“Certification means nothing when there is dedication”
While I agree dedication is extremely important in the teaching profession, the ability to be able to spot a dyslexic child in the 1st grade is just as important, if not more so. In the city that I live in, there is a small very orthodox school and another very large K-12 that the rest of the community uses. At both schools, all of the teachers, whether teaching secular or Judaic studies, are certified University graduate teachers. If they weren’t the government school inspectors would shut the places down. It is a pity that so many parents are paying far more than they can really afford to send their children to schools where they are getting, at best, a second class education. Yes, there is something to say about ruach and frumkeit, but, this is the next generation of critical thinkers that are being educated. These are the future Rabbonim. How many of them will be qualified to even pay their monthly bills or help their children with trigonometry? This is a crisis.