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Subscribe to RSSKids may be back in school on Monday if the Chicago Teachers Union is able to reach an agreement about salary increases, teacher evaluations and rehiring policy for laid off teachers. NBC's Rehema Ellis reports.
Updated at 7:45 p.m. ET: President of the Chicago school board said on Friday that school negotiators had reached a "framework" agreement with the Chicago Teachers Union on a new contract that will end a strike in the third-largest school district in the nation.
"I am pleased to tell you we have in place frameworks around all of the major issues that should allow us to conclude this process and conclude it in time for our kids to be back in school on Monday morning," school board President Dave Vitale said.
Moments earlier, the attorney for the Chicago Teachers Union said the final deal wasn't done yet.
"The agreement has not been fully drafted and until an agreement is completed, the House of Delegates will not make a decision on whether to suspend the strike," CTU attorney Robert Bloch told reporters.
The union's delegates still will meet at 2 p.m. as planned, Bloch said, and a report will made to them about the progress of contract talks. Negotiations ended for the day, and Bloch said the two parties hope to have a deal drafted by Sunday. The union's delegates is a larger consultative body than the negotiating team.
"If the delegates so vote, we will suspend the strike and students can return to school on Monday," Bloch said.
Talks are expected to continue at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel issued a statement:
"This tentative framework is an honest and principled compromise that is about who we all work for: our students. It preserves more time for learning in the classroom, provides more support for teachers to excel at their craft, and gives principals the latitude and responsibility to build an environment in which our children can succeed. Now, our most important work continues: providing every child in every community of Chicago an education to match their potential."
Question at heart of Chicago strike: How do you measure teacher performance?
After a late night and early morning of negotiations, school officials had said they were confidently close to an agreement that would end Chicago's teacher strike over education reforms sought by the mayor.
Sitthixay Ditthavong / AP
Public school teachers rallying at Chicago's Congress Plaza protest against billionaire Hyatt Hotel mogul Penny Pritzker, who is also a member of the Chicago Board of Education on Thursday.
Thousands of teachers walked off the job Monday after months of negotiations failed to result in a new contract, affecting more than 350,000 students. It's the city's first teacher strike since October 1987.
"There were some creative ideas passed around, but we still do not have an agreement," Karen Lewis, the fiery former high school chemistry teacher who leads the union, told reporters. "We're going to go back to our respective shops and do some numbers crunching."
"It was a really, really long night," CPS chief education advisor Barbara Byrd-Bennett told NBCChicago.com. "We believe it was a beneficial night. We are so close I do believe it is very, very possible we could have a deal today."
She said she remained hopeful that students and teachers could return to class on Monday.
theGrio: 'Safe havens' for kids offered during Chicago teachers strike
"I think that we made some pretty good progress," Chicago School Board President David Vitale said on Thursday night. "We're closing a lot of gaps."
'A sense of urgency'
A more recent offer included provisions that would protect tenured teachers from dismissal in the first year of the evaluations.
It also altered categories that teachers can be rated on and added an appeals process. Additionally, evaluations could work on a graduated scale throughout the term of the contract, comprising between 25 and 35 percent of a teacher's total score.
"There's a sense of urgency today,'' said the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who stopped by the hotel where the negotiators were working Thursday and spoke to reporters. A day earlier, he said the two sides were talking past each other.
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Hopefully they go forward instead of backward. Those kids really do need to be in school is an understatement, but the teachers should have descent benefits as well for putting up with such challenging brats.
Nobody likes unions but they are very effective. Better to have one and to need it, than to need it and not to have it. Once the teachers get what they want for the mess they put up with, sure they could push the kids a little more, but lets face..those issues start at home, then all parties involved will be back to regularly scheduled programming....school during the week.....football on Sundays......cartoons and malls on Saturday's......the routine........that is what is disruptive for these kids.......they need that as well as a good education.
It's obvious that you don't know what they are protesting for!
As soon as the school board caves, and guts the evaluation process, the kids will be back in the seats. One teacher in a thousand loses their job over performance in Chicago now. look for it to go up to 1.3 per thousand. And the percentage of kids who are proficient at reading and math will go up to 25%.
WISCONSIN TEACHERS WILL BE IN CHICAGO ON SATURDAY TO SHOW THEIR SUPPORT!
Solidarity
ChrisWanker - GREED is what it is all about..... The union does not give a damn about the students.....
are you nuts??? they are the highest paid teacher organization in the nation !!!! with benefits better than almost all... throwing money at these CLOWNS apparently is NOT the answer.. Look at the results.. If they do not do the job...... good by!!!!! ..there are many openings in the food service industry....greedy union thugs would be the term that applies.
The fact that you think teachers don't care about kids means you don't know any! They spend up to 10 percent of thier income on training, supplies and other things for the students. Anyone who beleives that Teachers are greedy makes no sense!
Bingo. OhGUy hit right on the head. More money wont make them better teachers. fire em all
subtract the 10% they spend on supplies and they still make 40% more than the tax payers who are really footing the bill
Totally agree, I still can't believe that there are people who think teachers making $50,000 to $60,000 are over payed. They deserve a lot more then they will get. As far as the evaluation system that is primarily weighed by how high kids score is ridiculous. My little girl is now in college but it was me who enforced homework being done and it was me that stayed up late to insure she did her homework that propelled her to excel. Kids that don't have the support at home will rarely succeed in school, yes there are some but not many.
Hurry up and get this settled Rahm, I don't care what it takes. Give them whatever. Elections are near. - Barack Obama
I say they should hold out until We get what we deserve!!! Even if it means canceling the whole school year!!!!!
Mat11 - the average Chicago teacher makes over 70,000 a year. They work only 3/4 of the year, and are ticked off that they are required to work 7 hours a day.
You have to admit that must gall the taxpayers footing this bill - you know, the rest of us, who work a full year, 9 or more hours a day at significantly less pay, with fewer benefits?
