On Sunday, (4-24-11), The Kansas City Star ran a front-page article regarding the Kansas City School District and its treatment of its non-tenured teachers. Within the last weeks, 87 non-tenured teachers were notified that their contracts would not be renewed. The reasons for this decision had no reflection on any teacher’s ability, any performance revues or accusations of misconduct of any kind. The ultimate decision came down to this: The Kansas City School District had to make budget cuts and chose to make some of those through eliminating teaching positions. The easiest (my word) way to do so was to eliminate teaching positions that are held by non-tenured teachers.
There are SO MANY aspects of this practice that are wrong. First, just because teachers are not tenured does not mean that they are not at least qualified if not above so to carry out their responsibilities in a professional, updated and caring manner. Secondly, teachers who are not tenured are usually teaching in their first five years of teaching. These teachers are some of the most eager, energetic adults in the school who help create ideas or progressive agendas for positive change.
The worst problem included in this article is that most people condemning educators for seeking tenure or joining unions have NO BACKGROUND in education at all. They have never taken a college course in education or spent even a week in a public school observing some of the basic realities that teachers face every day. They have NO IDEA of the demands that public school teachers endure, yet they are more than ready to shift accusations and blame toward public school teachers and any organization that might help support them.
Finally, the part of the article that hit me the most was the bravery of sixteen teachers in the Kansas City School District whose teaching performance credentials have been exemplary, and yet, their contracts are not being renewed, who came forward to the KC Star to express their dismay. How do I know that these teachers are of the utmost quality and worthiness? Because one of them is Megan Riggs, one of my former students, who even in high school would never settle for less than her absolute best. When she was in charge of certain class projects, she made sure every detail was perfected—every time. Megan has an altruistic desire to care for all people, so if she is an example of the 87 non-tenured teachers whose contracts are not being renewed, the Kansas City School District has made yet another tragically negative decision that will only hurt its students
Some ‘talking heads’ want to blame unions or ‘teacher tenure’ for all of the problems plaguing our public school system. These are the problems, but I guarantee that the problems are not because of a lack of passion or care from beginning teachers. These teachers are the ones who need to be cultivated into successful, accomplished educators who can mentor our future. Losing them will only mean losing valuable educational resources for Kansas City’s future.
Robertson, Joe. “Feeling Under Siege.” Kansas City Star. April 24, 2011, A1.
Comments