A Ray of Hope for Public Education

Traditional Water Seller of Morocco - photo by JoAnn Sturman

Scott Sturman
fliesinyoureyes.com

Mrs. Calkins, Mrs. Peasley, Mrs. Fowler, Mrs. Thompson, and Mr. Burky were my elementary school teachers in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and the primary reason why my classmates and I received a strong educational foundation. Why aren’t more of them around to teach the next generation?

Every so often one witnesses clues that both ends of the political spectrum are converging to address a serious problem which threatens to undermine the welfare of the country. This most recent evidence, Joel Klein’s “Scenes from the Class Struggle,” was published in the June 2011 issue of The Atlantic.

Joel Klein served for eight years as Chancellor of the New York City school system. He aimed to reform an ailing school system by placing the welfare of students first, forcing the powerful American Federation of Teachers Union (AFT) to reward teachers according to merit rather than longevity, and adapting a competitive curriculum for the nation’s largest school system. At nearly every turn he was thwarted by the AFT, and although some progress was made, it paled in comparison to what could have been accomplished.

The imbroglio will never be resolved until parents have a choice where their children attend school -- public, private, parochial, or military. (“Waiting for Superman”) In the end it is all about money, and as long as the public school system is guaranteed to receive all of it, then there is little impetus to change. The facts cannot be more clear: excellent teachers make an enormous positive impact in regard to student performance and well educated students are more likely to succeed in today’s technical society.

Without competition public educators will never regain their preeminence as the primary advocate for America’s children. As it stands, school administrators and teachers’ unions have more in common with the robber barons of the 18th and 19th centuries than protector of society’s most cherished asset.

Waiting for "Superman"

Starfish - Photo by JoAnn Sturman

Scott Sturman
fliesinyoureyes.com

Davis Guggenheim’s 2010 documentary movie examines the failing public school system and the steps which can be taken to reverse the trend. The road to reestablish American schools as the world's preeminent will be long and filled with obstacles. Two points are certain: good teachers make an enormous difference in student achievement, and the teachers' unions are a primary impediment to progress.

It is unusual to see a Hollywood motion picture which criticizes an organization which unwaveringly supports the Democratic party, but Waiting for “Superman” makes it clear the teachers' unions are no friends of children. Every step toward reform has been savagely contested by the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), who sanctimoniously proclaim their motivations are in the best interests of children.

Impressive improvements in math and reading proficiency have been realized in inner city charter schools. These are schools which receive public money but are able to circumvent the rules and regulations of normal public schools. The movie highlights the plight of students with high expectations who are destined for failure unless they are able to matriculate in these schools. Since these schools are highly desirable, a lottery is necessary to select prospective students. The chance of selection is less than 5%. It brings a tear to one's eye to realize their futures depend on chance alone.

As late as the 1970's American public schools were the best in the world. Since that time, the inflation adjusted amount of money spent per student has doubled, but test scores have plummeted to some of the lowest in the developed world. The money is being squandered on rules, regulations, and protecting poor teachers who have no business teaching children. In some cases teachers are tenured in two years. After that point it is nearly impossible to fire them for incompetence or unsatisfactory teaching performance. This point is made poignantly in the movie when the camera pans the infamous New York City “rubber room” where 550 egregious teachers who cannot be fired are paid full pay to read, sleep, or play cards at an annual cost of $30 million. This amounts to over $54,500 per body per year - enough to send 3000 students to a charter school! The AFT and NEA have resisted every effort to reward excellent teachers even though it is clear student performance is highly dependent on the quality of instruction.

The movie's denouement occurs when Michelle Rhee, the Washington, D.C. Superintendent of Public Instruction, proposes a potential doubling of teachers' salaries if they will accept performance based pay and renounce tenure. It is a much anticipated event, but the union will not even allow the issue to be brought to a vote. The fear of accountability is so great that the union opts for the status quo and sacrifices the future of the children they are supposed to insure.

Charter schools succeed, because of quality teachers and being able to operate independently of union and administration control. Yet the majority of American students do not have this benefit. A day does not go by when we are not reminded of another public school system suffering from cost overruns and poor student performance. The NEA's and AFT's answer is always the same – more money and regulation but no vouchers. Most children's parents do not have the financial means to pay for a private education and are reliant on the public schools. Vouchers allow public schools to be transformed to charter schools, because they shift the power away from unions and toward students and their parents. Competition and choice will force the beleaguered public schools to either change or perish.