Teacher: How to Stop the Teacher-Bashing

June 21, 2013 //

A teacher responded to Tennessee Commissioner of Education Kevin Huffman, who has proposed a new salary plan for teachers that reduces their pay.

“I propose a national Day without a Teacher.”

Categories Teachers and Teaching

70 Comments Post your own or leave a trackback: Trackback URL

J Brooks says:

June 21, 2013 at 12:30 pm

I would even expand that to a week! We have the power to stop this madness. If we stay home, the nation will lose its mind! I’m all in! I’ve been thinking of this for years as a way to combat the ignorance with which we are assailed!

Reply
- DeeDee says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 12:53 am
  
  The time has come. Teachers have cooperated with all of the reforms and they been treated with total disregard. It is time for action.
  
  Reply
  - Carmen says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 2:34 am
    
    Agreed. JOIN us Bad Ass Teachers Association on Facebook. (Don’t let the name throw you off). Power is in numbers, and we have the numbers. We just need a coordinated effort. I say the easiest start is work to the rule and not a minute longer. No clubs, no sports, unless you are specifically being paid to do them. No phone calls to parents, no tests graded in a timely fashion if they can’t get done in a paid work day. And agreed, if we all walked out on the very same day – people will have to listen. And unlike with Reagan, thinking they can’t fire us all.
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:29 pm
    
    Yes they can. Only problem is, some administrators would have to go back into the classroom temporarily.
Hannah says:

June 21, 2013 at 12:36 pm

Reblogged this on inspirEDucation and commented:
I’d love to see this happen.

Reply
David M. Rackow says:

June 21, 2013 at 12:39 pm

Some day people will look back at this time in public education and wonder what was wrong with us.

Decades ago, Einstein said the very definition of “insanity” was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Yet despite that, so many of the same desperately inadequate initiatives keep emerging. Re-named, re-robed, shrouded in self-serving political and for-profit justifications, they represent more of an abdication of our responsibilities to our children than any real reform.

As I read endless numbers articles about the struggles of public education against many who should be, in fact, championing its cause, the same culprits keep emerging.

Worst, the same list of victims keeps appearing…and keeps growing.

You can follow the money. Follow the “lineage” of big corporations and politicians whose profits and political fortunes are tied into public school system killers like charters that suck funds out of money-starved school districts and Constitution-defying vouchers that have little to do with saving desperately poor children from substandard schools.

You can look to layers of those politicians at all levels of government who give lip service to funding public schools…but for all the “aide” they like to brag about just prior to elections…have hatcheted public school dollars with chronic de-funding, underfunding, and unfunded mandates.

You can ask yourself…find out for yourself…what percentage of those politicians and corporate people making so many of these financial poison-pill decisions about public school funding actually attended public schools themselves? Or have sent/are sending their children to public schools? Let me spare you the research time.

You can look at the subgroups of victims. The poor. Often the geographic areas of where low income families along with cultural and racial minorities are the majority. The defenseless. The voiceless. The children. It always, by definition, comes down to the children.
The Pennsylvania State Constitution states that “The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth.” Says it right in our Constitution. Ride through Philadelphia. Then ask yourself if it seems to you like General Assemblies and Governors have and are actually, actively violating the Constitution they swore to uphold? And have been for years and years.

Better yet, read the headlines and listen to the news about our “natural resources.”

Because while we get all wrapped up in our shorts about issues such as fracking and fossil fuels, we chronically…and, shame on us, at times seemingly deliberately…ignore our most precious natural resource: our children. It is, in fact, because we are rightfully so against poisoning our environment that we must not let anyone, perhaps especially our elected officials, poison the public wells…the environments…from which our public school children drink and where they learn.

Great public schools for all are not a luxury. They were and are the backbone of what made this society great. We diminish them at the very direct peril of diminishing ourselves. Stop blaming public school educators. Our political priorities are “dumbing us down.”

