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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 21, 2004)
Page 16 Dispirited (Continued from page 14) tention-deficit disorders, autism, or learning disor- ders, while others use Eng- lish as a second language. Another effect, Cohen said, has been elimination of specialists who teach music, art, shop and P.E. Classroom teachers have to pick up the slack, which usually eliminates prep periods they may have used in the past. “One result is that teachers are spending more and more time outside the classroom preparing lesson plans and grading assign- ments,” Cohen said. Half of the survey re- spondents said one of the most significant changes they face as a result of budget cuts has been the advent of “no-frills teach- ing,” which translates into more lectures, fewer spe- cial projects, less group work and cooperative learning, fewer electives and fewer hands-on learn- ing opportunities. “In other words, most of what we have learned in the last 25 years of educa- tional best practices are going out the window be- cause of the budget squeeze,” Cohen said. Teachers also are be- ing affected on the bottom line, the OSU survey found. Nine out of 10 teachers report that they have experienced a nega- tive salary effect from budget woes, either through salary reduction, the number of “cut days” lopped off the school year or through additional per- sonal investment in the classroom. Wrote one: “I have paid for more materials this year…file folders, glue sticks, etc. We have- n’t had a real raise in years.” Others say they are spending less on the class- room out of necessity -- they simply cannot afford it. More than one-fourth (28 percent) of the respon- dents say they or their part- ners have had to get an- other job to make ends meet, or that they were seeking additional employ- ment. And they have had to do major belt- tightening. Noted one teacher: “We have had to eat a lot of oatmeal be- cause of the salary cuts.” Cohen said 73 percent of the teachers surveyed say their health has been adversely affected by the public school budget crisis. Stress, depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and weight problems are common- place, she pointed out. “Despite the impact of the budget on teachers, their greatest concern is what effect the fiscal crunch has on the school children and their ability to learn,” Cohen said. “Teachers in the sample are an altruistic group, yet clearly the stresses on teachers cannot mean good things for students. “When nearly three- fourths of the teachers feel their health is at-risk, that means that burnout and attrition are serious risks,” she added. “Hopefully, this study will provide support for teachers in the field and encourage Oregon to pro- vide a stable funding base. It also means that we need to prepare prospective teachers in our schools for the reality of teaching.” OSU students assisting in the survey were Aaron Barnes, L. Earl Fonville, Andy Hordichok, Jeannette Smith, and Kathleen Smith. Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, January 21, 2004 ALARMING SITUATION - Illi- nois Valley Fire District fire- fighters responded to a re- ported structure fire on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 8:25 a.m. They found a small amount of smoke in a mobile home in the 200 block of Schumacher Street at Hussey Avenue. District Division Chief Joe Feldhaus said that there was no fire, but that the prob- lem appeared to be related to a dusty wall heater. American Medical Response stood by at the scene with firefighters.