It'a Friday, they don't want to go in for work, get another long weekend, and paid for non performance.
This strike will have people all over the nation looking at their own school districts in the same light as they looked at Chicago. And what did Chicago show us. Well 70K or so average pay, for 7 hour work days for nine months of the year. One text book per class. Lots of teachers meetings, but little interdisciplinary teaching. We learned that the teachers union isn't in it for the kids, they are in it for the unions and that the union reps perform for the teachers at the same poor level that the teachers perform for the kids, about 40%. There is no performance evaluation, because few are doing a job at or above an expected minimal level. It's the parents fault the kids have poor educations in Chicago, because the parents were taught by Chicago teachers... so really it's the fault of the students great grandparents for immigrating from a foreign country in the first place where sub standard schools were the norm. This means it's not Obama's issue, or Bush's issue, nor Clinton's issue... it's Warren Harding's issue for allowing all those immigrant's into the country decades ago when students had books, paper and pencils and a blackboard and desks!
So now when there is a school bond issue on the ballot, or a property tax hike issue, or a sales tax issue, voters around the country can now ask themselves with this Chicago Teacher's Strike, in this period of economic recession..." Just what in the hell kind of services can we expect for our tax dollar? " Thank you Chicago Teachers for being such lazy incompetent examples of failed property tax investment!
GM, So many mixed comments here. Q: Does everyone really understand what's going on? I am for CPS Teachers and the Strike 100% because our Teachers Have Been Bullied!!! Grateful that Wisconsin Teachers are coming to Chicago Saturday to support Our Teachers!!! Grateful for all the support that our Teachers are receiving!!! Q: Who made the rules when it comes to educating our children? Q: Who was compensated for making the rules? Q: Who’s responsible for educating our children? Q: Who's being held accountable for student academic failure? CPS Teachers are not brain surgeons but it doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that Teachers are being used as ‘Scapegoats’ when it comes to students' academic failure. Yes, our children have been out for 1 wk today, but this Strike is worth it and long overdue!!! In the long run, our Children will benefit from our Teachers Standing Up To Political Bullies.
@Gloria J Chicago What are you smoking? This is completely drive by GREED. I have a relative that worked for GM in a union and you pretty much have to kill a coworker to get fired because union rules. 6 figure salary for sweeping floors FACTS speak for themselves: Unions killed and are killing the auto industry and our children. UNIONS = GREED plain and simple. Any career were you can fail year after year and still not be fired is CRAZY. I'm sure there good teachers and I fully support those, but many of these lazy idiots should be janitors instead of teachers. I personally have spoke to teachers that only became teachers so they could have summers off. It shows when they deal with kids.
Six figures for sweeping floors? The teachers are only making 75k, and that's just an average! Teaching in neighborhoods like Garfield Park is the hardest job in the world. Let Rahm sweep the floors and the teachers make six figures.
As a parent of 3 children who are in the public school system, If I was in Chicago, I would lose all respect for these teachers. This strike is self-serving and by holding the community hostage by not teaching their children.
You can try to justify it, but if you took an equivalent job in the private sector and take their salary, average hours worked, days worked, holidays, paid time off, and benefits, then put them side by side to compare, it would be clear their situation is not as unfair as their union is painting it out to be. At least to warrant a strike.
So now I guess it's ok to negotiate with terrorists ? And @Shawn, the fact that you don't know how to spell their, can only mean that, if you know teachers, you didn't pay attention. I say, do away with the teacher's unions, and get people in there that care about their profession and not how much more money they can squeeze out of the system.
Rahm will cave. The problem is the money issue doesn't go away. Raising taxes won't solve the big money issue for the city. Even using every penny they have in savings won't help. Rahm can promise, taxpayers can pay more property taxes, but the problem will not be solved.
Right now there is a pension moratorium that gets reversed in 2014 when the city then must start contributing again. That puts them over a billion in the red.
This isn't about the kids. This is about a union wanting to protect their members and feeling entitled to tax others more to get their money.
There is no guilt by these union members that others must work longer and harder for them to get their raise.
What is appalling to me is that 40 percent of teachers send their kids to charter or private schools. BTW, charter schools are still open. Thousands are on on waiting lists to get their kids into a charter school. They have a graduation rate of 78 percent vs 60 percent for the public school system.
@OHguy, you're right that the union isn't concerned with the students. The union works for the teachers, it's the teachers that care for the students.
To those who think the teachers are greedy and want to fire them and bust the union - First, it's a negotiation and if you don't want to be taken to the cleaners then you had better have a formidable negotiator on your staff - the union does... it's what they do.
Second, you, YOURSELF, have unions to thank for only having to work 5 days a week, overtime pay, vacations and sick time are among benefits negotiated by unions and now taken for granted by the american worker. Collective bargaining has raised the standard for non-union workers as well by making companies competitive for quality employees.
Anyone who complains about an inability to fire union employees doesn't know anything about working with a contract. The contract forces the management to a higher level of accountability just as it dictates to the employee what their job IS. Union employees are fired everyday in the USA. If the management cannot fire someone it is because: A) The employee has not broken the terms of the contract or B) the management has not properly documented the employee breaking the contract.
Lastly, if you are so adamantly opposed to the terms of the new contract, then you must stick to your guns and weather the strike, however long it takes. Who wants it more? My guess is the teachers.
So let me get this straight, when it's corporations working in their best interest to make money at the expense of the public, it's called capitalism. When it's the individual it's called greed. Why do we even listen to these duplicitous liars anymore?
"Carroll said the main sticking points are still the evaluation system and the union's demands that laid-off teachers get top consideration for rehiring.'
Here we go with that accountability shlt again.
