special section :
Calling attention to the education in Tennessee which will in turn cause whoever is Governor to give more concentration to the quality of eduction and less attention to the test scores .
In your opinion , what are the top 3 challenges still facing education in Tennessee ?
1 . Cleaning up the mess that has been created with the Common Core / Tennessee Standards way of teaching .
2 . Getting Parents involved in their child ’ s education and having them understand what and how their child is being taught .
3 . Providing Books for children to take home which encourages reading rather than texting . ( Parents need to take phones away at 6 p . m . and demand study time )
Thank you for taking the time to share with our educators today . On behalf of our members , I would like to say we are grateful you are offering yourself for Governor . Please share with educators a little about who you are , and why you are running for Governor .
A . I am Kay White , and a Christian , Constitutional Conservative candidate for Governor of TN . I am the Mother of Five , Grandmother of 12 AND Great Grandmother of 4 and having been a part of brining up four other children in addition to my own , I have been involved in the school system for many years . I have been a small business owner and a Realtor for 25 years . I have lived in Tennessee since my birth and I truly care about the people of Tennessee . I know that educating our children properly will be the key to the quality of life in our state !
B . I have seen a decline over the years in the basics of reading writing and arithmetic which are fundamental basics for normal living both for those who are college graduates or those who choose to direct their lives into a trade or small business . It is essential . The new math and “ Drive to 55 program ” is geared to those who will go to college . The educational system has forgotten those who cannot comprehend as easily and given social promotions to make the State ’ s numbers look better in the eyes of the nation . I am interested in the individual children as well as in the quality of teachers . This quality will begin with making their salaries so that they can live without worry and have that burning desire as I used to see in the eyes of the teachers who taught my children and grandchildren . Now we see teachers going back to school to get into a different profession . They have the lives of our children in their hands , lets reward them and support them as parents and grandparents . Each County should decide what is best for their county because one plan does not work for all schools . This would encourage parents to be more careful about who is chosen to be on the school boards !
We made quite a few changes in public education in Tennessee the last decade - some necessary , some debatable . What are we doing right ?
What are the steps that the state and local districts need to take to address the challenges you identified ? What impact will that have on classroom teachers ?
What are the steps that the state and local districts need to take to address the challenges you identified ? What impact will that have on classroom teachers ?
As Governor , I would like to have a volunteer from each school board to meet with the State Education Committee at least quarterly and to send in writing before the meeting what they feel that the needs are for their county .
At the Quarterly meeting the State Education Committee will have read those needs submitted and will help that county to figure out the best plan to meet their needs . As Governor , I will also be involved with suggestions to help meet their needs . A strong PTA is going to be encourages with drives for the parents to be involved . We used to have a parent volunteer to come in one or two days per week and volunteer to spend time where the teachers need them most , especially in the elementary schools . Again , we would see parent involvement !
Any final thoughts you would like to share with educators across Tennessee ?
First I would like to acknowledge and thank you for your commitment to our children who will be the adults of tomorrow . This job , in my opinion , is second only to our military who protects us and makes it possible for you to be allowed to teach in our schools . Second , I would like to let you know that as Governor , I want to review the EIGHT ( 8 ) BILLION Dollar budget increase since Gov . Haslam took over and see where we can cut unnecessary things and give money to the place where it is necessary and needed most and that is to our teachers and our schools . I also believe that our schools need to teach respect for our Flag and our Constitution by having a class mandatory every year for a week to teach the children why we have a flag , what it represents and that the Constitution is the law of the land and must be honored and kept or there will be consequences . Sadly many children do not realize this is the law by which we are to be governed .