No offense, but that’s a lot of baloney. Teachers unions are among the most powerful lobbying groups in just about any given state. If you have crappy educational standards in your state, it’s because your teachers union is 100% behind it.
> Teachers unions are among the most powerful lobbying groups in just about any given state. <
No argument there. But just because a union whines about something doesn’t mean an elected official has to listen. The root problem is not with the spoiled child. The root problem is with anyone who listens to the spoiled child.
I could give you 100 examples of what’s wrong with urban public education. Here’s just one. In my school district, 50% was the minimum score on any test. That was official school board policy. So if a student put his name on a test, then went to sleep, he got 50 points.
Students quickly learned how to game the system. Do well on a few early tests, then stop studying. Go to sleep. You’ll have enough points to pass.
This had nothing to do with the unions. Nothing. It had everything to do with public relations. School boards like brag about high graduation rates. So they set the standards low.
And many states mistakenly try to protect students by eliminating attendance standards. And they’ve made it very difficult to suspend a disruptive student. So in many classes, a teacher spent more time on classroom management than on actual teaching.
None of this has anything to do with unions. I watched my union carefully. They never lobbied for any of that.