It's all about MONEY, they couldn't care less about the kids and most of the kids couldn't care less about school. Just another shltpot to throw money at to appease the union thugs. rahm puts up a fake fight with the union and then caves, as agreed, to their demands. But, what the hell, it's all for "better schools". LOL LOL LOL
When most of your class fails it is your fault. Mostly, because there is no one else too blame. When you have a good teacher they try too make the work challenging, right? When you have a bad teacher, they try too make the work really easy too attempt too fluff up the passing numbers. It never works, I once failed because a teacher made the work TOO easy, it wasn't engaging, so, I didn't try, and i suffered for it. I still passed because that teacher didn't want too give me an F even when I deserved it!
Oh, and there was a special not too long ago done by Juan Williams(he is a hardcore liberal) on fox about this type of thing. You guys should watch it.
Most of them will probably be the ones who retired early after the last deal the Wisconsin union got for them.
How will the children benefit from this strike? And, as my teacher used to say, be specific.
When you evaluate a school or a teacher on test, the children lose. The no children left behind act was good in concept but poor in actual practice. You lose what has made AMERICA great, the think outside of the box. If all you are trying to produce is cookie cutter kids then those types of evaluations is what you want to stick with.
wow our house and family are full of teachers...
and we utterly disagree with this atrociuos act of bitter selfisness...
first of the extra time teachers put in is AFTER 2:30, the workers paying the bill are only 3/4 thru there work day...
second the excuse that teachers are buying the supplies :
-where are the parents !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
-we buy there kid breakfast
-we buy there kid lunch
-we provide and education that there kid just simply refuses to recieve
this is one of the thousands of location's where education and the school system has turned into free babysitting and just feed my kid
under the guise of we are educationg your kid and collecting a pension for my future
as well brought up, this school system has the LOWEST rateing in the NATION
has the HIGHEST pay in the NATION
has the HIGHEST failure rate in the nation:
-56% of the 8th graders have a 4th grade reading level
-46% of the kids drop out before graduation
They want to change how the teacher is evaluated... well, how dumb the kid walks in and how smart the kid walks out seems to be a good start
where we live the average pay for teaching is a mere 40K & the benefits SUCK
one school district is going thru utter coruption, board members under indictment...
other's are right behind this one...
just as Chicago, the liberal media blaming it on the tax payers and the teachers are the ones getting screwed
In any job across the country when you are hired there are expectations set to be met. Based on your performance in meeting those expectations will dictate your raise. If you underperforme, you will be given feedback and a plan to improve. Just like a development plan given to kids in school. If you continue to fall short then you will be terminated....PERIOD.
With proposed evaluations, teachers are entering unknown territory and are in fear because they've become too accustomed to having a great deal of lattitude and autonomy in the manner in which they teach our kids.
Gloria J Chicago
GM, So many mixed comments here.
_______________________________________________
Wrong Gloria..., nothing good comes out of extortion; they should fire every single one of you. Go teach in another State if you are such a great teacher. If you don't like the terms and conditions you should quit, that is what the rest of us have to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85OIBOSJTwg&feature=related
If you aren't part of the solution Gloria..., you are part of the problem. If the Union Teachers get a raise the school system is going to get better? Nope..., not until we make some changes to the way that we structure and run our schools. You need to take a close look at the world as you know it, and if you are educated you will realize that we have to change our approach in order to create positive change.
Wisconsin Teachers!? Yes, they need more losers out on the streets of Chicago; that won't help make positive changes to the system. If teachers really want it to get better, they are going to have to look at the problem honestly and openly; we can fix this, but people are going to have to be honest about the problems facing urban schools. A raise and job security won't help..., unless you are a tired and burned out teacher that just wants to coast to retirement.
Wow, I hope you're not one of them! So much bad grammar and spelling. And I'm supposed to take your opinion on how to educate for anything?
By the way, the teachers I know start at about 7/7:30, finish at about 3:30 and then often stay at school for extra activities (that they aren't paid for doing) until after 5. They then have grading and class preparation to do at home. The teachers I know work damned hard. You people knocking them make me sick!
I am SO tired of this issue, Chicago Teachers' Union has been striking since I was a kid (40+yrs ago). What makes me angry is:
(1) There is ZERO reason, from either side, that the contract issues were not resolved over the summer. It does make for high drama and gross inconvenience for parents and the employers of said parents. Both sides have made excuses, they have not provided real reasons for not accomplishing the task at hand much earlier - Failures, all around.
(2) Teacher tenure is a hot button for everyone; some say it rewards incompetent teachers and others say without it any teacher (good or bad) could be subject to termination on a whim. Both arguments have merit; however, it seems that an honest review and appeals process should resolve that issue. In no other line of work is someone "guaranteed" a job.
(3) As a former resident of Chicago, I do not dispute that teachers at certain schools deserve "combat pay". The neighborhoods are extremely dangerous and the residents have no respect for each other, let alone a teacher from somewhere else. However, I also believe that parents are ultimately responsible for their kids behavior. That said, when little Johnny blows up the bathrooms or behaves like a bully and/or little Suzie gets caught dealing drugs or bringing a weapon to school, both should be permanently expelled from regular school and sent to military school (or something similar). That should solve the student behavior problem. Parents and the school board have to provide teachers with a safe environment in which to teach and teachers must be capable of teaching the material; otherwise the kids suffer long-term detrimental effects.
People, if you are not well-versed on the real issues, then don't post stupid comments. The truth is that both sides are wrong (as is usually the case). What you should be upset about is the harm being done to your children by an inadequate, inefficient and ineffective education system bogged down by the bureaucrats.
Teachers in Atlanta,GA need to do the same too.
Fire them all. They are using children . Plan and simple. Rehire those that pass a test and then put adds out accross country, many teachers and willing people to fill.The city and state unions care nothing about the care or education of our children or it's tax payer. Tired off hearing teachers need more pay, well when every child in taught well then come see me. Till then do your job. Plain and simple. Unions blame the system but it's it teachers who fail us. FAIL FAIL FAIL--- and teachers you don't like your pay --get another job. I not happy with my pay and I'm a boss. When is enough ,enough. Every good teacher that stands with a bad 1 makes them guilty as well. Believe me I was taught that from a teacher who cared.
