The highest paid teachers in the US are on strike?

The Chicago Teachers Union is on strike.

Someone want to explain that to me.

They want a raise even though only 15% of their 4th graders can read proficiently.

They don't want to be evaluated even though 80% of their 8th graders aren't proficient in math and reading.

They want new schools even though the Chicago public school is going to have a 3 billion dollar deficit over the next several years.

They want better benefits even though 70% of all the tax money collected for schools goes back out for their retirement plans rather than being used to teach kids.

40% of their high school freshmen drop out?

I'm sorry, I just don't get it. If I had a record like that I'd be embarrassed to collect my pay check at the end of the week, let alone belly up to the trough and demand more.

Someone please explain it to me.

I can't explain...and i agree.

I went through a good portion of my school years in Chicago (2nd through 9th grades), and I don't get it either. Of course that was 30 years ago. Most of the neighborhoods I knew you wouldn't even want to visit now, much less go to school there. I remember being told how great our system was (and I was in all advanced classes), and when we moved to Alabama, I was horribly behind. I'll wait while that sinks in. The schools here in Huntsville were so far advanced, especially in math and science, that it took a better part of a year to get caught up.

So..I don't understand it either. I certainly don't get the kinds of things they want in my job now. Without accountability, mediocrity is the norm.

Agree on most of your points, but I don't think the teachers have anything to do with drop-out rate. Lots of bad parents out there E36 M3ting their little idiots on to the teachers. You would be amazed at how many parents take little to no interest in their kids education. Good habits and respect for the teachers starts at home.

It's not like teachers are living large (they do have fantastic benefits though).

Our city schools are equally as bad. I have to say, they would be much better if the parents (of those thuggish kids) took more responsibility in raising their kids. Quite a few friends of mine teach in city schools and share interesting stories.

All of that said, it makes the teachers job harder, yet I in no way agree with what they are requesting.

... And see cone_Junky agrees...

Cone_Junky is correct. WIthout starting at home, there's not much a system can do. However, I think many schools start missing the plot when they try to do too much. As a country, the current quality of our schools is one of our biggest liabilities, but without parental involvement, and a change of priorities at the planning and administrative levels, there's not a lot that can be done.

As for teachers, I know several that have moved on to different jobs because of what their positions had become. It had deteriorated dramatically in the past couple of decades.

In reply to Cone_Junky:

For the most part I agree about the dropouts but, if those kids were learning and excited about it would they drop out? My 13yo had a tough year last year. He pretty much scraped by. We worked with him all summer and this year he has straight As so far and is truly enjoying school...

Scratch that, without the parents help, teachers are screwed. So how about spending some of that money to educate the parents on the benefits of a good education, rather than better than great teacher benefits and legacy costs.

In reply to Toyman01:

... And there begins a whole new issue. This will tidal-wave into something completely different causing OUTRAGE!

I am sure there are many bad teachers out there (as with any other profession) but I think it is pretty unreasonable to but majority of the blame of poor student performance on them. Generally (from what I have heard) the teachers in these "challenging" areas spend a lot of time dealing with "crap" that was not created by them and has little to do with the results of effective or ineffective teaching. To add to that fact, good teachers in these schools will likely get beating down by the environment.

I am also pretty sure that if you were a teacher in one of these schools, no matter what you make, you would want a much bigger raise then 15%.

I do not envy the people that do that job and would be quickly driving to madness if I had to do it.

I wouldn't want their job, but I agree with the OP. Oh yeah, around here, you still have the same stress of dealing with kids that don't get the discipline at home but with MUCH LESS pay. Get back to work and quit complaining. You CHOSE that profession and getting rewarded pretty good for it. Rant over

Since I live in the range of Chicago TV, part of the reason they want more because CPS now has the longer school days.

It's the Union honestly, because none of the teachers from any of the Charter Schools are on strike. Well that and it's a different Union.

Oh and they strike almost every year. This doesn't even phase me anymore.

That's just the way Unions work. The Teachers may not want to strike but they have to.

SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: It's the Union honestly

DING DING DING!!!!