We must stop answering educational challenges with politically correct and for-profit solutions. We must stop worshiping educational panacea-like theories that equate producing great, thinking, problem-solving minds with bare-boned, assembly-line solutions. Those so-called “extra” curriculars we so often (and too often seemingly so easily) sacrifice on the altar of budget slashing are, as endless educational research has shown, more often the glue that holds students to their studies.

And we must stop teacher-bashing and teacher blaming. Today’s teachers are highly trained, highly skilled professionals dealing with often over-crowded classrooms filled with diverse levels of readiness, skills and socioeconomic challenges we never experienced. They are college-educated, many with advanced degrees…many with much debt from that training…competing in a shrinking job market and, too often, unfairly demonized for their critically important work. I dare you to spend one day dealing with all they must deal with to help our children succeed and come away with anything but admiration. (As for the idiots who will always want to find one teacher here or there who may be under-performing, I strongly suggest you take your critiques to our various Legislatures…locally and nationally, and perhaps do a little of that ‘venting’ at those who seem to spend far more time grid-locking real progress, campaigning, and taking mean-spirited shots at other people than they do getting things done for your tax dollars.)

Yes, I am angry, frustrated and disappointed.

Because the list of culprits is so long and so ‘highly placed.’ Even more because we placed them there.

I am angry, frustrated and disappointed because the list of victims is so long and growing so much longer.

Before we look at our public schools, our public school teachers and our public school students, asking “What’s wrong with them?”…I highly recommend taking a good, honest look at those who are supposed to be looking out for public education funding and ask “What’s wrong with them?”

Because we are wasting generations of our children…without question our greatest natural resource.

They deserve so much better.

And we who know better owe it to them.

David M. Rackow
School Director
School District of Cheltenham Township

Reply
- Ms. Cartwheel Librarian says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 2:07 pm
  
  Beautifully written. Thank you.
  
  Reply
- retiredbutmissthekids says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 2:40 pm
  
  David–In response to your enlightening comment–you might want to look at this new book–The Antidote-Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking by Oliver Burkeman. He explains a theory Chris Kayes (“a former stockbroker turned expert on organizational behaviour…and now a professor of management science at Geo. Washington University in Washington, D.C.”) calls “goalodicy”–and it hits the nail on the head regarding the famous Einstein definition of insanity–Burkeman says, according to goalodicy–
  
  “A business goal would be set, announced, and generally greeted
  with enthusiasm. But then evidence would begin to emerge that
  it had been an unwise one–and goalodicy would kick in as a
  response. The negative evidence would be reinterpreted as a
  reason to invest MORE effort and resources in pursuit of the goal.
  And so things would, not surprisingly, go even more wrong.”
  
  (Should you read the book–and you should!–the chapter “Goal Crazy” is particularly pertinent with respect to the failures within the business model, and this chapter can easily help any reader
  understand what is inherently wrong with the present business model.)
  
  And that, of course, is exactly what is wrong with applying the business model to the running of education. The business model is, quite simply, insanity according to one of the most brilliant human beings of our time.
  
  Note to Teaching Economist:please don’t start a dialogue with me as to this topic–especially if you haven’t yet read the book. I don’t mean to be rude, but I neither have the time nor the energy!
  
  Reply
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:41 pm
    
    The flaws in the present business model of, say Apple? Facebook? Walmart? General Electric? Every pleasure you have comes from the current business model. That doesn’t mean it’s a good one from public education. Come to think of it, public education could be described in the same terms as the business model is. But, I haven’t read the book, so no obligation to answer. The present public school systems are grossly underfunded, but why? Is it charters? Or is there some other flaw in the model? Possibly waste in the system?????? The efficiency remedies will probably not work, given the inherently labor intensive nature of good education. You can’t get 15 kids per class when a system puts 50% of its resources into administration. I don’t see anyone talking about intra-system efficiency.
- philalisa says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 7:12 pm
  
  From a Philadelphia teacher: thank you for having the courage to write this.
  
  Reply
- Teresa Wiley says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 7:09 am
  
  You have written the most perfect description of our situation.
  
