Striking Teachers Deny High School Students Their Education

Teachers striking is such a difficult issue. In this case, the community was split - in addition to the quotes in the story posted, this was trimmed:

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But many people spoke in support of the teachers, like parent Toni Eubanks: "We are lucky enough to have great schools here, but that doesn't happen miraculously. It happens because of our dedicated well trained teachers."

"Both sides have got to give, otherwise, there's no settlement. The only way that any action happens is through conversation," said taxpayer Bill Bevans.

A number of people walked out of the meeting when they found out the cost to taxpayers to meet the teachers demands would be just $12.50 on a $100,000 house. Some said they couldn't believe things had gone so far over such a small amount.

A federal negotiator is expected to continue the talks on Tuesday. Teachers say they hope that means they'll be back in school on Wednesday.

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Local tv broadcasters estimated 1,000 in attendance at a meeting a few days ago, and today's news bring us a resolution to the strike:

Teachers, district reach tentative deal, ending strike

Mediation and discussion can be effective, as can the type of approach used in the Reagan case. Of course, that should be the extreme, very rare case, as compared to the VT example.

 

Or, alternatively, all the whiny parents could put up or shutup.

(edited to say: okay, that was a bit too snarky. Could have something to do with there being one more day of school left. But I stand behind the underlying truth)

 

And replaced with..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

I bet you're a real ************** on parent-teacher conference day. I hate dealing with your kind.

 

Hell, anyone can teach. It's easy. Just ask our resident genius, IntheNet. It's not like it takes practice or experience or anything.

 

Why do I suspect you're lying about being a parent? Gee, I wonder. Anyway.

I'm sure you're familiar with all the details. As no doubt the next portion of your post will likely demonstrate...

To quote Nelson from the Simpsons, HA ha.

Seriously. Someone is supposed to quit what they're doing to work on a temporary basis? Not only do I not think you're a parent, I have serious doubts that you're an adult.

Yup. He actually said it: "made to leave the area." Are they going to be tarred and feathered first?

THat's a nice way to treat the "temporary" teachers you hired above. Do you have ANY idea how much time and money it would take to replace EVERY teacher (some of them twice, apparently), even in a small district? Of course not. You have no interest in, nor knowledge of, anything to do with education, judging by the ridiculous crap you post here.

And you need to quit trolling. You've done nothing in this forum but disrespect teachers. Every thread you start suggests that you are probably still angry about something that happened in 7th grade. Who knows, maybe Mrs. Watson caught you lying or something.

In other words, you jumped the gun hysterically, again.

 

As to "Lake Region Union High School," I care enough to let them deal with their problems on their own. You, on the other hand, don't give a crap about them other than as providing fodder for one of your embarrassing rants. As far as "any other school," goes, my student evaluations suggest otherwise, as do observations by the people who keep hiring me.

"catgates"? I don't take "posters" to task for what they post. I take you to task for trolling. I, like you, don't know a damn thing about "Lake Region Union High School." I admit it. You don't.

Sorry, clown, but given what you posted in response to iceblink, we can only conclude that, in addition to being a confirmed liar and a troll, you are also comically ignorant of basic budgetary matters concerning public education, and thus have nothing to add to this forum other than occasionally trying to get other people to pay attention to you.

I'm glad to oblige, within reason, but you should seek professional help. But given how much time you can devote to doing these sorts of things, I seriously doubt that you are really a parent.

Depends. I'm damn glad for the strike that took place for two weeks in Februaray of my sophomore year. It called attention to the problems teachers were having in my town making ends meet, and they forced concessions that kept around two of my favorite teachers, both of whom were on the verge of leaving if they were going to have to spend the rest of their careers doing manual labor over the summer. They stuck around and helped me figure out how to get into college. Who knows who would've done that, if anybody, had there not been an effective strike during the school year. So in that particular case: Yes. Other cases? I don't know.

See, I actually am involved in education, so I know you can't make blanket statements like you are prone to do.

 

Ya know, I am not the greatest Civics teacher in the world but I am pretty sure the government cant make you leave the area even if they fire you as a teacher.

Well, if you are Native American, I guess there is precedent but that might be a public relations disaster in this day and age.

Btw, InTheNet ... do you have any relatives in Colorado? Maybe they were involved in this ? Maybe a grandpa? It seems to fit in with your style.

 

This situation brings to mind to nature of the relationship between teachers, their union and the educational system.

Teachers are forced to join an organization (the union) they know does little or nothing to make their job easier. The union's major goal is to collect dues from as many members as possible then use that money to run a political agenda that frequently violates the desires of the membership. Many of the issues the union supports have little or nothing to do with education at all. Yet the system is set up so that it is virtually impossible for teachers to opt out of the forced "political contribution." This system is sick. It amounts to a legal shakedown system of teachers.