Mrs. Javelin, my MIL, and my BIL are all teachers at different school districts out here (not Chicago and not on strike) and they all loathe the local, state, and national teacher's unions that they are required to join to be employed, which is the biggest pile of BS I have ever heard.

Just because the union is striking doesn't mean the actual teachers want it. Also, the average numbers are grossly skewed by the top 5% of educators that have been in-system for 20+ years, have Masters+ degrees, National Boards, etc. The mean wages are a crap-ton lower (at least in our districts).

Berk me I hate Unions. All of them.

Calling it a strike over pay is rather simplistic. According to CNN, the raise part is pretty well agreed upon.

What is still an issue is standardized tests and the evaluations based on that, and layoffs due to more non traditional schools.

I know I'm happy that I was not taught to a standarized test- those seem rather piss poor.

And I'm not so sure about the "charter" schools, since they are not only private (which means the real goal is to make money), they have different goals.

Everyone hates unions, but loves 40 hr work weeks, regular vacations, holidays, etc- all thanks to unions... Hate em, but take advantage of them.

I bet most of the teachers make around $40-50K. That $76K average (like mentioned) is from bloated administrative jobs.

I am freinds with quite a few CA teachers and their "average" salary isn't far off from Chicago's, but most only make about $40K. Pretty weak for somebody with a College degree (and loan debt).

But also (like mentioned), it's always been that way. They knew what they were getting into.

"Never let a crisis go to waste". November is getting close.

For those who think the job sucks and more money will make that better...

The job is still going to suck if you hate it and no amount of money will fix it.

If they want a raise because there's too much stress, the stress will still be there after the money gets better.

Maybe they should find a different line of work.

alfadriver wrote: Everyone hates unions, but loves 40 hr work weeks, regular vacations, holidays, etc- all thanks to unions... Hate em, but take advantage of them.

Yes, unions had their place in history in the US. Thanks to their great work in the past, we know have laws, commissions, and entire government departments to ensure there's no hanky-panky. Unions have completely outlived their usefulness, and frankly, most are operating in a downright illegal fashion. If the people who had created unions originally saw what unions were doing today (mandatory membership, turf wars, "jurisdiction", union-owned retirement plans, R&R clubs, etc, etc, etc) they would create new unions to strike out of this monster.

alfadriver wrote: What is still an issue is standardized tests and the evaluations based on that, and layoffs due to more non traditional schools. I know I'm happy that I was not taught to a standarized test- those seem rather piss poor.

Evaluation based on standardized test scores is a really really crappy system. It makes teachers have to spend less time teaching their subjects and a lot more time teaching tests. They're really stupid. Add in how much funding a school gets is often tied into how well they score. It generally doesn't matter if you're improving or not, just how well you score. So, teach in a district with a bunch of poor, uneducated parents? You're not going to get as much funding even if you're the greatest teacher in the world.

Some states have adopted different systems based on things like, whether lower performing schools are improving test scores or not. I don't know if that is the case in Illinois.

In reply to Datsun1500:

My wife has an MS plus extra and a Pro Cert and doesn't make that much and has been teaching for 8 years. Again, that's our district and I don't know what others are at, but the MIL and BIL's districts (also in WA) are very similar.

alfadriver wrote: And I'm not so sure about the "charter" schools, since they are not only private (which means the real goal is to make money), they have different goals.

My, you sure are jaded. Have you seen what the average private school teacher makes compared to a public one?

alfadriver wrote: Everyone hates unions, but loves 40 hr work weeks, regular vacations, holidays, etc- all thanks to unions... Hate em, but take advantage of them.

I'd say that everyone hates what unions have become.

Cone_Junky wrote: I bet most of the teachers make around $40-50K. That $76K average (like mentioned) is from bloated administrative jobs. I am freinds with quite a few CA teachers and their "average" salary isn't far off from Chicago's, but most only make about $40K. Pretty weak for somebody with a College degree (and loan debt). But also (like mentioned), it's always been that way. They knew what they were getting into.

Starting salary for any teacher in CPS is $47,000.

If it stops the charter bullE36 M3 more power to them.