I Do Not Know How I Kept a Civil Tongue in My Head

So today we had an afterschool in-service, which is horrible, because not only do I have to work all day, but then I have to stay an additional three-and-a-half hours AFTER work.

Here is my usual schedule:

3:00-3:15 - Listen and learn something moderately useful
3:16-6:30 - Roll my eyes and say rude things under my breath

Today's schedule was a little different, however, because I had to go to a meeting at another high school and learn about this new curriculum we're supposed to implement starting, apparently, LAST MONTH.

I would first like to mention that the students were sent home six minutes early just in case a tornado hit, but that I still had to drive myself to the other school even though it was raining so hard that I couldn't see two feet in front of my face. Message sent: Kids must be safe! Teachers can die, though!

Now, the reason I (and four other teachers) had to risk our lives to go to the other school is that their teachers are already using this new curriculum. So the idea was that we would find out how they were using it, how they had taught it to their kids, and what mistakes they had made that we could avoid.

I was all pumped for it, because frankly, I am excited about the new curriculum. Mainly because it is going to make things a heck of a lot easier on me.

I want to say that of the five teachers that have to use this curriculum, two have been teaching for over thirty years (each), one teaches special ed, I have taught for five years, and one thinks he knows everything.

Do you know which one I'm going to complain about?

Typically speaking, when your administration drops a curriculum change on you, the teachers who have the most years under their belts will be the biggest whiners. Not so with this group. I've already said that I am excited; the special ed teacher is apprehensive but hopeful; the two older teachers are working really hard to get everything in place and to understand how to use the program to its best advantage; and the Other Guy IS A STUPID BLOWHARD WHO WILL NOT SHUT UP WITH HIS STUPID BLOWHARD COMMENTS.

When I would try to ask a question (and it was hard, because I am battling a case of laryngitis right now), the Other Guy would interrupt with, "Well, I'VE been told by the administration that blooblahbleeblowbloo."

And every claim he made as to what he has been told is a DIRECT CONTRADICTION of what I myself have been told by the assistant principal IN PERSON and TO MY FACE, and also she goes to my church. (That is irrelevant, but I thought I'd throw it in there).

Then he would go into this long litany of complaints about who-knows-what and would make YET ANOTHER comment about the administration telling him something which would be YET AGAIN something that was the complete opposite of what I've been told by the other assistant principal, who has always been very supportive and helpful and has never lied to me, and also she was my dad's cooperating teacher when he was student teaching. (Again, no relevance, but I am totally going to believe HER over the Other Guy, because I tend to put more faith in people that I like than in people who make me roll my eyes a lot).

So basically, what my in-service experience boiled down to was four people desperately trying to learn something while one person explained over and over and over again how incredibly stupid the whole new curriculum is. But the one school that has used this program for three years has seen such a dramatic increase in their test scores that I am thinking it is not the CURRICULUM that is stupid, OTHER GUY.

Furthermore, a couple months ago, the Other Guy was supposed to spend a day at our Board of Education with teachers from the other schools in our area, putting together a plan of action for changing the curriculum for this particular class. On the day of the meeting, I was met as I walked in the door by the assistant principal, who told me that the Other Guy was absent, so I would have to go in his place. So I hustled my butt around trying to get sub plans together, when she came in and said the meeting had been rescheduled for the next week, and the Other Guy would go then.

So guess who was absent on the day of the rescheduled meeting? And guess who was--AGAIN--given thirty minutes to get her sub plans together so she could go in his place?

And guess who spent the least productive, most mind-numbingly boring day at the Board, putting together a plan that is irrelevant now?

And guess who has to spend the day at the Board tomorrow, continuing to work on said irrelevant plan, because apparently the Board doesn't care if the plan is relevant or not, as long as they have some paperwork that says we made a plan?

And guess who has been saying THE most cutting, bitter, sarcastic things about the Other Guy for going on three hours now?

Aw, that was too easy.