Dear
Colleague,
We sincerely hope that if you are an existing agency fee payer, you have sent in a request for your rebate. The November 15th deadline has passed. If you haven't filed by now, you will not get your rebate this year. However, if you are a first time filer, you may resign from the union after the 15th; you will not get the full amount, however, but a prorated one dependent on how long after the 15th you file. For more information, go to http://www.ctenhome.org/know.htm
For
an interesting and friendly debate on “The Future of Teacher Unions,” the
Fordham Institute corralled Stanford Professor Terry Moe and Democrats For
Education Reform (DFER) President Joe Williams for an in-depth back-and-forth
on the subject. To watch it, go to http://www.edexcellence.net/events/after-chicago-the-future-of-teacher-unions.html
Also
from the Fordham Institute, in conjunction with Education Reform Now (an arm of
DFER), we now have a state-by-state comparison of teacher union power. There
are several surprises here. For example, the Alabama (right-to-work state) teachers
union is considered more powerful than the union in non-right-to-work Massachusetts.
To watch a brief video about the study and to read the study itself, go to http://www.edexcellence.net/publications/how-strong-are-us-teacher-unions.html
And
one final note about the unions – courtesy of RiShawn Biddle – we now can see
where the American Federation of Teachers spent its members’ dues money in
2011-2012.
Another year,
another LM-2 filing from the American Federation of Teachers. And once again,
the nation’s second-largest teachers’ union is spending plenty to maintain its
declining influence over education policymaking. The AFT spent $27 million on
political activities (including lobbying) and contributions to what should be
like-minded groups.
To
continue reading Biddle’s comments go to http://dropoutnation.net/2012/11/01/the-afts-latest-disclosure-27-million-to-preserve-its-influence/ To see the
entire Labor Department document, go to http://rishawnbiddle.org/outsidereports/aft_2012_dol_filing.pdf
From
the media and the unions we hear many things about charter schools. But here in
this brief video from the California Charter School Association, we hear directly
from charter school teachers on why they prefer to teach in a charter school.
Certainly some food for thought here - http://www.calcharters.org/blog/2012/10/new-video-what-is-it-like-to-teach-at-charter-school.html
Back
in June, we told you about the “Students Matter” case which could have an
effect on every teacher in California. This case was
filed on behalf of eight students from around the state,
…claiming provisions of California’s education code—rigid
tenure rules, a seniority-based firing system that ignores teacher quality, and
a “due-process” system that makes it all but impossible to remove incompetent
or criminal teachers—violate student rights. As a result of these arbitrary
distinctions in hiring and firing, the complaint reads, “children of
substantially equal age, aptitude, motivation, and ability do not have
substantially equal access to education. Because education is a fundamental
interest under the California Constitution, the statutes that dictate this
unequal, arbitrary result violate the equal protection provisions of the
California Constitution.” To read more, go to http://www.city-journal.org/2012/cjc0606ls.html
On
November 15th, there was a ruling in which the judge said the lawsuit
should go forth. Whatever your feelings are about this case, it would behoove
you to pay attention to it. To read more, go to http://www.sacbee.com/2012/11/15/4989297/lawsuit-over-teacher-employment.html
For the Students Matter homepage, go to http://studentsmatter.org/
For
those of you who were in favor of Prop. 30, you got your way on Election Day.
However, please understand this is a very temporary fix in a state that is in
deep fiscal straits. For a balanced view of what Prop. 30 can and can’t do, go
to http://collegian.csufresno.edu/2012/11/05/proposition-30-a-smart-move-or-a-gamble/
And
on the subject of spending, the Friedman Foundation has come out with a
staggering study which claims that,
America’s K-12
public education system has experienced tremendous historical growth in
employment, according to the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for
Education Statistics. Between fiscal year (FY) 1950 and FY 2009, the number of
K-12 public school students in the United States increased by 96 percent while
the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) school employees grew 386 percent.
Public schools grew staffing at a rate four times faster than the increase in
students over that time period. Of those personnel, teachers’ numbers increased
252 percent while administrators and
other staff experienced growth of 702 percent, more than seven times the
increase in students. (Emphasis added.)
To
read more and download the study, go to http://www.edchoice.org/Research/Reports/The-School-Staffing-Surge--Decades-of-Employment-Growth-in-Americas-Public-Schools.aspx
For
a rare and fair mainstream media analysis of education issues facing us in
California, Ken Malloy at CBS Fresno put together a five part series that is
well worth watching. To watch “The State of Education,” go to http://www.cbs47.tv/news/local/story/Special-Report-The-State-of-Education/dLDoabahFEm3mMZSzLUGBw.cspx
The
National Council on Teacher Quality has a monthly online newsletter that is
worthy of your attention. The current issue has interesting piece, “How We
Stopped Guessing and Hired Smart,” written by a middle school math specialist.
To read it and the rest of the November newsletter, go to http://www.nctq.org/nl/emailPreview.jsp?nlIdentifier=294#Avictoryfortransparency
As always, we at CTEN want to thank
you for your ongoing support. Please visit us regularly at www.ctenhome.org. We do our best to
keep our website up-to-date, but if you need information and can’t find it
there, please send us an email at cteninfo@ctenhome.org or call us at 888-290-8471 and we will get back to you in
short order.
Sincerely,
Larry Sand
CTEN President
CTEN President
