teacher's responsibility

I substitute taught Algebra 2 and Quantitative Analysis classes on Thursday and Friday at Riverton High. My experience there has really caused me to wonder where does teacher responsibility end and personal responsibility begin?

The regular teacher had left me instructions as to their normal class practices which included my reading the answers to the previous assignment while each student corrected his/her own work. As I was reading the answers, I noticed that most of the students were frantically writing them down. Very few students had actually done the assigned homework. When questioned later, most freely admitted that was their usual practice. Their attitude was "why do the work when he just gives us the answers?"

I talked to McKayla about it. She said her math teacher does the same thing but he first walks around the classroom to ensure the students have actually done the work.

Obviously, there are methods the teacher could use to ensure the students are actually doing the work and not getting credit for copied answers. On one hand, this would seem more fair to those students that actually did the homework. On the other hand, is it the teacher's responsibility to ensure each student learns? These are, after all, high school students. Shouldn't they accept some personal responsibility for their own learning?

I explained the new homework and gave examples of how to do it. Then I provided ample class time in which to get the homework done. I went around the classroom and individually helped those who were trying to complete their homework but, again, most of the class did something else (talked, slept, or did other homework). They couldn't see the value of doing the homework when the teacher would give them the answers the next time they met.

When I was a high school student, I was a very conscientous student. I also really loved learning and wanted to learn. I would never have dreamed of just copying the answers.

The teacher gets paid to teach. Does this burden him with the responsibility of ensuring each student is actually learning something? Or is the teacher's job merely to provide the opportunity to learn? Does the student bear the responsibility? Is the student's failure to learn hurting anyone but himself? Do we have too many classes structured where they can "complete" the homework, fail the tests, and still pass the classes? Are we turning out a generation of uneducated idiots? (My own son's letters back home make me seriously wonder about his English education and teacher's always told me he was a good English student. Scary! but I digress...)

I don't know the answers. Do they address this problem in staff meetings? Is it addressed in colleges when preparing future teachers? Does the responsibility come back to parents to raise hard-working, honest individuals who want to learn? Is the math curriculum flawed because students do problem after problem without seeing any real world application so they can't see why they need algebra?

--scrappinsoccermama has $20 and wants to know how many bags of Cadbury Mini Eggs and how many mangoes she could buy with it. If only there were some algebraic equation to give her the possibilities. lol