SUPPORT FOR LOS ANGELES, OAKLAND, DENVER TEACHERS; ONLY INCREMENTAL CHANGES ON EVALUATION IN NY (UPDATED)

Just coming off hiatus today to fully endorse the actions of the teachers from big cities that are fed up and are fighting back with strikes, other job actions and threatened strikes. Meanwhile in NYS, we are looking for incremental change on evaluation.

This is from Los Angeles where the UTLA (United Teachers of Los Angeles) strike has gone on for five days.

Bargaining is going on this weekend. Note that a big issue in LA is class size and we haven't fought for lower class size as a contractual issue here in NYC for fifty years. They are also battling against charter schools strongly out in LA. Saving public education is a big issue there.

Next we go up the left coast to Oakland where teachers on their own staged an unsanctioned walkout for a day. They are also threatening a full scale strike. The main issue here is pay but again class size is on the table.

From KGO in San Fransisco :

"Classes are too big, we don't have a living wage, so it's hard to pay rent," said Quinn Ranahand as she marched alongside other teachers.

Now on to Denver where teachers are catching the activist fever too. They are voting on whether to authorize a strike.

From the Denver Post story:

“It’s nice to see the union finally fight the Denver district’s plan, which has been happening forever in private,” Diaz said. “It’s long overdue. It’s imperative we value the teachers and what they’re asking.”

In NYC we usually endorse the district's plans unless I am missing something.

I fully acknowledge that teachers in NYC are paid better than the teachers in LA, Denver and Oakland but working conditions are not exactly improving here. We have an early, lengthy contract so forget about any militancy in the big apple as the contract is settled through 2022. Maybe, we don't need any. It is almost inconceivable to even consider any kind of action here over any issue.

If you want an issue we should be fighting over, it is teacher evaluation. However, in New York State, NYSUT and the UFT are looking to push for small gains as the bill on changing the evaluation law is much less than meets the eye.

Here is a review from upstate teacher activist Bianca Tanis:

Bianca Tanis

23 hrs ·

Please be aware that the proposed APPR legislation is not what the press claims it to be. At best, it’s a step in the right direction. Schools will still have to use a test to evaluate teachers and that test will count for 50% of a teacher’s evaluation. The difference is that it does not have to be the state test (although it can be) and your school district will get to decide which test to use. The bill still requires the use of junk science. Student performance will still be reduced to a growth score for use in the matrix. This is not a victory for students or teachers. No matter how innovative, authentic, and valid an assessment we can create, using student performance measures to evaluate the efficacy of a teacher is wrong. The practice has no basis in research. It is wrong and it will harm students. I acknowledge that this is probably the best deal on the table right now, but it is not a good one.

That's enough for now. Perhaps back on hiatus for a while but maybe we'll emerge again.

No time for hiatus with news coming in quickly.

The LA strike looks like it is over. The teachers won lower class sizes.

From The LA Times piece:

The tentative deal includes what amounts to a 6% raise for teachers — with a 3% raise for the last school year and a 3% raise for this school year. This was the district offer on the table before teachers went on strike, but the walkout was always about more than salary.

The agreement also includes a reduction of class sizes over four years to levels in the previous contract, but removes a contract provision that has allowed the school district to increase class sizes in times of economic hardship, Caputo-Pearl said in an interview. It was not immediately clear how that issue would be dealt with going forward.