Tragedy…
Like most Americans I was
stunned as the news of the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut
unfolded. The idea that anyone, no
matter what the situation, could enter a room of children and open fire goes
beyond anyone's ability to understand.
It strikes at the core of our humanity and reminds us all, just how
vulnerable we are at any given moment.
As a nation we must find a way to cope with Friday's events and struggle
to move ahead in our efforts to create a safer society. Nothing can be done to remove the pain and
suffering that the students, families and the community of Sandy Hook Elementary
School are experiencing. All we as a nation can do is offer our thoughts,
prayers and support.
No amount of
rationalizing, or any words of reassurance can lessen the impact that this
event has on our national psyche. We can
make plans for lockdowns, increase security and talk about any number of other
"remedies" to insure that nothing like this will ever happen
again. Yet, we also must recognize that
preventing horrific actions like this is an impossible task in so many ways. All the preventative measures in the world
can be undone by the actions of a disturbed individual acting without concern
for the safety of others.
It is inevitable that this
event will gain a political life of its own with many different viewpoints
vying to use the tragedy to advance their ideological beliefs. This happens after every tragic event and is
understandable, but not acceptable. What
we need to have happen is a longer focus on issues like gun rights and mental
health care. A focus that doesn't fade after
the initial pain lessens, but rather one that keeps these issues as a high
priority in our political discourse.
Political solutions won't solve every problem, and they won't eliminate
violence in our society, but they can provide a basis for progress to be made.
We have a real problem
with gun violence in America. We can't ignore the fact that our nation is
prone to using firearms to "resolve" conflict at an alarming
rate. When you look at the data, America is head
and shoulders above other nations in our crime rates involving guns. It seems obvious that just continuing to do
what we've been doing isn't going to resolve our issues. Instead we find ourselves suffering with
families in Connecticut
and bracing for the next attack, hoping that it won't be closer to home.
Send thoughts, prayers and
support to the families of Newtown,
Connecticut and then follow those
with words to your legislators, governors, the President, and anyone else who
has a say in what direction our nation will move in. We can't forget those students and educators
killed in Connecticut
and we can't sit idly by and let it happen again.
thinkprogress.org
Defending
the Status Quo?…
Public educators often
find themselves in an interesting, frustrating and confusing position. On one hand we are frequently on the front
lines in the fight for social justice in America. We work to educate all students in our
communities and try to advocate for the families we serve. We speak out about the wrongs that we see and
do our best to address inequities in our society. At the same time, and no matter how much we
frequently wish it wasn't the case, we are part of an establishment that has
perpetuated divisions in our society based on race, class and other demographic
criteria.
While we often tout
education as a vehicle for achieving equality of opportunity in America, the
reality is that our educational system's end results are strikingly similar to
those out in the "real world".
That is to say, demographic groups that are hardest hit by poverty, lack
of healthcare, crime and other social problems are the same groups that are not
achieving widespread success in our schools.
In other words, our schools are a microcosm of our society despite the
desire of many educators to initiate change and provide opportunity for all.
The reasons behind this
"failure" of our public schools to be the "great equalizer"
are as simple to identify as they are complex to solve. Our nation's schools are not educating all
students equally because our nation is unwilling to recognize that we have a
social system that is not based on equal opportunity for all. We pay lip service to the idea, and our
founding documents, legislation and political rhetoric all underscore the
concept of "liberty and justice for all." Yet, it is difficult to make the argument
that the same groups of citizens could occupy the lowest political, social and
economic rungs of our societal ladder for hundreds of years without some forces
other than the "free market" acting on our society.
Many educators recognize
this reality, yet at the same time find themselves immersed in a system that
enables this hierarchy of opportunity to continue. In fact, for many years a significant number
of educators did their jobs without considering the "big picture" of
what was happening in education. We
focused on serving the students and families in our classrooms and schools and
let the politicians and administrators handle the "other stuff". This trust that we placed in the system
turned out to be misplaced in very major ways.
Over the past decades we
have seen drastic changes to our public school system and a significant decline
in the power that educators have over the way we educate our students. In addition we have seen the social and
economic status of educators decline along with our political influence. Whether it is No Child Left Behind, Race to
the Top, the QEO, privatization of education, or Act 10 there has been little
that educators have been able to find positive in the legislation and policy
created to impact public education.
The result of these
"reforms" to our public education system and the working conditions
of employees who work in it have been the opposite of what
"reformers" claimed their purpose to be. Our schools have fewer resources to work
with. Our Achievement Gaps have not gone
away and in many cases have widened. We
haven't seen overall achievement (as measured by test scores) close the gap in
international circles. Racial
segregation is increasing and in some areas worse than it was in the
mid-1900's. Graduation rates and
college/career readiness are still being touted as a major concern by
"reformers". All this even
though educators have been forced to change their practice and curriculums to
address the concerns and to prepare students for an educational system based on
testing instead of learning.
Along the way, public
educators have seen their rights to organize attacked. The professional organizations that represent
educators have been vilified and portrayed as greedy and self-serving. These attacks on public educator unions have
served a dual purpose of undermining the strength of a political opponent while
at the same time politicizing the debates around educational policy. When education is debated it no longer is as
much about educating students as it is about promoting a political, social and
economic ideology. The students, their families
and the purpose of educating our citizens have been forgotten in the struggle
to score political points.
