This week I wanted to take the advice from the reading that we were given. In the reading it talks a lot about how web logging is a public network. It also talks of how writing to the whole wide world can be inspiring to open up more, and to share meaningful discussions and debates. Given that advice, I wanted to see if there were any web logs for teachers with special needs students. I searched through a few sites when I stumbled upon this site:
Now my immediate reaction was to skip it right off the bat because of the simple name of the site. Naming your blog site, “tard-blog”, is not only insensitive but just flat out wrong. If this truly is a teacher with students who have special needs, I guarantee karma will kick you in the ass if I don’t beat it to you. After being infuriated already I then see a picture of a boy with down syndrome. Now this picture isn’t a regular picture, it is clearly making fun of children with disabilities.
I may be extra sensitive to this subject because I also work with special needs kids every day. Because of my tendency to over react to small things, I asked Randolph to look at it and to see if I was really seeing what I thought I was seeing. He immediately Googled the author’s name, Riti Sped, and came across another site:
This site talks about how compassionate this woman is on a daily basis for having to teach these students. She even says that she loves her job because, “ Also it is nice
because the kids believe anything I tell them”. Under the paragraph of saying how great this woman is it then asks more questions. The next questions just so happens to be, “ Riti, if you like your job so much, why do you make fun of your retarded students? Why would you put this page up?”. This paragraph goes on to explain that it is her way of relieving her daily stress that she gets from her job. It also states, “ …And no, I don’t make a lot of money. This does not bother me or even slightly persuade me to change careers. As long as I have money to drink myself into a stupor 4 nights a week and wear nice shit, I don’t care”.
I feel like this woman couldn’t get any more frustrating than this. And I almost want to stop this blog right there. But for Selila’s sake I will keep going to meet requirements.
In the reading for this week it goes on to say that there are also surprises when web logging and responding to other people’s personal opinions. It even gave a case where people responding to another’s web logs should be more sensitive because there is another person on the other side with feelings. But I don’t think it mentioned anything about what you put out there being insensitive or cruel. I think if people are going to put insensitive material out there, they should expect it to come back to them three-fold.
http://www.fullduplex.org/tardblog/tardfaq.html. http://www.tard-blog.com/
amanda Said:
on September 21, 2008 at 9:56 pm
May I Just comment that, that was the strangest blog ever! Tard-Blog????? I am not sure what to think. Is it inappropriate to post that? What if families or the principal or colleges find out…… I would feel way to guilty I dont care if she says its her way to chill out from a long day.
Though I do disagree with posting all of that I have to say the stories do make you wonder????
Christina Perry Said:
on September 22, 2008 at 3:29 pm
WOW
I can not believe that thing is up there! And then the person has the nerve to say that if other people think “deragatory” word than it is our problem ! WOW. I mean she has to know, whenever she got into it, that it was going to bring about a certain kind of reaction, and she knows what she looks like writing this, and she knows people are either laughing at it or totally appauled by it. Which makes you ask WHY? Is she trying to get attention? She makes gross generalizations on her site and talks like she knows the answer to everything. She is very quick to judge the parents of these kids as well, which is nice for her cause in the end she gets to go home to her place while the parents have to deal and live and cope with their children 24/7.
She says she loves kids but then she talks about “feeding a load of BS” to the parents of the kids about how good they are. She also says that she does this job so she can lead a whole class to believe she is the best person in the world. Sounds like her whole life is a load of BS. The more I read of her sites the more I want to smack her. What does she want us to give her a round of applause cause she’s such a good person for doing this kind of work when she could supposdly do something else with her degree.
I can’t believe someone like her exists in the world, and normally I am the kind of person that wants to give people the benefit of the doubt and believe that inside, people are good and want the best for others. Somehow I can’t think that about her, it is not very often where that happens for me.
selila Said:
on September 22, 2008 at 8:45 pm
It is interesting to note that there are a lot of disclaimers and justifications on that site. Sometimes people don’t care what type of attention they draw, as long as they are in a spotlight.
Elana Said:
on September 24, 2008 at 4:54 pm
This is the controversial part of web-based learning. What if one of your students had come across this (in any classroom). Children lack the understanding to debate and dissect hurtful words. Sites like this can sway the way a child grows up thinking about special education and even their own teachers.
You’re right though, Karma is a bitch. And as we all well know, nothing that goes into the internet is hidden from view. I’m a firm believer that what you put into the universe come back to you. It’s pretty obvious this teacher needs a new line of work and someday she’ll get there (either by getting fired or walking away). Whether she really believes this is funny, or a stress relief, I share in your frustration. If she really believed how noble her own work is, she wouldn’t be demeaning it with flimsy justifications for her actions.
JAlbano Said:
on October 3, 2008 at 6:23 pm
No Kate… I am going to have to completely agree with you. She is an attention seeking, selfish, insensitive BITCH!!! Let me know when you see her on that back street because I would love to hold her for you while you punch!
I have also worked with a special needs young woman. The thing is they are not that different. Yes they can get a little fired up or slightly irrational. However there responses tend to be consistent so as a teacher you should be fairly aware how a student will respond to a situate.
I do not know how this blog is acceptable? I would imagine a parent, administration, or fellow teacher would freak out if they saw this. I also wonder legally if she has parental consent to slander her students. Because bottom line that is what this is SLANDER! I look at this site and think it is a lawsuit waiting to happen.