It should be obvious to anyone now that if remote teachers are adequate, there's no need for a local teachers union. The teachers could be in Mumbai and it would be the same for the kids.
Public sector unions, especially teachers unions, have outlived their usefulness. If the destruction of a generation of children isn't enough to get the attention of Congress, I'm not sure what would. Can the Democrat party really be so morally bankrupt and beholden to union financial support that they can't see this? Given that their other sacred commandment is Planned Parenthood-funded support for unlimited taxpayer-funded abortion, I suspect the answer to that question is yes.
And we still voted them in, knowing full well what the outcome would be. Shame on us.
It sad when you have the Teacher's Unions take control of how and when kids should be coming back to school. I've just been hearing so many sad stories of kids as young as 9 years old, committing suicide. I think we need legislation that gives parents the right to school choice, instead of these Unions.
Thank you for highlighting that $ + unions = corruption. In this case, teachers still get paid for delivering a terrible product remotely, which is causing terrible damage to our children. There should be in person learning in public schools, just as there is in Catholic and other private settings.
Bari Libertarians do not hold many political offices but somehow our ideas are winning. Drugs in vending machines is a canard. The fact is that the war on drugs has been the most racist policy our government has pursued since Jim Crow and Separate but equal. We were in favor of gay marriage long before Barack Obama. Drug legalization is spreading. qualified immunity and civil asset forfeiture are being challenged in the courts and our relentless advocacy of school choice will some day break the back of the racist teacher's unions.
[QUOTE]"Several Chicago teachers used the art of dance to express their opposition to reopening schools “until it’s safe.” In their video, which was shared by the Chicago Teachers Union, the dancing teachers sway and repeat the word “safety” over and over again. “Not until it’s safe!” chanted New York City teachers as they marched in September. Some carried signs that read “no one is safe until every school is safe.”[/QUOTE]
Two quick points: those who've read "The Coddling of the American Mind" (Lukianoff and Haidt) will recognize that in this context, "safety" is presented as a dichotomy: you're either safe or not, with shades of "unsafe" going unrecognized. (And absolute safety is a "phantom" - a goal that appears attainable but can never be achieved, per Pratkanis in How to Sell a Pseudoscience https://tinyurl.com/h7qgwvm).
The second point is that by ignoring shades of "safe" the teachers are playing to what Lukianoff and Haidt call "safetyism," our culture's desire (and belief) that absolute safety must be our goal by any means necessary.
It is time for a coordinated national parents' strike. Give them until September to FULLY reopen five days a week or on the first day of school no kids show up to video school. Money is tied to the kids in seats: no kids in seats, no money. Parents must realize that they have the ultimate power over the selfish unions. PARENTS' STRIKE SEPTEMBER.
The teacher's unions always hold a figurative gun to our kid's heads every time they are in negotiations with the school boards. They say it's for the kids, but their actions suggest otherwise. Most teachers already receive an annual salary for working 3/4 of the year, the best job security in the world (tenure) and a lifetime taxpayer-funded pension at their peak salary when they retire. What else do they want? Of course, teachers play a fundamental role in our society. They deserve our love and respect, but that should never prevent us from calling out greed where and when it exists. Especially when our children's futures are at stake.
I say we stop paying the teachers until they return to school. They've had a year of paid "partial" work/leave. It's time to change up the incentive structure here.
Another travesty is the college students imprisoned in dorm rooms across our country. And the parents paying for that privilege (Zoom University) and especially at the most elite universities (naturally they are the most locked down) for the safety and well being of all. It's fraudulent. It's dangerous. It's so unhealthy. And then there's shaming and snitching on a student just trying to go for a jog alone without a mask. And the silencing of parents who dare to question any of it. Try posting this issue on Grown & Flown or any college parent FB page and watch the attack. And the students are so compliant out of fear - and that concerns me the most.
I’m a fan of school choice, but even charter schools don’t necessarily guarantee better education service, and many charter orgs are beginning to unionize. Allowing funding to follow the child is really the only way to increase competition within the system and ensure accountability. It is clear that no matter what is stated to the contrary, today unions offer its members job protections and money mostly based on seniority rather than merit. If the interests of the union correlate with the interests of students and their parents, that is just a happy accident.
