Teachers need noninstructional time
I am responding to Sharon Veitri’s letter on education in Hawaii during the Linda Lingle and Duke Aiona years. As she said in her letter “Hawaii, the U.S. and the world’s economies were in the tank.”
Hawaii’s economy is dependent upon tourists. There are very few jobs in the islands that are not directly or indirectly related to tourist traffic. A “tanked” world economy means fewer tourists means tourism workers leave the state. Fewer tourists equals fewer tax money equals fewer jobs equals fewer tax money for education or anything else.
Veitri said that the teachers should have given up “noninstructional” time. I’ve never taught a class but I have tutored. For each hour that I spent with the child I spent one to two hours preparing. That was for one child on one learning level. Preparing a lesson for 20-plus children on many learning levels would take many hours.
You think that they should work a 10 to 12 hour day and get paid for a six-hour day? Would you do that? Yes, there are teachers who do not spend that time preparing. They are called “bad teachers.”
Annett LaBonte
Waikoloa
Mankind to blame for Ebola, disasters
For years, mankind has been polluting our environment and causing the ocean to become more acidic.
Now, when the world is facing things such as the Ebola epidemic and other disasters, we ask why nature is against us. We are the ones responsible for the mess we are in and it’s nature who is fighting back now.
If humans weren’t so greedy for more fancy cars, technology, clothing and other fineries, we wouldn’t be facing these challenges. It’s payback time so whatever comes our way now, it’s of our own doing.
Colleen Miyose-Wallis
Kona