold their own even among those who went to prestigious private schools. That is a goal that I believe he can reach if only the community avoids interfering with education through the use of petty political processes.
I envy Dr. Gallon's English major degree from college. His convoluted sentences, unlike those I write< express deep thought and a commanding vocabulary. If you got it, flaunt it.
The changes that Dr. Gallon has initiated should mean the rebirth of education in Plainfield. He needs our support and should be given a reasonable fair chance. That will be true only if the BOE understands its fiduciary responsibility to the community and to the system. New Democrats, Green Democrats, Republicrats don't belong as factors in education.
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"New Democrats, Green Democrats, Republicrats don't belong as factors in education"
ReplyDeleteToo late for that. Several BOE members are on the New Dems political ticket.
9:10 You are making my point.
ReplyDeleteAnd so are some prominent members who have received active support by the Chairman of the local Democratic Party.(Committee). Some I have been informed worked for him in an official capacity. I can not vouch for that fact so it is rumor.
As long as politics contaminate the supposedly non partisan BOE the school system and its superintendent have no chance.
Barack Obama declared himself to be a "New Democrat". I took this to mean that the old ways of putting politics first and the good of the community second is over. I think he is doing a great job of trying to bring that to fruition.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope we do the same in Plainfield. New Democrats, Old Democrats, Green Democrats etc., should have the same goals in mind. Let's hope that happens and let us remember we are all DEMOCRATS.
I am a teacher in PPS and have come to look forward to Dr. Gallon's monthly letters. The letters are sent to all staff along with the calendar each month. As a high school teacher, I have used his message as an instructional tool with my students. His use of words and metaphors has enlighten and entertain me and my students. We have really come to actually enjoy them. I read the letters and have my students circle words they do not understand. Then they look them up as a vocabulary assignment. They finally use them in a sentence they develop. What is most enjoyable though is drawing meaning from he is saying. This month's message was well understood by most of my students. That we can one day be great if we all come together. In Plainfield that is so true.
ReplyDeleteTeacher,I wish I had had you for 9th grade English. Would not have helped my spelling since I have always been a 'sight scanner reader". However you seem to be doing what should be done and challenging your students to think and learn. This is important for today's generations that have substituted TV for books.
ReplyDeleteYour comment is most encouraging.
olddoc,
ReplyDeleteDon't take the flack personal. As African Americans, many of us are often offended when people compliment us or discuss the fact fact that we, as Chris Rock infamously stated, "speak so well" or be so intelligent. Most non African Americans who offer such compliments usually do so with the utmost sincerity.
The offense comes in the idea that too often we are not expected to "speak so well" or be so intelligent. Your comments, although complimentary about how well Dr. Gallon speaks and writes may have caused flack for that reason. The presence of President Obama may help to shift the images that many people have about blacks. Just a thought, olddoc.
Dear Doc and Teacher,
ReplyDeleteThanks for both the post and the comment. I enjoyed both.
It is also encouraging to read that Dr. Gallon's letters are being used in the classroom with our students. That his letters are used at the classroom are a telling sign of how far one's words can go.
Dr. Gallon has certainly come at a time when he was most needed, Plainfield's own time for change.
Thanks again Doc and Teacher for what you both have wrote.
Maria Pellum