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The following notice is from the Education Action Group. I welcome the opposing viewpoint and will post anything from them to explain what is happening, because I sure don't understand.
NOTICE from Education Action Group:
A teacher at Lincoln Consolidated Schools in Washtenaw County forwarded us a union memo encouraging teachers to sit on the sidelines, rather than volunteer to lead after-school activities.
The reason? The school board recently voted to eliminate compensation for teachers who oversee various extracurricular activities, like Spelling Bee and Quiz Bowl.
It’s clear the budget cuts were made because the district is strapped for cash. And it’s clear that some teachers understand the situation, and would still like to continue working with kids after school on a voluntary basis.
But the union says no.
“We understand that many members have developed programs that they would like to see continue, and that there are others who feel it’s unfair for students to be denied experiences because of financial decisions made by the school board,” the memo said.
”However, we feel it’s important that parents and the community see and feel the ramifications of the state’s inability to appropriately fund public education.
“We need the parents to be concerned enough that they are motivated to become educational advocates in Lansing.”
Once again, so much for the MEA’s stated motto, “Putting Kids First.” A more accurate slogan would be “Making our Political Points First.”
How can MEA leaders look themselves in the mirror when they allow kids to go without extracurricular supervision, just to score a point for their political agenda?
This is what we mean when we say our system has produced “labor-based” schools instead of “student-based “ schools. The union’s focus is the collection of every penny possible, rather than the development of children.
If this isn’t a clear illustration of the need for reform, nothing is."
To see the entire memo from the union, click here.
See also:
Stimulus money divides districts and teachers’ unions
Should teachers’ union dues pay for politics?
Comments
"Teachers’ union discourages members from volunteering at school" why this title?
How about "Teachers’ union tries to protect the members"? I am so tired of listening about how teachers and their unions always do wrong.
We need teachers and we must show respect for what they do. Than is another of the problems in our education system. Read the memo again and try to see it from the teacher's point of view. I don't see anything wrong, and the memo doesn't say if you want to volunteer don't do it. The way this article is written shows pure
judgment of your part.
Give me a break, Helen. I teach in this district and we WERE strongly discouraged from volunteering to keep our organizations going. There is a lot of pressure from the union to walk in step with them, which means constantly fighting administration and parents.
Dissenters of the union are punished in many subtle ways. We are far more respected by the administration and the public than we are by our own union.
And what about the rights of the children? Does the union really care about children if they are discouraging teachers to volunteer?
Keep in mind that the combination salary/benefit package for most of these teachers is well into six figures. Michigan pays some of the highest teacher salaries in the nation with the worst results. All at the expense of taxpayers and children.
I am ashamed at the lack of professoinalism in my profession. Teachers need to earn respect and this type of thing does not help.
Even if a teacher reads this headline, they can't deny that it is a correct assessment of the situation.
Helen's suggested headline does fit the story, too, only you have to add another part to it. She says the story should say "Teachers' Union Tries to Protect the Members." I would add "at expense of children, taxpayers and other teachers who won't blindly follow this CRAP"
The union only protect the members who believe like they do and do not respect other teachers' opinions. Those who dissent are made miserable. I know. I've been there and I'm not there anymore.
It's gotten so bad in Michigan that teachers think it's beneath them to clean the blackboards in their rooms because it isn't in their union contract. This is just another example of what happens constantly.
Why are teachers paid for activities that should be volunteer anyway? In our district, teachers do this willingly without pay, and so do parents.
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