Knowledge of subject matter and switching teaching assignments
My school district had several administors that believed in moving elementary school teachers from grade to grade every two or three years. Just when many teachers were beginning to feel comfortable with their knowledge of the subject matter for that grade level, they were forced to switch to a different grade level. I realize this can be a way to avoid burnout, stay energized, and facilitate teacher learning and growth, but most teachers were very against this practice. They felt that they were being taken out of a classroom where there knowledge of subject matter was very good and put into a situation where they had to learn a new curriculum. Many of their thoughts were that it wasn't fair to do this to the students. Is this a good practice as it expands teacher knowledge of all grade levels and curriculums, or a bad practice in that it may affect students because they may have a teacher who doesn't have the experience or knowledge of subject matter in the same way an experienced teacher in that grade level has?
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Wow, that would be a
Wow, that would be a stressful situation. I don't think this in beneficial for the teachers or the students. I understand the administrators trying to avoid burnout, but at what point do you become burned out of learning new curriculum? I recently changed grades because I was becoming bored with teaching the same grade for 7 years. This is not the situation for all teachers. I know teachers that have been teaching the same grade for many years and can not imagine switching grades. I think it is up to the individual teacher. Some teachers find the grade that they love and never want to change. As long as they are effective teachers, than changing thier grade is not the solution.
I am sure students are not benefiting from this because they are probably getting teachers that are frustrated. The students would benefit from effective teachers, no matter how many years that particular teacher has been teaching the grade they are in.