  Reply
- Duane Swacker says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 12:41 pm
  
  “. . . ignore our most precious natural resource: our children”
  
  NO! Children nor any other human is a “natural resource”. Resources are there for the exploiting, humans should not be.
  
  Reply
Dienne says:

June 21, 2013 at 1:09 pm

How about a national strike the day after (week after?) Labor Day?

Reply
zulma says:

June 21, 2013 at 1:31 pm

If the Taylor Law in NYC wasn’t hanging over the teachers’ head, it would be a great idea to do a nation-wide walk out, especially after Labor Day.

Reply
- Dienne says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 1:40 pm
  
  I could probably google it, but what is the Taylor Law, if you’ll excuse my ignorance? Thanks.
  
  Reply
  - jaded says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 3:31 pm
    
    Dienne, not in its entirety but the most controversial part of the law makes it illegal for teachers to strike in NYS.
    It is also known as the Public Employees Fair Employment Act, which defines rights and limitations of unions for public employees in NY.
- Communist Teacher says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 4:22 pm
  
  zulma,
  
  if teachers don’t start some “direct action”, they won’t have to worry about the Taylor Law because they will no longer be employed as teachers.
  
  Reply
  - retiredbutmissthekids says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 4:42 pm
    
    How right you are, CT! Also, jaded, et.al., it wouldn’t have to be called a strike, especially not if it’s a day.
  - Dienne says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 4:48 pm
    
    Right, we could just have a nationwide outbreak of the Blue Flu.
- Louisiana Purchase says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 5:25 pm
  
  As much as I love the idea, it’s illegal for teachers to strike in Utah. I think it might be illegal in all “right to work” states.
  
  Reply
  - Ms. Dee says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 6:45 pm
    
    You are right. It’s a great idea, but that will never happen in North Carolina.
  - Lehrer says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:28 am
    
    It’s also illegal in unionized Connecticut.
  - Michael Fiorillo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:56 am
    
    Deeply embedded injustice is not challenged by obeying unjust laws. It can only be challenged and overcome when a critical mass of people, rarely a majority, decide they’ve had enough and are willing to defy those laws.
    
    Until the passage of the Wagner Act in the 1930’s, which acknowledged unions as legitimate under federal law, unions were considered illegal conspiracies in restraint of trade.
    
    It was the courage of working people in defying those laws which helped change the political climate, so that the laws themselves could be changed, which in turn further affected the climate.
    
    Until then, the beatings will continue…
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 11:11 am
    
    The Wagner Act covered unions in the private sector only. Public sector unions were not permitted until Jimmy Carter, another socialist president, made them legal.
  - Chi-Town Res says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 3:44 pm
    
    You can do what police forces who are not permitted to strike have done, call in sick –which is otherwise known as the “blue flu.”
  - Chi-Town Res says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 3:53 pm
    
    No, Harlan, Public sector unions are permitted by state and local laws, and it was JFK who enabled unionized workers to engage in collective bargaining with the federal government.
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:44 pm
    
    I should have said Jimmy Carter permitted federal employees to unionize.
  - Chi-Town Res says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 6:57 pm
    
    I don’t know why you’re blaming Carter when many federal employees were already unionized before he came along. JFK’s executive order permitting collective bargaining was expanded by an executive order issued by Nixon –are you going to call him a “socialist”, too? The Civil Service Reform Act was enacted by Congress when Carter was president: http://www.flra.gov/statute_history
  - Robert Rendo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:10 pm
    
    Right you are Michael!
KenS says:

June 21, 2013 at 1:42 pm

Diane, I just finished reading, because you mentioned it on this blog, “Education and the Cult of Efficiency” by Raymond Callahan. More than 50 years ago Callahan wrote, “. . . it is necessary to remember that American educators (naively perhaps but certainly humanely) have undertaken the most ambitious educational task in history – to educate all the children in a mass industrial society to the best of their ability. Furthermore they had to attempt to do this in a nation which wanted as much education as it could get for its children but was unwilling or did not understand the need to pay for it. In retrospect, America might have been better off in the long run if American educators had taken a realistic look at what was expected of them and the means that were being provided and had closed the schools. Perhaps in the ensuing crisis and debate a firm decision would have been reached either to make the necessary effort and sacrifice or to abandon our grandiose notions about education.”