@Just Wrong,
You make some great points:
(1). Summer negotiation sessions are a perfect solution for union teacher disputes and would go along way to getting much needed public support. Always give before you take in any negotiations.
(2). Teacher tenure. Has to go. Nothing is forever and it creates a very uneven playing field for all. Honest reviews, definitely, but skip the appeals process. Fired is fired, time to hit the road and don't look back.
(3). Combat pay. Maybe? No one is forcing anyone to work in bad conditions and quiting is always an option however, classroom cams, in some cases would go a long way in convincing stubborn parents that "little Johnny" is in fact "little Hitler" at school. Got a better chance of seeing god than that happening though.
Parent teacher conflicts are always a paradox. Teachers need to have genuine leadership skills and most don't. If a teacher can display confidence in their authority and be pragmatic with parents concerns, alot of confrontations won't be able to get off the ground. My experience with teachers and student issues always seem to start off on the wrong foot with the teacher, almost always, telling you what they can't do. It becomes a waste of ever ones time and only spirals into frustration for all, including the student.
Teachers in Atlanta,GA need to Strike also They are working for one Peny are month
a penny?... really!? I hope that you aren't one of them.
Teachers shouldn't have to pay anything out of their pockets to supply their students. That's the parents' responsibility. Enough is enough. Either parents fund their own kids' education or the kids go without. If little Tommy or Sally can't complete a test, assignment or homework because he/she doesn't have a pencil, then little Tommy or Sally flunks. Too bad if he or she cries over it and has to repeat the same class over and over until his/her parents stop spending money at the bars and, instead, for their kids' stuff.
You want your kids educated? Pay for it, or do it yourself. They're YOUR kids, not the teacher's.
Good old Jesse Jackson, he seems to stick his nose into every corner.
Yeh, Jesse Jackson, the Great Emancipator and Orator.......Pimp from Chicago who only wants to emancipate his devoted listeners FROM THEIR WALLETS!!!
Get some money under the table, free hotel and free dinner. ($$$)
You gotta love when this guy crawls out from under his rock to make the world right once again. I have an idea, go back to your hole!
we could use him in Tunisia right now...
So sick of Jesse Jackson. I was born & raised in Chicago and that jerk used to go to the ghetto and extract $1 a month from every welfare family for his "education" foundation. In reality, he used the money to buy a huge home in Wilmette and hired a white maid (to be in the face of the neighbors and their black maids). This was back in the 1970's and NOTHING has changed with this guy. He was run out of Chicago for being a fraud and now resides in Washington, DC. Funny how he's back in Chicago sticking his nose into a situation that doesn't really concern him. (Same stuff, different day)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXexa00BAJg&feature=related
just part of the game..., Democrats want to keep minorities poor and uneducated... so that they can hold power over them; ultimately the politicians will pay off the teachers union with our tax dollars so that they will keep doing a lousy job.
"Now, our most important work continues: providing every child in every community of Chicago an education to match their potential."
Joke of the week. The union didn't seem concerned enough about the kids to give them a good education - instead using them as hostages to feed their greed.
The biggest issue was the teachers didn't want any standards that might hold them accountable for actually educating the students.
So this strike was all about "For Schools" LOL Sure it was! Oh wait it was about the kids! Sure it was! LOL
It was all about "YOU" teachers, your taxpayer funded salaries, benefits etc. Where do the kids and school fit into this strike.
I dont think $mitt Robmey or ol lyin Ryan gonna like this. They tryin to keep the socalist union out so the rich man can get us some trickle down. dont that commie judge know this??? the constituton is my bible too but $hitt Robmey has a right to violate in the name of the lord - tho he ain't no real christion - -
Don't be jealous of sucessful people. It does not matter Romney is not a Christian - we don't have a Christian president at the moment either. We need a president who will stand behind our country.
Yeah, Jesse's just trying to pick up one of the striking cows on the picket line! Let 'em stay out; maybe he'll get lucky! And let'em stay out in general; these greedy asses, making over 75K a year, plus bebefits, offered a 16% raise, then they're crying? Fire them all, then let them see how they feel! Ungrateful jackasses.
Jesse is done...couldn't get laid in a whorehouse with a fistful of $100 Bills.
16% is a slap to every struggling family, everywhere! Let the union strike fund pay the teachers while they are out. Less money to give dems for the elections. They'll be back in class before strike benefits kick in, even at a loss. Hard to tell the strike from an ACORN rally. The coverage I've seen shows me nothing but obese, borderline communication skills and downright scorn for any other person in the state. Yes, the whole state give a larger % of money to Chicago than any other city. For shoddy work, and terrible ethics. UNION NO!
Teaching is not easy though you seem to think it is and if you have ever lived in chicago the pay makes a little sense. The cost of living is crazy.
Not all teachers make 70k. But the money isn't the issue. The teachers will be evaulated on the students ISAT. To me thats unfair. You can be the best teacher in the world, but if the student don't care (and sometimes the parents) the things taught in class is going in one ear and out the other.
I read that 80% of the students qualitfy for the free lunch program. These children live in poverty. The odds are: the live in a single parent home, they do not own computers, the single parent is young or alcoholic or drug addicted or has mental problems and is dysfunctional, they babysit younger siblings, no one reads to them or helps them with homework, the refridgerator is empty and they go to bed hungry, their neighborhood is a war zone etc. etc. etc. I'm guessing that the children have low test scores because of poverty & ignorance. These children have to see and hear and live with things no child should ever have to know. The first priority for poor people is survival (it's hard to remember to drain the swamp when your up to your ass in alligators). I have nothing but admiration for the teachers who work with these children. Between the school board, the union, apathetic/dysfunctional parents and the grinding poverty of their students I'm surprised they make any progress at all-and no I do not think they should be evaluated by the students test scores and yes I do think the Principal should be allowed to hire teachers. There isnt enough money in the world that could entice me to be a public school teacher. (Especially the big inner city schools)
blah, blah, blah, it is the libbies that have created this problem; nobody is held accountable for anything in this country anymore. Don't worry, Uncle Sugar is here with food stamps and a roach trap for you to live in..., just have a baby at 15 years old.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1r-r6iLBEI
Wake up:
You are such a jackass, stop posting your nonsense and post something intelligent that is actually on-topic.
