L.A. Unified union, district at odds over best way to train teachers for Common Core By John Fensterwald
Both Los Angeles Unified officials and the union representing teachers agree that the bulk of one-time state money for the transition to the Common Core standards should be spent on teacher training. They disagree over how best to provide it.
Los Angeles Unified Deputy Superintendent Jaime Aquino outlines the district’s plan for $113 million implementing the Common Core standards.
In a debate that will likely be repeated in districts across California, the district is proposingthat a sizable piece of the $113 million coming its way should create a network of teacher specialists who’ll lead the charge for implementing the new English language arts and math standards. United Teachers Los Angeles wants all of the money sent to school sites for full-day trainings and collaboration. In an interview and in comments during a district school board meeting on Tuesday, UTLA President Warren Fletcher criticized the district’s approach and said he feared the creation of “another bureaucracy” that would siphon money from the classroom once the state money runs out in two years.
The Legislature included $1.25 billion for Common Core implementation in this year’s state budget – a signal of strong state support for the new standards at a time when some states have expressed ambivalence about moving forward. Tests in the new standards will be introduced in spring 2015.
Lawmakers and Gov. Jerry Brown have given districts two years and wide discretion on using the