Anyone who reads Callahan’s book will see that very little has changed in regards to our nation’s attitude toward publically funded education in the past 100 years. Certainly for more than 100 years the powers that be in the corporate world have known how to create doubt in the public’s mind as to whether they were getting their money’s worth from teachers. Perhaps what has changed is that the very wealthy no longer even pretend to care if other people’s children receive anything resembling a well-rounded education.

What would happen if we – public educators – did just close the schools now? Is that even possible? So many young teachers are so deeply in debt, and would be so scared of losing their jobs, I wonder if we could get even most teachers to walk off the job for even one day to make our point. In my state, Virginia, the law states that if three teachers conspire to create a work action of any sort, they can be fired without a hearing. The game is rigged against us, and our students.

But as we continue to do our best to teach as schools are closed and instruction and assessment are dictated by corporations, I fear we are complicit in the death of public education in this country. We have to stand up and fight.

Reply
- Ex-Teacher says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 4:01 pm
  
  Southern states have the same problem: illegal to strike.
  
  Perhaps all teachers nationwide could play movies that day? Striking without the AWOL part? It stinks for the kids, but so does having temp TFA teachers, garbage fad programs and weeks of punitive testing.
  
  Reply
  - FLERP! says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 5:14 pm
    
    Huh, maybe my kids’ teachers are already on strike. That would explain why they’ve been watching so many movies at school lately.
  - FLERP! says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 8:14 pm
    
    And today they watched another!
  - Mom/speducator says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 10:18 pm
    
    To FLerp: Did you email the teacher to ask what’s up? My son and his class got to watch a movie this week as an end of year activity; however the teacher sent home a permission slip and in detail described how she would tie it to a unit they had studied. After all their hard work this year, I happily signed it! He was pretty fried anyway, after studying for the final all week and weekend.
- Harlan Underhill says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 9:20 pm
  
  You are complicit in the death of public education, but not in the way you imagine. By adopting the union model of employment for the public sector, you set up a situation where the benefits for teachers exceeded the carrying capacity of the tax base, and then endorsed debt to fund those commitments. That’s what happened in Detroit, and what is happening nationally. The bill for over indebtedness is coming due. No mystery. It’s what was done with Social Security, with Medicare and Medicaid, and is being put in place with Obamacare. The public sector job burden became too great for the tax base. Unfortunately, the public schools really do need lots of teachers and small class sizes to do their job right. It isn’t gratuitous bureaucracy expansion as it is at the Federal level. There is also the ancillary factor that most public school teachers support those who want a large bureaucratic state. Cutting the federal bureaucracy would stimulate the economy. Cutting the cadre of teachers, conversely, cuts the productivity of public education. To the extent teachers in the public schools support government policies which diminish economic growth they have contributed to the shrinking tax receipts they need to maintain their quality.
  
  Reply
  - KenS says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 11:00 pm
    
    “By adopting the union model of employment for the public sector, you set up a situation where the benefits for teachers exceeded the carrying capacity of the tax base . . . .”
    
    You’re right, Harlan, absolutely no connection between the lack of funds for public infrastructure and corporate profits being at or near record highs, while corporate tax revenue as a percentage of GDP is at a 50-year low.
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:23 am
    
