Friday, April 15, 2011

Ken Swanson’s historic achievement: a scenario. « Fred Klonsky's blog

Ken Swanson’s historic achievement: a scenario. « Fred Klonsky's blog

Ken Swanson’s historic achievement: a scenario.

Sue Carrel comments:

Fred,

Here is a letter a friend of mine sent to the Sun Times…he says I can share it since it probably won’t be published. I was a suburban teacher, my husband was a Chicago teacher and I always wondered why we were represented by two different unions. Especially now in these teacher-bashing times we should consolidate forces! This new legislation is a lose-lose situation for all but the union-busting corporate-backed powers that be. Here’s the letter:

Before everyone starts congratulating the State Legislature for “ending seniority and making teachers more accountable to show growth,” please consider the following scenario that probably will be replayed hundreds of times at all grades in the Chicago Public Schools next year: The principal hires a new 2nd grade teacher who proves to be awful. After a year the principal can dump that teacher and not many would feel bad about it (excect the 2nd grade kids and their parents