Teachers/union bashers on this thread: you are why America will never have a good education system, because for whatever reason, you don’t believe that tenured teachers are really trying and giving it their all, but from what I can see, it takes incredible credentials, work and passion to be in a classroom with children and attempt to educate them.
I don’t know what gives Joe Public some inherent right to judge the work of teachers from their perch as managers of accounts payable, plumbers or line chefs. Could a random teacher judge YOUR job performance. I didn’t think so. If you’re middle aged, are you better at what you do generally speaking, and deserve to be paid more? Sure you are. Why are teachers different?
I just think this “teachers/teachers Union” nonsense is some reflexive meme conservatives/GOP just trot out because this is some zombie meme false stereotype unsupported by experience that deserves to die but lingers on. But we need to call it out and it needs to stop if we want to attract and keep teachers in our schools and treat them as national treasures instead than a bunch of deadwood and freeloaders.
And as another data point, now that the Postal Service has had a near death experience at the hands of a Trump functionary, I don’t hear so much knee jerk b*tching about the Post Office as there used to be, a conversational prop like the weather. People would love to have next day First Mail delivery again instead of it taking a week.
It amazes me that the teachers unions care so little about the children. I almost guarantee that if their paychecks stop they would be back to work in a hurry. It’s very simple, no work no pay.
If this pandemic helps us reimagine our disastrous K-12 system it will be a blessing. It’s amusing to me that the same group that espouses choice in terminating a life is aghast that parents should be able to choose the best school situation for their child. The teachers unions are simply evil.
I'm wondering if anyone has a response (preferably with some data) for people who say that going back in person puts poor communities at risk because they are often in crowded homes without the ability to isolate a sick child to prevent spreading. That a kid could come home with covid and spread to the rest of the family(who might be more vulnerable). This is the only contention I've heard that I'm not sure what the data says on it.
It should be obvious to anyone now that if remote teachers are adequate, there's no need for a local teachers union. The teachers could be in Mumbai and it would be the same for the kids.
Public sector unions, especially teachers unions, have outlived their usefulness. If the destruction of a generation of children isn't enough to get the attention of Congress, I'm not sure what would. Can the Democrat party really be so morally bankrupt and beholden to union financial support that they can't see this? Given that their other sacred commandment is Planned Parenthood-funded support for unlimited taxpayer-funded abortion, I suspect the answer to that question is yes.
And we still voted them in, knowing full well what the outcome would be. Shame on us.
It sad when you have the Teacher's Unions take control of how and when kids should be coming back to school. I've just been hearing so many sad stories of kids as young as 9 years old, committing suicide. I think we need legislation that gives parents the right to school choice, instead of these Unions.
Thank you for highlighting that $ + unions = corruption. In this case, teachers still get paid for delivering a terrible product remotely, which is causing terrible damage to our children. There should be in person learning in public schools, just as there is in Catholic and other private settings.
Bari Libertarians do not hold many political offices but somehow our ideas are winning. Drugs in vending machines is a canard. The fact is that the war on drugs has been the most racist policy our government has pursued since Jim Crow and Separate but equal. We were in favor of gay marriage long before Barack Obama. Drug legalization is spreading. qualified immunity and civil asset forfeiture are being challenged in the courts and our relentless advocacy of school choice will some day break the back of the racist teacher's unions.
[QUOTE]"Several Chicago teachers used the art of dance to express their opposition to reopening schools “until it’s safe.” In their video, which was shared by the Chicago Teachers Union, the dancing teachers sway and repeat the word “safety” over and over again. “Not until it’s safe!” chanted New York City teachers as they marched in September. Some carried signs that read “no one is safe until every school is safe.”[/QUOTE]
Two quick points: those who've read "The Coddling of the American Mind" (Lukianoff and Haidt) will recognize that in this context, "safety" is presented as a dichotomy: you're either safe or not, with shades of "unsafe" going unrecognized. (And absolute safety is a "phantom" - a goal that appears attainable but can never be achieved, per Pratkanis in How to Sell a Pseudoscience https://tinyurl.com/h7qgwvm).
