Carmel Valley
Carmel Valley News 3702 Via de la Valle Suite 202W Del Mar, CA 92014 858-756-1403
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The Del Mar Times (USPS 1980) is published every Friday by San Diego Suburban News,a division of MainStreet Communications. Adjudicated as a newspaper of general cir-culation by Superior Court No.GIC 748533,December 21,2000.Copyright © 2010 MainStreet Communications. All rightsreserved. No part of the contents of this publication may be reproduced in any medi-um,including print and electronic media,without the express written consent of MainStreet Communications..
PHYLLIS PFEIFFER Publisher LORINE WRIGHT Executive Editor editor@sdranchcoastnews.com KAREN BILLING
Senior News Writer MARSHA SUTTON
Senior Education Reporter CLAIRE HARLIN
Associate Editor DON PARKS
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LETTERS POLICY Topical letters to the editor areencouraged and we make an effortto print them all. Letters are limit-ed to 200 words or less and submis-sions are limited to one every twoweeks per author. Submissionsmust include a full name, address,e-mail address (if available) and atelephone number for verificationpurposes. We do not publishanonymous letters. Contact theeditor for more information aboutsubmitting a guest editorial piece,called Community View, at 400words maximum. We reserve theright to edit for taste, clarity, lengthand to avoid libel. E-mailed sub-missions are preferred to editor@delmartimes. net. Lettersmay also be mailed or delivered to565 Pearl St., Ste. 300, La Jolla, orfaxed to (858) 459-5250.LETTERSPOLICY
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Education Matters/Opinion
Helpless no more: Rate those teachers BY MARSHA SUTTON Now that one-quarter of the school year has passed, parents and students are quite familiar with their teachers and know who’s good, bad, average or outstanding. In most cases, it doesn’t actually take one-fourth of the school year to find out. If the teachers have been employed for at least a few years, almost evMarsha Sutton eryone knows before school starts. Teachers know who in their own ranks is stellar and who is weak. And students certainly know by talking to other students. Parents by now can recognize their kids’ groans when they see their schedules and teachers. Because reputations are widely known, schools got wise and many don’t reveal the names of the teachers until the first day of classes. Having to deal with all the requests for schedule changes because students got the “bad” or the “hard” teacher became overwhelming. The obvious solution is to fire the “bad” teachers. But since union rules make this next to impossible, we as consumers are left with few options. We can write letters, meet with administrators, or ask for conferences. These options may work if the parent can make a convincing case that the “chemistry” between one particular teacher and one particular student is all wrong. But for most parents of unlucky students who get the short straw, it’s a frustrating process. Parents whose kids struggle through a full year with a mediocre teacher may breathe a sigh of relief at the end of the school year, grateful the ordeal is over. The inclination is to put the whole dreadful experience behind them and move on. Since their kids are finished with those teachers, many figure there’s no point in complaining. Or even praising for that matter. Your kids won’t have those teachers again, so why should you bother voicing your opinion? Well, you should, because other kids will have those teachers next year and the year after. And if administrators don’t get feedback from students and parents in real time, how do they know what’s going right and what’s going wrong? Granted, there isn’t a whole lot administrators can do with teachers of poor quality, given all the protections teachers have. Unless they commit some sort of heinous crime, teachers with tenure really can’t be fired. But there are things that can be done, once administrators are made aware of problems. RateMyTeachers.com is one way to make yourself heard without exposing your or your child’s identity, or risking retribution.
The infamous R-word, retribution, is what keeps so many parents silently fuming, bottling up feelings of helplessness and frustration. This site gives the silent majority a way to express their views without fear of harmful repercussions against their kids. Students have used the site for years. One might think that only negative comments are posted, but that’s not necessarily the case. True, many grumble about impossible instructors and warn future students to beware of teachers’ particular quirks, habits, preferences and styles. But surprisingly, many of the comments and ratings are positive. Students often elaborate about outstanding teachers and provide hints and tips on how to get along with the difficult ones. Yes, there are vindictive comments from some kids who give teachers a poor rating for petty reasons. But by and large, the comments feel real. Sometimes charitable kids will say they didn’t like a teacher personally but that the teacher was quite capable and fair – that it was their problem and not the teacher’s for not acing the course. Insightful comments pepper the site, and the great teachers – those who really know how to transform the learning experience and make education exciting and life-changing – are duly recognized by students who are generous with their adoration for those gems in public education who devote their lives
FAIRGROUNDS
appropriate to involve regional stakeholders in the public comment process, but develop the LCPA independently. “It would be difficult to involve other jurisdictions in our approval process,” he said. City officials suggested reconvening the Del Mar Fairgrounds Master Plan AdHoc Committee to work on this item, and stressed the importance of not taking away from current projects and deadlines — namely Village revitalization. Mayor Don Mosier said the benefit of developing an LCPA is to be more clear about what Del Mar’s vision is, and “give more feedback to the Coastal Commission about what’s appropriate development on the fairgrounds property.” “Our decisions will only be guiding suggestions to the Coastal Commission, which has ultimate authority,” he said.
