<HTML>There are a number of components to Zvi Grumet's question on the
principle of firing a teacher who gave much to the school but who is "no
longer effective." They cannot all be discussed without attention to the
petty details.
1. Is the teacher really no longer effective?
"Effective" is often in the eye of the beholder. I recall when, a number
of years ago, one of the lay leaders of the Yeshiva complained bitterly
that his son's Talmud teacher would be Rabbi A, a man in his sixties,
rather than Rabbi B, a young teacher just getting started. Kids need
young, dynamic rebbeim, he insisted, not worn-out teachers. But class
changes were not on the administration's agenda. The next fall, when the
boy was assigned to Rabbi B's sheur, the father was back complaining.
Kids need experienced teachers to learn well, he said, not youngster's
who are just learning how to teach.
But let us assume that the teacher really is no longer effective.
2. At what jobs is the teacher effective?
There may be out-of-classroom projects where the teacher can make a true
and valuable contribution. These have to be explored.
3. How old is the teacher?
In our society, people don't work until they drop. If the teacher is at
retirement age, the school has an obligation to give him or her a
pension. So one question for Zvi is, does the school have a pension
program? Firemen retire after 20 years, because (1) people can't keep
fighting fires into their fifties and sixties, and (2) without such a
pension plan, people afraid of being without a job after 20 years
wouldn't join the fire department and our homes would soon burn. "No
longer effective" might simply mean "reached the age of retirement." In
that case, a pension is the right thing.
4. How long has the teacher been teaching?
Not everyone is meant to be a teacher, and some people have to be told to
go look for another profession. But they have to be told that while they
can still get another job. If the teacher is not effective and the
yeshiva has not evaluated him and so informed him, the yeshiva has the
obligation to assume the financial responsibility that results from its
professional irresponsibility. In our world, it costs money to be
irresponsible, so while the teacher may have to leave, the school may
have a serious financial liability to him or her.
5. But if everyone acted responsibly and the teacher really isn't
teaching, he or she should leave.
Joel Wolowelsky</HTML>