Fire these losers and hire teachers who hold credentials - most of these protesters come from affirmative action placement - educated at mill schools and never held teaching credentials - the real teachers were not hired to meet these quotas - now you wonder why our students can't read, write or spell????
Just Wrong
Wake up:
You are such a jackass, stop posting your nonsense and post something intelligent that is actually on-topic.
_____________________________________________________
I am on "topic"..., I guess you didn't take time to watch the video.
Just Wrong
Wake up is 100% right. It's time they get off the gravy train and start earning their salary based on what they are qualified for, which is probably zero.
I am so surprised that the principals don't have the main authority to hire in the first place. This was one of the issues on the agenda; if the principals don't have the main authority to hire-who does? In many ways the education system is like the health care system-everyone else is blaming the other one. It is so complicated. There are many issues that teachers cannot control; but then again the teachers are the bridge for learning for these students. I wish that I could be a Chicago teacher. I would love to be given an opportunity to teach. I have a Masters in Library Science and a k-6 certificate in teaching. Not easy to find a teaching position in North Carolina. Chicago teachers-beware! We would love to teach. I would teach anywhere and "do whatever it takes" to be a professional teacher. I dearly want to teach, but cannot secure a position.
Love your energy and your enthusiasm for a once honored profession. However, if the Teachers in Chicago are the "bridges to learning for these students", they are failing..miserably. I have a Daughter who had the same energy and enthusiasm for Teaching in the Milwaukee, WI School System. THE UNION chased her out because of her "daring" to WANT TO JUST TEACH and NOT BE JUST ANOTHER UNION COMRADE.
Zen...you must not be trying very hard in the right places because jobs in the inner city are easy to get. I know, I worked at one and we had plenty of people teaching without certifications because they could not get enough qualified people to do the shi@ job. I did it for two years and in that time the 14 people that were hired with me we all gone along with about 5 other teachers. We have about a 60% turnover rate per year. There is a reason why...because the job, students, parents, school districts and admins all sucked. You want to be called a bitc@ or MFer 10 times a day...go and teach at any inner city school and see just how much the kids want to learn. I have an 8th grade class of 38....that is 38 middle school kids in a room. These kids were almost all free and reduced lunch and only about 5 kids could read....and 0 that could read on grade level because you can't teach your child to read when you don't know how to read yourself. But hey, let's blame the teachers for the parents failure.
@Jpeak-Your story is a perfect example of a failed school system. I like to think our family rates fairly high on the intelligence scale but we didn't teach our kids, or grand-kids to read. They learned it at school. We were unfortunately too busy working 60+ hours a week running our family business. And I'm not complaining, I wouldn't trade my job for anything in the world. I love what I do. For the record I also make far less than 70K a year.I would love to have three months a year off but not enough to become a teacher, because I would then hate my job. My point is this: I think there are far too many people in teaching positions that went in for reasons other than wanting to teach: ie benefits, time off, etc. You can't pay someone who hates their job enough to make them like it. Besides, what the heck are kids doing in the 8th grade for when they can't read? They should be held back until they do learn. Why is cursing your teacher tolerated? Teach them manners or send them to a "reformatory" school where they can be taught to respect others. If these types of complaints are the case, they should be striking for a system overhaul instead of an increase in pay.
You would have to agree to be bound by union rules..... Do exactly what the unions tell you to do and nothing more. No Added Value! You would be in violation of union rules for making other teachers look bad. This strike was all about the teachers! Not the schools or the kids! They were the hostages! This is what happens when you cave into the union matra! Public Unions must be de-certified if we are to survive as a nation! City after city is feeling the wrath of these unions all over the country and are forced to do their bidding. Hostage taken should be against the law but not for teachers and city workers.
Fire them all. Gone, History, then hire some of the other out of work teachers, I am sure they want a job.
And where are you going to find 26,000 qualified, licensed teachers willing to move into and work in the City of Chicago ?
Lack of critical thinking skills, you must be a product of home schooling.
"And where are you going to find 26,000 qualified, licensed teachers willing to move into and work in the City of Chicago ?"
Forget the licenses...let's find 26,000 people willing to teach for NOTHING. That seems to be about the going rate that most commentators on this board want to pay them.
I always thought when I was young that teaching was a higher calling, like becoming a preist or something. I also believed that the teachers deserved my respect because they had taken on the task of educating us to make a better tomorrow.
I have also known for years that it's all about the money and has nothing to do with kids or a higher calling. Easy job, great hours, union benefits, nearly impossible to be fired, masive time off money money money.
I discovered this in 1987 when The Chicago Schools went on strike and our Wisconsin schools closed for a couple of days in support of the strike. Nobody was being educated and the children were the last thing on the strikers minds... except to use as pawns in the game to get more money.
After that, I stopped calling my teachers Mr. or Miss. Just their last name. When they got mad about it I explained that you have to earn my respect. Only 2 teachers from that point on earned my respect.
Do I care at all about the issues in his strike? Only one... and it's best we all think about this very carefully. Who are the victims of the strike and who has made them a victim.
If I were a teacher, I'd be there for that aforementioned calling to be an educator. I'd break the rules and cross that picket line because my students need me to teach far more than I need a $10.00 an hour raise and free Viagra and birth control in my health insurance plan... or whatever the F**K they want.