continued from page 1 Suzanne Evans, Joe Tash, Diane Welch, Susan DeMaggio, Jon Clark, Kelley Carlson, Julie Sarno, Gideon Rubin, Gordon Clanton, Bud Emerson, Frank LaRosa, Catherine Kolonko
November 10, 2011
sion (CCC), which is the final authority on development projects, is currently using standards for Del Mar set forth in the 1970s. If the CCC approves an LCPA with more specific guidelines for the fairgrounds, however, those review standards would be used by the CCC. “In other areas of the city there are goals identified,” said Birnbaum. “But in this major part [the fairgrounds] there is no vision set forth.” Birnbaum said this is probably due to the sentiment years ago that the City had limited influence over the Del Mar Fairgrounds because it is under the control of an independent state agency. That sentiment has since changed somewhat, as the state has considered selling the fairgrounds. Both Birnbaum and Del Mar Councilman Terry Sin-
nott expressed the importance of including regional stakeholders, such as the City of Solana Beach and the 22nd District Agricultural Association, on the process of developing an LCPA. “We should be creative in involving stakeholders in the process and encouraging stakeholders to be involved,” said Sinnott. “If they could help with design they may also have influence later on.” Sinnott said this proposal is a tremendous opportunity to gather all stakeholders in the region and come together as group to “identify what everybody’s hopes and wishes are for that asset.” “It’s essential that this is a regional plan,” he said. “We may be the facilitator because it’s in our regional boundaries, but this is good way to demonstrate how to make a make a good plan on a regional basis.” Councilman Marc Filanc said it would be more
to the betterment of our kids. Although administrators will say the comments on RateMyTeachers.com cannot be used on evaluations (union rules generally prohibit this) and that they never look at what students and parents write, I suspect it’s visited far more often by district personnel than teachers would care to think. We as consumers dealing with a monopoly like public education that has complex union protections cannot “take our business elsewhere” unless we pay for private tuition. But we can make our voices heard. If nothing else, the venting makes us feel better. Local schools are listed on the site, including elementary schools, not just middle and high schools. And it’s not just teachers who can be rated – principals, counselors and other administrators are fair game as well. I encourage all parents to go to RateMyTeachers.com at the quarter mark in the school year and take a few minutes to rate those teachers. Give the feedback you feel they deserve, and review their performance as if they were in a competitive mar-
FOOD continued from page 5 ered business people, and everything in between, boast of a new-found confidence and a joy of cooking. Jennifer Cayer hosted the Comfort Food-themed dinner. At first she was anxious about having some of the executives she works with cooking in her kitchen. “But having a team build the meal took all the pressure off me,” said Cayer, who followed Eastham’s model precisely. “It was one of the best dinner parties I
WRITER continued from page 4 the current Empress Michiko of Japan, the first commoner to marry into the Japanese imperial family. “I try to learn from my books. Just the same way that serious novels teach people how to read them, they also teach the novelist how to write them. I’m a writer who believes in seeing the world through the perspectives of my characters — and what I perceive to be their needs, constraints and compulsions dictate what I see and how I express them.
ket. Heap praise lavishly when earned – those excellent teachers need to hear that their efforts are recognized and applauded. And get the complaints off your chest about those who need to find new careers. Be specific. Comments like “worst teacher ever” – even if true – are not particularly helpful. Be sure to identify yourself as a parent (no names, obviously) as opposed to a student. Parents see teachers in ways kids might not, and our feedback provides principals and administrators with a perspective that can be valuable for helping weak teachers improve. Students too should make it a priority to go to RateMyTeachers.com and review their teachers at least twice a year. Lurkers can go there and read what kids and parents have already said. It’s eyeopening. But don’t just read – write your own comments. And make your voice heard. If for no other reason, you’ll feel better for saying it. Marsha Sutton can be reached at SuttComm@san.rr. com.
ever hosted,” she said. “There was lots of laughter.” In conjunction with the book is an interactive blog and website. Visitors to the blog are encouraged to comment on their experiences, share recipes, and post photographs. In the works are future chapters with dinners centered on special occasions, the latest being an Oktoberfest-themed dinner. The book, which retails at $24.95, is available from the website and comes with a complimentary pdf copy. Visit www.cookthepart.com to purchase a signed first edition. “I try not to have a philosophy [in my work]. I think inevitably I do have views about things, but I try not to think thematically in that way. Oftentimes, it’s after it’s all done that I understand exactly what I felt about something.” He is planning to set his next novel in post-tsunami Japan. In meantime, he will be adding to his screenwriting credits, which include the script for “Reservation Road” that starred Joaquin Phoenix, two screenplay adaptations and a planned HBO movie on convicted swindler Bernie Madoff to star Robert De Niro.