The Chicago Teachers Union is on strike. The union walked away from contract negotiations with city officials, citing concerns over public school funding and tying teacher evaluations to standardized test scores. Twenty-six thousand public school teachers are on strike while 400,000 Chicago students are unable to return to school. The strike has lasted three days and is expected to last many more.
Those are the bare facts. It’s easy to forget them when discussing teachers unions — the topic is emotionally charged. Frustration is understandable for parents who don’t want the education of their children affected. It’s easy for parents to see teachers as selfish and lazy, constantly looking for higher pay and less accountability. And that’s the conservative side of the argument. Teachers have been on the defensive lately, attacked by anti-union Republican governments in states like Wisconsin and Idaho. But the truth is far more complex.
Conservatives like to cite teacher salaries as an argument against unions. And it is true that the average teacher’s salary puts them solidly in the middle class. What they fail to mention is that the average public school teacher works far more than eight hours a day. When schools are unable to provide basic materials to students, such as writing materials and art supplies, teachers often pay for them out of pocket. Teachers are consistently one of the most underappreciated, yet most essential, professions in our society.
And teachers have concerns beyond just salaries. Many teachers union strikes, including the one in Chicago, are over issues such as class sizes and the availability of textbooks and technology for students. Teachers unions work to protect their students and their schools, not just their own salaries.
Evaluations based on standardized test scores are also unreasonable. No one believes there should not be a mechanism for evaluating teachers, and identifying and rewarding our most effective educators. But tying teacher success to standardized tests is inherently flawed. Standardized tests measure only a small part of a complete education, and teachers need to be able to do more than teach students rote memorization.
Residents of Chicago, and supporters of public education around the country, need to pressure the city to meet the demands of the union. What they are asking for is reasonable, and can be achieved with more support and funding for public education.
The consequences could be more than losing a few weeks of the school year. If Chicago can’t settle, the best teachers in the area will leave for other cities and states with better school systems and stronger unions. Chicago could see an exodus of its best and brightest educators, at a time when more than ever our children need a strong education.
We run the same risk here in Idaho. This November, Idaho voters will be able to decide whether Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna’s “Students Come First” proposals, which would weaken teachers unions and create a merit pay system, among other anti-public education “reforms,” will be up for a recall vote. Public education has rarely been a priority for Idaho voters, but if the state is to save its schools they need to take a stand in opposing Luna’s proposals. Strong teachers unions are one of the first steps to a strong public education system.
Max Bartlett can be reached at [email protected]