Finally when it comes time for a new contract, it frequently looks like the union chooses to behave in such a way as to insult the intelligence of most reasonable people. And heaven help anyone with a modicum of intelligence about how a business should operate because the union demands seem purposely designed work at cross purposes with the way any business should operate.

Finally when it all falls apart and the union decides to pretend like a Jimmy Hoffa movie, teachers are compelled to strike because of the way the system is set up.

Look, there are some teachers out there who shouldn't be in a classroom, BUT, they are a minority. Most teachers DO approach it as a vocation. They have to. The money is c**P and the support they get from admin and district is nil.

Now after all that, the organization they are forced to join puts them in a position where reasonable parents and community members begin to question their true committment to this critical, thankless and underpaid job.

If we truly want to help improve education in this country, the only way to do it is to support alternatives to the current education monopoly. Until we provide competition to the current system that allows teachers to be paid a reasonable wage and supports their efforts, we will be stuck with the same old stuff...

 

One point worth discussing is how far negotiations should go before a strike during the school year becomes a viable option. In this case, negotiations continued for 17 months. If the teachers waited for another month, for school to be out, then who would listen or care? Precisely no one. So in the extreme - and I don't know if there is a hard and fast rule about where that line is - case that negotiations don't work, striking during the school year is the next step.

A controversial one, to be sure, one that always turns my mind imemdiately to the students and what they'll be missing during a strike. If the demands are reasonable enough and the negotiations stalled hopelessly enough - how else to get 1,000 community members talking about the issue? That is one of the things a strike is desinged to do.

Strikers have to gamble that their absence will generate more sympathy than outrage - indifference being the big enemy. In the case we're sort of discussing, it appeared from the first article that parents were predominantly outraged, but as I showed in the subsequent post, the news story was trimmed. We don't know figures as to how many people ended up in what camp, but the community "was divided" over the issue.

Ultimately, this strike resulted in a quick compromise and settled the issue. This is good for the teachers, because even people who may initially favor their side might flip if the loss of teaching time becomes too impactful.

 

This may be true for how your wife's union operated, but please don't universalize this. The teachers union I was in during graduate school and the one my wife was in when she taught high school was invaluable for making our jobs easier, for mediating conflicts with parents and departments, got me a tuition waver and health care coverage and got subsidized child care for those who needed it, and set up procedures for people to follow if they had employment related grievances instead of leaving them to go it alone. Both had teachers highly involved in running the locals. In my opinion, my union dues were money very well spent.

 

Be VERY grateful you do not live in California. CTA and the locals do none of what you mentioned above.

The union finally agreed to less than COLA for 04/05 just at the beginning of May THIS SPRING. That contract gave teachers 2.4% increase even though the total funding package increase was just under 6%. The health package actually was cut back. They didn't even try.

And they haven't even started on 05/06. Teachers will go back to school in August without a contract and no negotiations are even scheduled for the fall yet.

 

And replaced with who? They can't even find the substitutes on a temporary basis. What a moron.

Where? Again, if you read the arcticle you would see that they can't find subs.

 

If you read the article you would have seen that the teachers were praised as being good teachers by parents and administrators.

Yea, currently there's a glut of teachers in the teaching profession, so firing many who have been labled as "good" is a fantastic idea.

Either the Lake Region district didn't try this, or that idea didn't work. Either way, the striking teachers can't be held accountable for the lack of substitutes (this is not a defense of their striking).

 

I don't know how it works back there but you would NOT get any full-time replacements in Calfornia if you were to fire the current staff. The union hold is too strong.

 

I know I shouldn't continue with this, but this statement struck me as very odd.

IntheNet, you do realize a strike during summer time has zero chance of succeeding?

 

If there is a real teacher that actually feels that way ... he or she has to be the biggest idiot ever. I could pick up trash for the city and make 15,000 more than I make now.

 

I don't know how it is where you live but in California you won't get a teaching job in a public school unless you join the union. You have no choice. And to make matters worse, you also are forced to pay dues to the union so they can go on, among other things, forcing all teachers to join the union and pay their union dues to the union so they can go on...

Teachers are captives of one of the worst work systems in the country...and because it is so bad, all but a VERY few of the best and the brightest of our young college grads choose to work anywhere but as a teacher because of the working conditions. And those that do become teachers, quit within 3 years over the working conditions.

Now if the union started to do what it should....

 

I take it you're not a teacher.? Almost every teacher I know could get a much better paid job easily. If they became teachers for money and benefits they are in the wrong place.

You live in the DC area, as I do; how much do you think teachers make?