Consultants WRONG about teacher pay!

“We know that getting a degree is not related to student achievement.”
-Education consultant Tabitha Grossman


Blue Ribbon Commission Chair Glenny Lee Buquet, left, makes a point as LFT President Steve Monaghan looks on. (Advocate photo)

Members of the Blue Ribbon Commission for Educational Excellence were shocked recently when consultants suggested cutting the state teacher salary schedule in order to give bonuses to some teachers.

Even more shocking was the rationale given by consultant Tabitha Grossman for such a radical change in the way teachers are paid: Advanced degrees mean nothing, and after five years in the classroom teachers stagnate and don't do anything different.

LFT President Steve Monaghan was quick to respond, saying "We will never tell teachers who have invested time, money and effort in earning advanced degrees that they labored in vain. And we simply reject the contention that teachers stagnate after five years. Teachers are by nature life-time learners. Good teachers continuously learn new skills and approaches that they can bring to their classrooms."

The consultants' fees were paid out of a $25,000 grant from the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices. The question is, who chose these particular consultants to report to the commission? Other consultants might have come up with other, proven solutions, like smaller classes, extended school days and years, placing the most qualified teachers in the most challenged schools, etc.

But you get what you paid for. And the people who paid for these consultants definitely got what they paid for - an assault on the professional educators who are dedicated to the children in their classrooms.

"We hope that over the next few months the commission will hear from other experts who can provide very different perspectives," Monaghan said.

For more information about this issue, please click here.

BESE member displays extreme anti-public bias

 
Chas Roemer

 Board of Elementary and Secondary Education Member Chas Roemer all but declared war on traditional public schools and teachers at the second annual Louisiana Charter School Conference in New Orleans on September 11.

For Roemer, the issue has apparently gone far beyond the establishment of charters as components of a healthy public education system. The BESE member spoke of a conflict between charter schools and "a system that does not work and those who want to protect it," a reference to traditional public schools."

But as any number of serious studies demonstrate, there is simply no evidence that charter schools do a better job of educating our children than well-run, properly resourced public schools.

Roemer expressed his disdain for public schools, public school teachers and the unions they choose to represent them with is comment: “Charter schools are now a threat to a jobs program called public education.”

LFT President Steve Monaghan quickly responded to Roemer. Charter schools, like every other place of employment, are also "jobs programs" because they hire teachers and school employees. The difference is that charter schools are not required to recognize the same employment rights as traditional public schools. Among those rights are decent salaries, health insurance, retirement benefits and the protection of due process.

“If Mr. Roemer’s idea is to lower the wages for educators, to deprive them of benefits, then we are definitely going to oppose those kinds of initiatives," said Monaghan.

Judging from comments by Roemer and a few others at the charter school conference, it is apparent that some charter school supporters are determined to create a back door, privatized education system. They have a blind faith that what they want is better than what we have, but there is precious little evidence to back them up.

What you need to know about the flu!

 

Please click here to visit the American Federation of Teachers' resource pages about the H1N1 influenza A virus. Read what you need to know about the flu, how you should be prepared if the outbreak reaches your school, and what you can do to minimize your risk of infection. The site will be updated as new information becomes available.

Visit EdLog for news commentary and analysis from the Louisiana Federation of Teachers. Please click here.
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