Our unions have become
easy targets for those who want to "reform" the public schools. They are attacked because they promote and
protect the financial interests of educators.
The also are agents who seek to protect public educator's working
conditions. For example, this has meant
that unions have said no to longer school days/years unless educators are paid
more for their labor. Clearly a concept
that is revolutionary in a capitalist economy (more pay for more work,
really?!?). The reluctance of labor to
work for free has allowed "reformers" to point out the greed and
selfishness of public educators. After
all, any business owner would willingly take less profit in exchange for
providing more product, right?
The status quo that
currently exists in public education isn't the one that most educators signed
up to work in and isn't one that most of us can support. Yet we face an uphill battle as we try to
promote the system that we believe is best for a majority of our students. One where educators are able to work with the
families and community they serve to meet the needs of their students. One where education is valued and students are
encouraged to learn to think critically about the world they live in and the
subjects they study. One where there is
flexibility to promote student growth in directions that will help prepare them
for their future, not to prepare them to meet the needs of businesses who want
"good" employees.
The saying goes, "You
don't know what you've got 'til it's gone", and those of us who are
fighting to defend the ideals behind public education are struggling to make
sure that we don't lose the things that we value. Many of us never realized the significance of
the struggles we engage in on a daily basis and simply went around doing our
jobs as best we could. We took the
system we had for granted and trusted in the goodwill of those who make policy
to protect public education and the students we serve. At the same time we are aware that there are
shortcomings in the way we've traditionally done business and want to embrace
positive changes that will make us more effective in our endeavors. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to know
who to trust and to rely in those above us to give us the time and resources necessary
to make changes that will improve our public schools. In the current climate, public educators are
reluctant to concede anything for fear of losing everything.
Now is the time for public
educators to reach out to our "clientele" and work to demonstrate our
willingness to make positive changes in the existing system. There are many opportunities to
"fix" the system. Our public
education system is just as broken as any other part of our public sector
whether it is the legislative process, our electoral process or any other facet
of our system. In other words, there is
always room for improvement and our guiding documents and principles provide
for a system that can evolve and change over time. "Reformers" would have us throw out
the "baby with the bathwater" and offer few real and sustainable
improvements over the existing system.
There is no doubt that the
status quo has issues that need addressing.
Public schools mirror the society they exist in with all of the
strengths and flaws inherent in any human endeavor. Public education can be a bridge to help all
citizens cross to a better future, or they can be a toll-booth on the bridge,
exacting payment that some citizens simply can't afford. The choice is ours and public educators need
to seize the moment to enact change that will strengthen the existing
structures and open the pathway to success for all students.
In order to achieve our goals we must provide clear and direct answers to the challenges we face. Opponents of public education have made their case very clear and their message is one that is tailored to appeal to a wide base. After all, who doesn't want our schools to be accountable for providing quality educational opportunities to students? Who doesn't want to see public funds spent responsibly? Who doesn't want families, students and the community to have a voice in how education is provided to young people? What is less clear in the "reformers" platform is how their ideas improve the existing system.
Public educators and their advocates need to step into this void and refocus the debate on more equitable and sustainable solutions to our problems. The opportunities are here, we just need to seize the initiative and take control of the process of improving public education in our communities.
Right to Work…
While its importance is
muted by the tragic events on Friday we can't ignore the passage of the Right
to Work legislation in Michigan
earlier in the week. In actions taken right from the Scott Walker
playbook the GOP in Michigan
rushed legislation through without public debate and then locked down the state
capital.
rt.com
Right to Work legislation
is another of the mislabeled Republican "reforms" that claim to
increase individual freedom while in reality doing just the opposite. Republican propagandists portray this
legislation as one that allows workers to choose whether they want to give
their hard earned money to unions which will then misuse their funds in actions
that don't benefit workers. The only part
of the picture that they have correct is that RTW laws allow workers to work in
a union-ship even if they don't pay any dues to the union.
By focusing solely on the
dues part of the equation the supporters of RTW legislation ignore all the
benefits that unions provide their members.
They forget that unions have helped build the middle class by fighting
for living wages, workplace safety, paid leaves, insurance and benefits,
etc. They forget that unions are often
the only voice that represents the workers in an industry.
Instead or recognizing the
contributions of unions they create a system that will allow workers to benefit
from a union without contributing to the organization. Given the continuing slide in real wages for
the middle and working class it is hard to imagine a scenario where many
workers don't take a short-sighted approach and forgo joining their unions. This is exactly what the GOP is counting
on. Remember, this isn't about workers
or even about business, it's all about political power. If the unions can't collect dues they lose
their ability to represent workers and the balance of power in the workplace
(and the political arena) shifts in favor of management.
What is being made
abundantly clear is that the struggle isn't over. Workers won't surrender their union rights
without a struggle. Many workers
recognize the importance of organized labor and are working to educate fellow
employees.
www.thenation.com
Unfortunately,
the GOP isn't willing to give up their efforts to return our nation to the
labor situation we had in the late 1800's and through the early 1900's.
Spend
Your Money Wisely…
Only
a few shopping days left this holiday season means you only have a few shopping
days left to exercise the power of your pocketbook. Buy local and support worker friendly stores.
Walkergate
and Other Political Shenanigans …
The saga continues as we
see the criminal investigation of the Governor's office persists. At the same time we see the effects of the
misguided GOP policies taking root and most of us will suffer because of them.