    Irony is not an answer, Ken. In essence, you are saying “tax the corporations.” But the corporations pass the taxes on to their customers. Higher taxes means less money in the consumer’s pocket to spend, which means a depressed, no-growth economy. I read just yesterday that Red Lobster’s traffic was done. It’s a mid-scale restaurant (not fast food), and less money in the pocket means diminished sales. So your argument is the same old, same old, tax the rich to pay the union workers. It’s the standard union screed, that they should get more of the product of their labor. It is a good debatable issue what percentage of productivity is owed to capital and what to labor. Capital is the goose that lays the golden eggs, i.e. provides jobs. What’s holding down economic growth is debt. The more you tax something the less of it you get. Your approach is self-defeating. You look at the numbers and you say, “They should be able to afford more.” But when you try to get it, by increased taxes, receipts go down. It’s just cause and effect.
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:24 am
    
    I mean Red Lobster’s traffic is “down.”
  - Duane Swacker says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 12:47 pm
    
    HU
    
    “It’s what was done with Social Security,” Social Security is solvent into the foreseeable future and can be pretty much for ever if the lid ($105,000/year roughly-another tax break for those with the most) on taxable income was lifted, plain and simple
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:47 pm
    
    IF the lid on taxable income were raised. Why isn’t it being done then? More to it than that.
  - Robert Rendo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:12 pm
    
    What everyone in this section should be asking the sixty-something HU is if HE is indeed receving social security or if not, if he intends to file for it on or before age 67?
    
    Harlan?
  - Duane Swacker says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:53 pm
    
    HU, it really is that simple. Now whether the politicians have anything other than there own hides in mind when it comes to this is another story.
matt says:

June 21, 2013 at 1:45 pm

If my school was unionized, I’d be all over this, but my first thought was “oh god, my charter school would fire me instantly.”

Reply
Tami C. Elton says:

June 21, 2013 at 2:19 pm

Some states, such as Florida, are “right-to-work.”

http://stateimpact.npr.org/florida/2012/09/13/why-florida-teachers-cannot-strike-the-way-chicago-teachers-can/

And

” Employees in Florida risk getting fired and unions receive fines for damages up to $20,000 per strike day. In addition, the union has to wait a year to be certified again. The penalties are so severe that only one strike occurred between 1975 and 1987.” from this Site: http://www.commonwealthfoundation.org/research/detail/teacher-strikes

Reply
Mark Collins says:

June 21, 2013 at 2:58 pm

Does Tennessee drug test their employees? If not, Kevin should volunteer for testing.

Reply
- Ex-Teacher says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 4:03 pm
  
  I’m sure they do. Drug testing is big money for big business.
  
  Reply
retiredbutmissthekids says:

June 21, 2013 at 3:20 pm

Matt–As we always told the non-tenured teachers in the school where I worked–you don’t have to be involved in this, but everyone who can (meaning tenured people) MUST be involved. So–for those of you who can–National Day w/o a Teacher–is a MUST.

Reply
- Ms. Dee says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 6:50 pm
  
  Tenured teachers and probationary teachers are not allowed to do this in right to work states, Even if we could, everyone would not be on board with the idea.
  
  Reply
  - KenS says:
    
    June 21, 2013 at 11:29 pm
    
    When do we stop doing what’s allowed and start doing what’s needed?
  - Robert Rendo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:13 pm
    
    KenS,
    
    EXCELLENT point!
- Harlan Underhill says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 4:48 pm
  
  Easy for you to say. If it isn’t a MUST for yourself it can’t be a MUST for anyone else. Basic ethics.
  
  Reply
Mom/speducator says:

June 21, 2013 at 3:36 pm

I have family who left NYS 10 years ago because of high taxes. They looked forward to making their dollars stretch further in TN, with the lower taxes and all.

Did they find the cost of living lower? YES

Were they able send their children to a comparable public school like in NYS? Yes. but only for one year.

They quickly found out the schools in TN not only allowed teachers without a masters degree to teach but also teachers without a BA!!
So now thousands of dollars later their children are in private schools and both working parents miss the quality public education NYS had to offer!

Reply
Communist Teacher says:

June 21, 2013 at 4:40 pm

The government and their corporate ed-reform masters won’t budge on any of our issues unless teachers start to make some real concerns for them.