Spot on.
hunter rose..... your comment only demontraights just one reaso these teachers went out on strike. you didn't care enough about your own education to give respect to your teachers. You closed you ming to learning because you were better than the teachers were. There isn't enough money or benefits in the world for me Toput up with 20 or 30 jerks in the classroom like you year after year. Students like you is one reason teachers have a resonalble salary. Not all of these teachers are making 75 grand a year. some are but most are not. But to put up with the garbage teachers have to today not only is hard to do emotionally but is also life threatening in scholl systems like Chicago.
There also comes a point when you have to do what you really don't want to do. After 25 years of not striking they ahd reached that point. So many on this thread are complaining for one reason and that is that thier tax dollars pay the salary of these teachers. Tell me this if, after 25 years you went to your boss and said " I need a raise and some other changes " and he said no would you just so "ok never mind ". ? Not likely. Just because tax dollars pay these peoples wages does not make them less human.
and if you told you boss you did not want to be accountable for your work....he would fire you.
And your first three sentences indicate you didn't care enough about your education either. See the above in bold. Pot, meet kettle. LMAO
AMEN....you are so right on many levels..... The only thing I do not agree with is the respect part. All teachers deserve respect. No matter how bad they are. To many young people do not respect adults. If I were your mother you would have gotten your mouth washed out with soap. My mother was a big part of my schooling...she worked side by side with the teachers I had. A good parent will step in when a bad teacher is at hand.
I am from Chicago the teachers are paid the highest in Illinois as well as being one of the highest paid in the country. Time for MOST of them to EARN what they make and TEACH...There are some awesome teachers in the City but I know they are a small percent.....Do what you were hired to do TEACH and quit your whinning.
Easy really Easy teachers regularly don't leave till 3 hours past our schedualed time and on a list of professions that are considered well paid guess where we fit in right above fast food manager. Gee glad I have a 2 masters and 5 certifications and am still in school to make those easy dollars. I am also enjoying the long summer break where I have a second job, work summer school and attend 4 trainings on average. none of which the district will pay for and are hundreds of dollars out of my pocket. I know some teachers don't belong in the classroom and I have told a teacher that they needed to leave the profession. We all have done that teachers don't want bad teachers they hurt us and we will chase them out but a draconian evaluation system where we are held accountable for variables out of our control.
shawn -- so your motivation for teaching was to get rich?
so how should a teacher be measured? i am interested to hear from a teacher. right now the impression many of us have is that no measures need be done.
Shawn, I don't know where you teach, but I can drive by the elementry and middle schools in my community when I get home from work (a couple hours after the end of the school day) and the parking lots are empty. There are no teachers staying 3 hours past the scheduled time. (By the way, I'll assume your spelling of scheduled was a typo...I make many of them).
Regarding your income... In general, teachers work about 60 days less per year or 12 weeks. If you calculate the equivelant of a teacher making $70,000 for the 40 weeks of work to 52 weeks, that same teacher is making over $90,000 per year.
Billybob - No teacher anywhere is saying they don't want to or shoudn't be evaluated. That is pure BS from people who want to argue against a straw man. The teachers just want the evaluations to be over something that they control. You can't control what someone else does, especially someone who is never there or doesn't want to learn.
And to the workers who say "I am evaluated on the people *I* train so teachers can be, too" Those people are being PAID to be there and if they don't perform you can fire them. Teachers can't fire the students.
Hey - there's a good idea. You can evaluate teachers based on their students as soon as teachers are allowed to fire their students. (Yeah, I'm kidding but you see what I mean.)
Danno - one anecdotal story does not represent teaching across the nation. I can assure you teachers I know (and I will bet I know more than you) work well beyond the contract hours in a day.
It isn't just hours per day, either - it is minutes per hour. At regular jobs you get to go to the bathroom when you want to. Teachers don't. Their day is scripted from start to finish. You can probably stop for a minute and stretch and collect your thoughts. Teachers can't. There is someone (or 30 someones) in their face every second of every day. Consider that. Average lunch break for teachers in my district is 15 minutes, WHILE SUPERVISING and many of them helping kids open their milks (younger kids can't do it alone sometimes).
Hunter Rose - you win for the most ignorant comment of the day. It is all about the money? Really?
Then where are the millions of people wanting to teach if it is such an easy job with such a great paycheck? I cannot fathom how you and other actually believe the BS being thrown around by the anti-union establishment (namely Faux News). Yeah, teachers are greedy and rich compared to everyone else in the nation, even though they make less than almost every other profession with college degrees.
Were you in my classroom addressing me by my last name, you wouldn't last long. You and your childish, entitled attitude would be sent to the office first, suspended soon after. Then you can whine to your bedroom wall about how those greedy teachers kept you from learning.
Your education is a PERSONAL responsibility, just like it was your parents' responsibility before you were old enough. If you are an uneducated slob, you have no one to blame but yourself. Get a clue and quit trying to blame other people for your failure.
My daughter read before Kindergarten -- before any schooling or any teacher got near her. If your kids can't read it is because you wouldn't crack a book with them.
I am beginning to think that the posters who are anti- teacher are also the ones who were also complete jerks when they were in school and are still bitter they couldn't have their way everywhere they went.
Grow up and take responsibility for your own education and that of your children, America.
mccainisacrankyoldguy - you are correct about that, McCain is cranky.
Yes, my story is anecdotal; however, it is telling at the same time. I'm just one person. Let us see what others besides me have noticed.
