This was sent to me by our CTA state representative:
CalSTRS has approximately 850,000 members.
71% of the CalSTRS members are women.
2009 data from CalSTRS currently reports 224,000 benefit recipients.
Only 1.8% or 3,800 CalSTRS benefit recipients receive a pension of $100,000 or more, known as the "$100,000 Club" *These are usually administrators and superintendents. *These recipients have worked an average of 38 years. *Average salary at time of retirement was $125,000.
Realities of everyday retirees(non administrative):
-Average age of reitree is 71. -Average retiree receives a pension of about $3,100. -Life expectancy of retiree is 18 years beyond retirement. -He or she retires at age 61 after 28 years in the system. -Retirees receive 62% replacemtn of pre-retirement income. -Retirees do not receive Social Security. -60% of all retirees receive no financial support for health care after age 65.
According to anti-teacher pundits and demagogues, teachers unions are bad for students because collective bargaining agreements protect bad teachers and reward teachers for seniority rather than competence. However, ten states do not have contracts with their teachers (AL, AZ, AR, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TX, and VA). If the claims are true, we should expect these states to have better educational outcomes. In a recent blog posting from the Shankar Institute (reposted on Valerie Strauss’ WaPo blog, Answer Sheet), the evidence just isn’t there. Average 2009 NAEP Score By State Teacher Contract Laws
States with binding teacher contracts 4th grade: Math 240.0 Reading 220.7 8th grade: Math 282.1 Reading 263.7
States without binding teacher contracts 4th grade: Math 237.7 Reading 217.5 8th grade: Math 281.2 Reading 259.5
Some possible explanations: contracts, tenure, collective bargaining all contribute toward retaining more experienced teachers. Job security and due process rights encourage more open and honest discourse during meetings and collaboration which help foster more effective reform and school improvement.
The results of the Shankar study should, of course, be taken with a grain of salt. There were lots of variables there weren't controlled or at least disaggregated from their data. Most of the non-unionized states were from the South, with higher degrees of poverty and in many (but not all) cases lower levels of per pupil spending.
Nevertheless, if unions were the only problem, as many critics assert in their reductionist claims, then non-unionized states should have higher test scores, and they clearly do not.
Massachusetts teachers in the King Phillip Regional School District, Norfolk County, are protesting a contract dispute with their district over pay, class size and a faulty grading system, by declining to write college recommendations. The district has filed a petition with the state’s Department of Labor, claiming that the action constitutes an illegal strike. In Massachusetts, it is illegal for teachers to strike.
The strike is one of the most powerful weapons workers have in their ongoing struggle with bosses. Without this weapon, workers are significantly limited in the effectiveness of their actions. On the other hand, workers must also recognize that the legality of their actions should not limit their use. Unions themselves were once illegal. Thousands of workers have been jailed, deported, beaten or killed in this country taking illegal job actions in the fight for better pay, working conditions and respect.
If their action is ruled illegal, it would imply that few, if any job actions are legal for teachers under Massachusetts law. This would completely eviscerate their union. Collective bargaining is only as effective as the tactics of protest. If a bargaining team makes a demand and the bosses say no, the members must take a job action powerful enough to force the bosses to give in. If all job actions are considered illegal strikes, Massachusetts teachers will have no choice but to break the law in defense of their wages, working conditions and dignity.
Here's an interesting piece from the WaPo by Mike Rose breaking down some of the fallacies and logical inconsistencies with the current educational reform models.
No wonder people buy into the current anti-teacher mass hysteria! On Sunday, Parade uncritically quoted Bill Gates saying that everyone improves over time except teachers. Gates has become an education “expert” by virtue of donating billions to promote charter schools, not through education, research or any real experience in the field.
In reality, most teachers learn their subject matter better through experience. They grow and improve through professional development, collaboration and self-reflection. Teaching standards have become more rigorous and teachers must undergo more university training than in the past.
High dropout rates among black and Latino students and a persistent class-based achievement gap are serious problems. However, there is little evidence that these problems are getting significantly worse, and even less that it is the fault of bad teachers. There is considerable evidence that student achievement improves with family income. Researchers have even found class-based differences in cognitive and language skills among children as young as three.
Instead of bashing teachers, let’s address the real problem with schools: poverty and funding. Rather than giving away billions in tax revenues to billionaire education entrepreneurs for more charter schools, why not redirect those resources toward helping struggling families?
UNSUNG HEROES