Writing letters, petitioning legislators, commiserating on blogs etc. are the reactions of an acquiescent public. They expect this behavior and let the public use these increasingly diminishing liberties as a safety valve to let off some steam. Like steam, the people’s wishes evaporate in favor of even more oppressive, corrupt and totalitarian schemes not only in education, but in all areas of life in the United States.

The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.

-Che Guevara-

Reply
- Harlan Underhill says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 10:37 am
  
  Go ahead and strike. Every single teacher in the public schools can be replaced over night by certified persons happy to have the job when you are fired. Remember Reagan and the Air Traffic controllers. Teachers have this illusion that they are entitled to their jobs because they are doing the work of the angels. Communists extend that mentality to all workers. NO ONE has a “right” to a job. Communism is so passe, but at least, with your screen name, you’re honest about your philosophy of government. The truth is every other public school teacher thinks the same way, but they’re too afraid to say so. Remember ANIMAL FARM? When the workers (animals) were put in charge, led by the pigs, the pigs became worse than the original owner of the farm (capitalists). That’s my perception of comments like yours, that you are one of the smart pigs who want to take over, but are worse than the owners you are taking over from. You know, of course, that President Obama, is one of you. I doubt you’ll ever acknowledge how wrong you are, but that’s my case against communist teachers.
  
  Reply
  - Robert Rendo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:19 pm
    
    Harlan, you’re really into this “teachers are in love with Obama” thing. . . .
    
    You have this fixation, but could you somehow acquire some facts?
    
    Teachers do NOT like Obama. . . . the AFT endorsed him, but our unions don’t always, and especially now, represent their members. There is a huge schizm. . . . . . an enormous gap between teachers and their inclination towards Obama and Randi Weingarten (I prefer the name “Weinrotten”).
    
    Get a life, Harlan. But if not, get your violin tuned before you start playing solo.
jaded says:

June 21, 2013 at 5:16 pm

For those who live in NYS – SInce the teachers unions are being silenced can we enlist the help of other unions to become involved with this “war on education”? Police dept., fire dept. and any other civil servant unions? Just a thought because I’m wondering if those services will be the next to be privatized??

Reply
- Communist Teacher says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 5:25 pm
  
  good point jaded!
  
  There IS strength in numbers! If you are a fire fighter or police officer and think that your job is safe and that your services won’t eventually be privatized by some corporation, you’re naive or just ignorant.
  
  Reply
- Michael Fiorillo says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 11:04 am
  
  They’ll come for the cops last, since they are needed to keep the rest of us in line.
  
  But if they can break the teachers, they’ll eventually go after the police and their benefits, as well. What will be left is a highly-trained, highly-paid Praetorian Guard for the uber-wealthy, policing physical and social space, so that the Overclass can receive its interest, dividends, rents and fees without being troubled by the riff-raff.
  
  Reply
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 4:51 pm
    
    Are you against investment interest, dividends, rents? What makes someone “riff raff” anyway?
  - Robert Rendo says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 10:21 pm
    
    Harlan, you of all people know what makes someone “riff-raff”.
Pierre says:

June 21, 2013 at 6:35 pm

I’m not a US citizen but have followed the plight of your teachers under these variously obnoxious regimes. While reading the posts above, I found myself imagining teachers turning up to class with their mouths gaffer taped shut for the day.
You are being politically silenced so why not make it official? Of course, you’d have the freedom to choose what color tape to use!

Reply
- Bob says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 11:33 pm
  
  Brilliant idea!
  
  Reply
remotestidea says:

June 21, 2013 at 6:49 pm

I’m not a US citizen but have followed the plight of your teachers with great sadness. Reading the posts above, I was struck by how severely teacher’s rights were being eroded and threatened. It feels like you are being politically marginalized and silenced. That might explain why, as I was reading, I kept getting an image of teachers turning up to class with their mouths gaffer taped shut. If that’s your way of protesting, you would of course have the freedom to choose which color tape to use.

Reply
- Louisiana Purchase says:
  
  June 21, 2013 at 9:36 pm
  
  That’s actually not a bad idea! I wonder if we could get it to fly?
  