You, and others like you, seem to want us to feel sorry for a teacher because they put in extra time. Guess what, so does almost any salaried employee for a company. Many work 50 - 60 hours per week, with little complaint, because that is what it takes to get the job done. The difference is that teachers don't do this for about 12 weeks a year while the others do.
mccainisacrankyoldguy...Do you ever wake up in the morning and say to yourself when you look in a mirror, " This public position of trust which I am to fulfill on the tax dollar is regulated by federal, state, county and local laws and regulations?" I was "told", that they can call you a SOB, MFer, etc, but you don't want to be known as a Stupid SOB, or Stupid MFer. Call a spade a spade, and if that's not good enough, call it a GDed shovel. The federal, state, county and local laws and regulations were put in place via the democratic process. The democratic process is such that the law is proposed, then there is a period of advertising that proposal, then public comment, then a vote to adopt or turn down that proposal as law. Then the courts find if that law meets constitutional standards, etc. This is all paid for by taxes. Corporations spend their own money to have laws made or overturned, just as churches do, or individuals do... or unions do. The latter are known as special interests.
A doctor who works in an emergency room does not have a say about how many people are going to get injured in a particular, or series of auto accidents during their shift. They are supposed to be sewing them up, and providing additional care as long as the bodies are coming in the doors to be treated. Sure, they try to coordinate with other hospitals in the region, so one doctor isn't bound to provide care for 30 victims while a doctor in a neighboring hospital doesn't care for any... and the taxpayer provides for this too. If you're being called a SOB, or MFer, it's part of the territory. If you're being called a Stupid SOB, or a Stupid MFer...that's your taxpayer job evaluation.
I think old guy has a few valid points but I don't know of another profession that gets EVERY holiday off with their children than teachers, has more time in the summer, and has every weekend off too! Parents do play such an important part of the learning process but a good teacher can spark an interest that will stay with the child for a long time. It is the inability to dismiss a poor teacher because of the union protection that irks me. My grand daughter has not had a "real" classroom teacher as her teacher was dismissed but the union is fighting the dismissal so the position can't be filled. Who is going to suffer when the national tests come around? Not the teacher! Not the union! She is a good student and loves school but this is what the tax dollars go for? Get the union bosses whose only interest is keeping the union strong out of the way, let the teachers, administrators, and school board work this out. Good teachers will police themselves if allowed without backlash. I do have a lot of respect for teachers having 5 in my immediate family, but not one of them agrees with the situation in Chicago......a good teacher is worth their weight in gold but a poor one needs to be shown the door.....
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$(G-R-E-E-D)$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Yes, everyone knows that teachers are rich...that is why there are so many jobs and too few qualified teachers to fill them. What I find strange is that with such a cake job, fat checks, easy hours, summers off and everything else, why more people are not teachers? Why is that? So, all you EDUCATED people on here(with a BA/BS of above)...why did you not become a teacher?
Crickets
Even more crickets! They all think the job is easy but none of them will quit what they are doing and find one of the many available positions. If it is so easy, why do more than 50% leave the profession within the first five years.
@ jpeak & John
Tenure is beautiful thing. Who gives a crap what the masses think? I don't. And the best part is...they pay me to be indifferent to their wishes.
I would love to be a fly on the wall during negotations. "Children First"? No, money and benefits first, then political agendas. When I went to school in CPS the teachers cared, the parents cared and the kids learned. And when we graduated we could verbalize, read, write and solve math problems at or above our grade level. We acknowledged God in school, respected each other and our elders, did not do or sell drugs and certainly did not have metal detectors. Test these teachers and if they are not up to par terminate them. Clean up the high crime areas and hold parents accountable for their kids. Gym and art are important subjects too. Really put the kids first instead of using it as a catchy little slogan. Oh, if you fail to teach, you can and should be replaced (even if it means less votes for Emanuel).
Why do they deserve tenure. If thats the case we should be able to get tenure in any job we do. Then we don't have to worry about performing well to keep our jobs.
Send every last one of these so call teachers on a permanent vacation and get people in the position that actually want the job and care about the students. All these morons care about is how their sorry asses can be taken care of.
I guess what you mean is get people in there that will not care about pay, class size, how they are evaluated, how they are treated and so on. Kinda sounds like communism to me.
jpeak - not every teacher is in teaching for the $$. I happen to love teaching, I am good at my job, I have a Masters Degree and I am adding more certifications, taking extra classes etc to be the best teacher I can be. I want my students to succeed. I can find a job making 3 time more than I would as a teacher - I have been offered several of these positions - yet I chooses to be in the classroom because I love what I do. I do not even earn anywhere neat $70K a year try $45K. Oh, and my school district uses performance evaluations and we looses very few teachers each year due to poor performance, our district outperforms Chicago!
You are correct, many teachers are like you but most don't work in a district like Chicago.
Another obama lib embarrassment ,unions bleeding our country dry!Only solution Is to handle it like the foreign policy,after they kill Americans in libya,Egypt or Yemen send them more money and Apologize for any in convenience ,perhaps a stern warning! wonder if all the military recently displaced will be allowed to have live ammo this time?Welcome back carter!
what is the point of doing evaluations if tenured teachers will be protected. usually it is the tenured teacher and not the newbie's that don't give a rats back side. I spoke to a woman in Florida awhile back. Her husband was making $95,000 a year to "teach" phs ed. in a grade school. He decided to "retire" at full pension and then got rehired the following week to"teach" phs. ed at a grade school at yep you guessed it $95,000 a year because of his tenure. Did I mention it was the SAME grade school..... in it for the kids right... here's a basketball go play don't bother me.
I'll bet he was collecting his pension at the same time he was being paid for doing the same job. The same situation has happened in my state with superintendents. They "retire" only to be hired back in the same position as a contractor. They earn their same salary as before plus being paid their pension.
I think all the teachers should be fired and find another job. Good luck
All these SO-CALLED teachers and UNIONS care about is MONEY.....They damn sure can't teach......With so many other people out of work.....Let these worthless SO-CALLED teachers go to the employment offices.......They have some of the dumbest teachers in this country in Chicago.....Inbred trailer trash.....
Looks like most of the striking teachers are fat assed ,lazy niggros......much like the goverment sector.
and believe me, they are NOT GOOD TEACHERS....look at the stats in chicago, the thug capital of the world!!!!!! These fat asses don't want to teach!!!!
