“The power and influence of education unions has a significant effect on schools today. But is that good for American students?” Education Unions: Made Simple, the fourth in a series of short videos, explains the stifling effect of unions on the nation’s schools using a simple analogy. Sunny, a talented musician who is adored by his fans, is suddenly forced to join a musicians’ union. While the union provides perks, it also pushes rules upon him, such as restricting how long he can meet with fans and the time he …
It’s hard to forget former National Education Association (NEA) General Counsel Bob Chanin’s farewell address during the 2009 NEA national convention. “It is not because we care about children; and it is not because we have a vision of a great public school for every child,” Chanin boasted. “The NEA and its affiliates are effective advocates because we have power.” To kick off this year’s conference, the NEA had several plenary sessions from Monday through Wednesday in advance of the main convention. The sessions were designed to “explore actions that …
Tennessee could soon become the latest state to deal public-sector collective bargaining a major blow. The Tennessee state House has just passed a measure that limits collective bargaining for teachers. Education employees would no longer be able to bargain over performance pay and school assignment policies, such as teacher compensation and layoffs. The Senate version of the bill eliminates collective bargaining altogether. The two bills will now have to be reconciled in conference committee before heading on to Governor Bill Haslam’s (R) desk for approval. Tennessee is working to curb …
Last week, students in several Wisconsin school districts were unable to attend school when classes were cancelled due to thousands of striking teachers throughout Madison and surrounding districts. While most teachers have returned to their posts today, protests continue in opposition to Governor Scott Walker’s (R) proposal to reform collective bargaining and pay down Wisconsin’s $4 billion deficit. As part of a budget repair bill that has stalled in the Senate, education employees would have to contribute 5.8 percent of their salaries to cover the cost of their pensions and …
This Wednesday morning at 10 am, after serving nine days of a 10-day sentence, Kelley Williams-Bolar was released from the Summit County Jail in Akron, Ohio. Her crime? Trying to provide her two daughters with a better education. How on earth did trying to provide your children with a better education become a crime in the United States? Because the political party that currently occupies the White House is completely dependent on the power of education unions, and these unions see all efforts to shift power away from them, and …
The Cartel, a searing education documentary, opens nationwide on Wednesday. The film, by director Bob Bowden, exposes where our multiplying education tax dollars are going. Spoiler alert: In too many instances, they aren’t going toward teaching children. Bowden focuses on New Jersey, a state that spends over $17,000 per student annually. A few simple calculations show the real picture: Instead of being chronically under-funded, as union advocates claim, each classroom in the state costs the taxpayer between $300,000 and almost $450,000 annually. But the reality is that charter schools, such …
Today, Michelle Rhee is expected to announce her resignation as D.C. Schools Chancellor. While speculation had been growing about her fate as the D.C. public schools head in the wake of Mayor Adrian Fenty’s primary loss last month, some who had their ear to the ground expected Rhee to stay in her chancellorship for some time. Since taking office two years ago, Rhee has fired hundreds of ineffective teachers and administrators, closed poor-performing schools, and reworked contracts to include performance pay. Not surprisingly, union opposition to Chancellor Rhee’s reforms has …
Yesterday, President Obama traveled to New Mexico to deliver remarks on education at the home of a local Albuquerque family. According to the Associated Press, “Obama argued that Republicans would cut education spending to pay for tax cuts for the rich.” While the politics of Obama’s assertion can be left to debate by Members of Congress, it is clear that over the years, conservatives have pushed for policies that better target educational dollars. Instead of just throwing more money into the monolithic public education system, which in many instances ends …
NBC News is on Day Two of its week-long series Education Nation. You cannot turn on any of the NBC family of networks (MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, A&E, Telemundo, etc.) without seeing Education Secretary Arne Duncan, or some Obama administration surrogate, flacking for the President’s education agenda. There are plenty of issues the journalists at NBC could be asking about but aren’t: the silent push toward national standards, the assault on for-profit learning, the waste in education spending. But most galling is NBC’s continued refusal to ask about the Obama administration’s …
Today, the much-talked-about film Waiting for Superman will make its premier. The movie, produced by David Guggenheim, reveals the gridlock created by school district bureaucracy, apathetic teachers, and teachers’ unions. According to reviews, the movie graphically displays how a broken school system is failing America’s children, leaving them in failing schools with little hope for a promising future. Reports William McGurn in The Wall Street Journal: It’s one thing to talk about “failing schools.” It’s another to see a man standing in the hallway of Alain Leroy Locke Senior High …