  Reply
Harlan Underhill says:

June 22, 2013 at 10:52 am

What are “teacher’s rights”? Better use duct tape. Gaffer’s tape is a lot more adhesive. It’ll tear your lips off when you try to remove it. But it’s good symbol of teacher stupidity at not appreciating the difference between real political oppression of free speech, and not being able to strike on pain of losing a job.

Everyone else in the country who is labor is a “fire at will” employee. Teachers in the public school systems think they are the priests of an established religion. Seriously. But they are not. They are “just” employees in a service industry that by accident of history was organized around towns, villages, and municipalities.

There is nothing essential about education that requires it to be a government service, especially when that status has been abused by unionization. The unions elect the school boards. The school boards give the unions contracts that put too great a burden on the available revenues. The revenues run out. The public elects a different school board. States turn from union shop to right to work. If unions asked for reasonable contracts, Michigan would still be union shop. The actual people are repudiating the socialist models. The socialists call this “astro turf,” meaning it is not real grass roots. But it IS real grass roots. You pirates held us up, but now we are taking back the ship.

I sound more hostile to teachers and teaching than I really am. I’m just reporting to you what I see as really going on.

Reply
Chi-Town Res says:

June 22, 2013 at 4:11 pm

Trying to replace over 3M qualified teachers is nothing like replacing 11K air traffic controllers.

I would, however, suggest that a shopping boycott be implemented at the same time, to promote the message that the strike is against the hostile take-over of public education and government by corporations.

It would be a long list of companies and it would have to be published, because while most people might be familiar with the usual culprits, like the Waltons, Kochs, etc., how many people realize that the CEO of Overstock.com is the president of the Friedman Foundation –as in Milton Friedman, the neo-liberal GOP economist and father of the public school privatization movement?

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- Harlan Underhill says:
  
  June 22, 2013 at 5:08 pm
  
  If you think the public schools have bad press now, just go ahead and strike nationally on the day after labor day. Say your protest is against the corporate takeover of “public” education. No one will know what you mean, even. Or if they do, will say “about time.” The public will see all the kiddies in private schools and in charters and enrolled in on-line schools starting their year with that wonderful new lunch-box look on their faces, and will start inquiring about vacant spaces in the local charter schools and will decamp as quickly as possible. New charters will spring up to handle the kids not in school with emergency licensing. I can handle six in my own home. The parents support it because they want the kids out of the house so they can go to work. Just lovely. “Diane Ravitch leads national teachers’ strike” will be the national headlines. Or “Public school teachers hold children hostage for higher pay.” That’s not true is it? Just lovely. “Weingarten repudiates strike.” Just lovely. “Pearson offers to take over nation’s schools.” There are 3 million out of work teachers who would cross a picket line. Yes, let’s educate “the public” about teacher pay is 30% higher than comparable jobs, why pensions are defined benefit, and why tenure is necessary. Explain that to 30 million people who don’t even have any job. Just my opinion, of course.
  
  Reply
  - Harlan Underhill says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 5:09 pm
    
    “parents will NOT support it”
  - Chi-Town Res says:
    
    June 22, 2013 at 5:36 pm
    
    I don’t think it would be a good idea to do it right after Labor Day either and I never said that. However, Chicago teachers went on strike last year in late September and parents supported them, because teachers had reached out to parents and communities.
    
    No, it is not about money for teachers. It’s about politicians starving our neediest schools so they can declare them failing, blame teachers, close those schools and hand them over to private enterprises.
    
    This has been going on all across the country in our major cities, and now corporations are poised to enter suburban real estate “markets” as well. As supporter of corporate “reform” Rick Hess said, “First, politicians will actually embrace the Common Core assessments and then will use them to set cut scores that suggest huge numbers of suburban schools are failing.” http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rick_hess_straight_up/2012/11/the_common_core_kool-aid.html
Bob says:

June 22, 2013 at 11:45 pm

How about a national “Call-out-sick” day?

Reply