Scanning through the posts, I only saw one poster that had anything positive or constructive to say, all else are the typical judgemental BS of the vine. Descending all the way down to John's blatantly racist junk. Way too many of the posters apparently didn't pay enough attention to their own education given their ability to spell.
Just the small number of posts says something. When it was about their being a strike, everyone piles on, particularly given Chicago ties to Obama. The minute the tone turns positive, i.e. resolution, everyone loses interest.
Teachers should be paid well, our most important resource and best hope for our future is educating our children, and teaching is one of the the most difficult jobs in the U.S. Teachers are up against all kinds of rules about how they do their jobs, too many parents expect that they can just dump their kids at the schoolhouse door and the kids will walk out at the end of the day as Einsteins w/a 4.0 GPA and a full ride scholarship to Harvard. In reality, teachers have to deal w/somehow getting kids educated and socialized when every parent has a different idea of what is appropriate discipline, too many think their kids are perfect and can do no wrong, and too many parents just don't seem to care.
Even the divisiveness and ignorance of current politics as seen in John's post above is a factor. When parents are feeding their kids ignorant, racist, divisive cra*, teachers are then stuck with finding a way for everyone to get along in the classroom.
Correction on my above post. Now that more have weighed in, some real discussion, compared to earlier.
Stop making sense Richard....
Got Hate
Mittens/Ryan 12
Bah! Chicago teachers are paid above average, the students perform below average, and the town has some serious money problems.
Considering the ridiculous number of days off and amazing benefits they should not get a dime more except as individual outstanding performance raises if any have earned such.
...but they city officials will cave, they almost have to...but sure would like to see a national call for replacement teachers first. You know, lower grades COULD be on-the-job training of existing day-care workers for far less than those over-paid spoiled "teachers" are making.
..
This strike is not about salaries, there are bigger issues in education at stake here. Privatization of education and performance evaluations based on standardized testing are the real issues that CPS teachers have an issue with. This article sheds some light on those issues:
If those other issues are the crux of the issue, then we'll see concessions on the pay raises, right? I doubt it.
This strike is not about salaries, there are bigger issues in education at stake here. Privatization of education and performance evaluations based on standardized testing are the real issues that CPS teachers have an issue with. This article sheds some light on those issues:
I wouldn't give an inch and fire anyone who doesn't rerturn to work Monday morning. Meanwhile the State Legislature should take action to outlaw unions in the public sector.
Frank I couldn't agree with you more. The public sector should never have Unions. They are paid by the taxpayer. If they feel they are not being treated fairly, take it up with the citizens in their district. This strike has nothing to do with unfair wages but how they don't want performance evaluations. Really, get paid what you are worth. What a concept!
I would love to work at a company that I have to manage 18 employee's and deal with their parents almost daily. It would be a rewarding experience knowing I can't fire them for not performing or even for not coming into work. Knowing I can't force them to do anything but I'm going to be held accountable for them after 180 days and possibly lose money or even my job because of those employee's lack of initiative makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside...
These teachers are clearly driven by greed. $75000 for working 9 months. Come on that's a crock. These teachers are not looking out for the best interest of the children. Who are they kidding. If they were then they would be in school teaching. Pure greeed. They are already paid too much for the poor quality of education they are giving.
You can't blame a teacher for your own unwillingness to learn... They give you the tools to use... most sadly are tools like yourself because you think it's just so cut and dry when you clearly don't know a single thing or have researched to find out that a teacher doesn't make the claim they say. It's public knowledge and is on EVERY district website what an employee gets paid. Instructional. Support and Administration.
Yeah, we don't want people to be assembling peaceably or petitioning their governments for redress of their grievances... my goodness, the next thing you know, they'll want to have free speech and to vote !!!
Read Madison Independent Examiner - The Chicago teachers strike and the war on teachers
Apparently I cannot you cannot post links on here.
This is why unions should not be allowed bargaining rights with governments. Do what Reagan did - FIRE THEM ALL!
CHICAGO = Perfect example of a FAILED Education System in this country!!!!!
With their record of NOT teaching their students, these MORONS want how much of an increase??? FIRE THEM ALL and REPLACE them with GOOD TEACHERS who want to teach!!!!! Go to hell, unions!!!!
And creating tons of ignorant Democratic voters.....just like Obama wants.
kids are unable to learn in a government classroom - that isn't the teacher fault because all those children have learning disabilities according to the teacher's union therefore teachers should receive a bonus for helping disadvantaged children....
This is ridiculous!!! The only thing these strikers care about are themselves and$$$MONEY$$$. The children and taxpayers are after thoughts. Shame on the teachers and their union.
There are millions of people out there hurting and these selfish people are causing additional pain because of this strike. The old saying goes "What goes around comes around" and when it comes around I hope its an eye opener.
You don't show up for work Monday "YOUR FIRED"......
Actually, they should just close down the public schools in Chicago. The schools obviously don't do any good and to hear the teachers tell it, it's not because of poor teaching. Therefore the Chicago kids are a hopeless bunch. Close down the public schools and provide tuition and transportation for the kids who really want to go to school and save the taxpayers a bunch of money that can be used to build new and better infrastructure.
Absolutely, just shut the schools down. Let the gangs teach them all, that's where they ALL end up, right?
Your ignorance is showing, you must all be products of home schooling.
You can't expect to have "good teachers" in public schools. They teach the government's curriculum.
The suppression of the child's individuality and penalization of his/her critical thinking must take place for a monopoly like government to be legitimized by these future generations.
Anything "public" is mediocre at best, and this being in certain areas where the people are not as submerged in welfarism.
Nice picture... :-)
What a bunch of cry baby union bull@!$%#.. These teachers want to be paid more but have less accountability - that is F'n stupid!
F'k them
Fire them all -
Is the DEMOCRAT way. Look at Obama. Just like the theachers Unions he wants more TAX PAYER money with dismal results.