The second point is that by ignoring shades of "safe" the teachers are playing to what Lukianoff and Haidt call "safetyism," our culture's desire (and belief) that absolute safety must be our goal by any means necessary.
It is time for a coordinated national parents' strike. Give them until September to FULLY reopen five days a week or on the first day of school no kids show up to video school. Money is tied to the kids in seats: no kids in seats, no money. Parents must realize that they have the ultimate power over the selfish unions. PARENTS' STRIKE SEPTEMBER.
Regarding your last few columns — and the ones before that, going back to day 1 — they were and are good enough to pay for. So I have just subscribed.
The teacher's unions always hold a figurative gun to our kid's heads every time they are in negotiations with the school boards. They say it's for the kids, but their actions suggest otherwise. Most teachers already receive an annual salary for working 3/4 of the year, the best job security in the world (tenure) and a lifetime taxpayer-funded pension at their peak salary when they retire. What else do they want? Of course, teachers play a fundamental role in our society. They deserve our love and respect, but that should never prevent us from calling out greed where and when it exists. Especially when our children's futures are at stake.
I say we stop paying the teachers until they return to school. They've had a year of paid "partial" work/leave. It's time to change up the incentive structure here.
Another travesty is the college students imprisoned in dorm rooms across our country. And the parents paying for that privilege (Zoom University) and especially at the most elite universities (naturally they are the most locked down) for the safety and well being of all. It's fraudulent. It's dangerous. It's so unhealthy. And then there's shaming and snitching on a student just trying to go for a jog alone without a mask. And the silencing of parents who dare to question any of it. Try posting this issue on Grown & Flown or any college parent FB page and watch the attack. And the students are so compliant out of fear - and that concerns me the most.
I’m a fan of school choice, but even charter schools don’t necessarily guarantee better education service, and many charter orgs are beginning to unionize. Allowing funding to follow the child is really the only way to increase competition within the system and ensure accountability. It is clear that no matter what is stated to the contrary, today unions offer its members job protections and money mostly based on seniority rather than merit. If the interests of the union correlate with the interests of students and their parents, that is just a happy accident.
Teachers/union bashers on this thread: you are why America will never have a good education system, because for whatever reason, you don’t believe that tenured teachers are really trying and giving it their all, but from what I can see, it takes incredible credentials, work and passion to be in a classroom with children and attempt to educate them.
I don’t know what gives Joe Public some inherent right to judge the work of teachers from their perch as managers of accounts payable, plumbers or line chefs. Could a random teacher judge YOUR job performance. I didn’t think so. If you’re middle aged, are you better at what you do generally speaking, and deserve to be paid more? Sure you are. Why are teachers different?
I just think this “teachers/teachers Union” nonsense is some reflexive meme conservatives/GOP just trot out because this is some zombie meme false stereotype unsupported by experience that deserves to die but lingers on. But we need to call it out and it needs to stop if we want to attract and keep teachers in our schools and treat them as national treasures instead than a bunch of deadwood and freeloaders.
And as another data point, now that the Postal Service has had a near death experience at the hands of a Trump functionary, I don’t hear so much knee jerk b*tching about the Post Office as there used to be, a conversational prop like the weather. People would love to have next day First Mail delivery again instead of it taking a week.
It amazes me that the teachers unions care so little about the children. I almost guarantee that if their paychecks stop they would be back to work in a hurry. It’s very simple, no work no pay.
If this pandemic helps us reimagine our disastrous K-12 system it will be a blessing. It’s amusing to me that the same group that espouses choice in terminating a life is aghast that parents should be able to choose the best school situation for their child. The teachers unions are simply evil.
I'm wondering if anyone has a response (preferably with some data) for people who say that going back in person puts poor communities at risk because they are often in crowded homes without the ability to isolate a sick child to prevent spreading. That a kid could come home with covid and spread to the rest of the family(who might be more vulnerable). This is the only contention I've heard that I'm not sure what the data says on it.