I couldn't help notice perhaps 80-100 protesters today along El Camino in Belmont, and in San Mateo, protesting the Governor's stance on (not) returning our funds for public education. Most looked like parents with kids in tow.
– Written by jenn
Dedicated to Empowering and Informing the Burlingame Community
Posted in Schools
50 responses to “Protesters against Arnold”
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Parents and teachers… all who work hard enough and are taking time out to make a point that what the Governor is doing is wrong…
I don’t understand how people get so distant from reality that things like educating children, or safety and welfare of children becomes such a low priority… It really begs the question what kind of society do we want to be? One that abandons children?
One that doesn’t educate or pay attention to it’s youth for the first 16 years of their life but jumps on the opportunity to incarcerate them the minute they mess up… And why do they mess up? Undereducated, lack of resources, lack of attention…
It is a slippery slope, Arnold is breeding tomorrows criminals.
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I understood it to be a rally of sorts for public schools, but understand it quickly became a “protest Arnold” event. The locations along the peninsula were carefully planned as well as the event. I’m not sure what the real message was.
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Before anyone goes out to “protest against Arnold” I suggest they read the Legislative Analyst Office (LAO’s) analysis of the terms of Prop 98 and then get a summary of the last two State Budgets. Once they do that, they will realize the CA Teacher’s Assn. is full of gas. It’s a shame that the protesters are so uninformed. They would be much more effective if they protested the bloated school administration expenses. Most people would agree that too few dollars are getting to the classrooms, but it is NOT because too few dollars are being spent overall.
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Yes, that my be. But I think the issue here is to get our money back, period, or did I miss something? The bloated Administration is another issue, and of course, we all agree (I think) that more money should get into the classroom to benefit the kids, keeping class size down, etc., Good teachers should get salaries which enable them to survive in Bay Area. As I’ve mentioned before, western european countries have a far more rigourous education system for budding teachers, but they also pay them well after they have become teachers.
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Wait the sec; let’s not forget CA can’t even balance their budget for how many years now? Are you ready for tax increase & drives more companies/business outta state? Though not against better education for our kids, smaller class rooms, nor better salaries for teachers…etc. BUT, Where is the $$?
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Are you kidding me Mary? My mom has been buying her own supplies for the children in her class for years and now the school has to ask parents to pay for supplies…
Prop 98 is a constitutionally guarenteed MINIMUM…
And isn’t that the point too few dollars are getting to the classroom… to the children…. are we just going to write this generation off while Arnold fails at restructuring…
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I wonder how much money is going to educate the children of illegal aliens. No one seems to address this problem. Not only do they not speak English, many are illiterate in their own native language; they cannot read and write in their own language. They are tremendous drain on the California school system and no one in government addresses this issue. The tremendous amount of teachers that are hired just to deal with illegal alien’s children is draining money away from children who are here legally. But heaven forbid we bring this subject up because it is not “politically correct.” The fact of the matter is illegals are showered with benefits: schools, health coverage, housing, food, etc. No wonder they all come here. I would too! But on the other hand, they are also a drain on our jails and prisons and court systems. The federal government should give money towards the California school system since they are not protecting our borders.
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Why penalize the children because the parents come here looking for work?
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I agree with Fred. Really, a child is a child… and they should never be dismissed. Children are beholden to the decisions made their parents… we should never penalize a child for a situation they did nothing to cause… Do we really want to be a society that is so uncompassionate to say that one child does not qualify for basic/fundamental assistance strictly because of who their parents are? I like to predicate my behavior on morality as opposed to borders and race.
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So you are both saying we should reward bad behaviour? You both never addressed the issue of where is the money coming from? Why should the legal taxpayer fund illegals? It’s about time that pefople say STOP THE MADNESS. This drain on our california economy is getting bigger and bigger and we the legal citizens are being asked to fund more and more for people who don’t belong here in the first place. Sounds heartless but enough is enough.
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What’s the difference if they crossed the border or came over on a boat? How can you deny any child education? Turning people away isn’t what made this country great. The exact opposite is our strength.
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If any one of you are sitting on the fence around this issue, drive down Poplar Ave. in SM any evening and you will see the school set upfor ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS taking part in job skills, english, and pre-natel care classes. We are paying for this through many different taxes. As well as a whole bunch of other programs that are paid for by us. If you don’t bring this up, you have NO reason to wonder why we don’t have $32,000 to pay for crosswalking guards. It is a deep issue that needs to talked about everyday.
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I am not against helping others in any way. However, everyday we seem to learn about this or that teacher losing a job,Police/Fire cut backs.
PS Arnold is a shill. -
My replies are, yes Jenn you missed something. You apparently did not do the homework I suggested. Patrick, you didn’t do the homework either. Instead of a knee-jerk reaction based on your personal experience, you should do the homework. If you want to be a lawyer when you graduate, you better get used to reading up on the topic. Do you know what Prop 98’s Test 1,2, and 3 are? Do you know what the conditions for suspension are? Do you understand the maintenance factor? Do you know how year to year funding is linked to the economy? Or are you just listening to the CTA’s radio and TV ads? That would be the $11 million worth of ads that have aired so far–so spare me the pencil argument. If you want to just blast people, go ahead, but don’t expect to convince someone who is actually informed on the issue.
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Here is a link to the answers about Prop 98
http://www.edsource.org/pub_edfct_prop98.cfmThe comments about educating illegal immigrants are interesting. California’ s economy is dependent upon low cost (illegal) labor. The same people who criticize illegals “using up” California’s resources are also the ones who are buying up the products made by illegal labor and attracting more of this type of labor to California. Providing education, social services, and rights for illegals is a social cost of attracting and using this type of labor in California.
Back to education…California used to be the golden state for education. We are now hard pressed to provide services. Our UC system was once the envy of the nation, now it is overcrowded and increasing in cost. The wealthy can afford private school for their children but others must rely upon the public system. Burlingame has the BCE and the BHS parents group to provide resources where the local districts fall short. Even with these additional funds, our students sit in classrooms of 35 students to one teacher. The Bay Area economy is making it more difficult to attract and retain excellent teachers to teach in these adverse situations. These are not a conditions for excellent instruction. The question is not whether the CTA or Arnold are correct…but what is the state going to do to fix a broken education system and educate its children. Arnold and the CTA are pure politics, what is beyond the politics. Arnold is going after the CTA for one reason, break the CTA and the Republican Party will take CA. Look at the issues, teacher tenure, teacher retirement, and school funding (salaries) These are core teacher issues and will not solve education problems. I am a teacher. I don’t believe that CTA or Arnold have the students best interest at heart, but these two groups control the issue of education so we have to back one of them.
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Mary – I think Patrick was talking – not as a future lawyer or future anything – but as a decent human being that feels that children deserve our attention. Quite a noble way to look at life.
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Mary, I did read these provisions. It all sounds nice in a vacuum. Having had my kids do the roller coaster of large class sizes, and then small class sizes, and now the threat of large class sizes again, depending upon the state of our economy, I can tell you that in practice, this doesn’t really work. It is very unstable. Nobody here is claiming to have all the answers. Parents are constantly asked to step in to help fund this or that program, in danger of being slashed. I have friends who are teachers in various districts around the state, and they spend a good amount of their own money on supplies for the kids, something no other profession would be asked to do. When I was a kid here, my parents were seldom asked to donate to prop up the system and it seemed more stable than now. What changed? Prop 13 ? The other problem I see is lack of the long view. Sometimes math programs (for example) change within just a few years, meaning loads of wasted textbooks and teacher training. In the end, I’m not even sure that the “new” maths are better than the old. We don’t stick to one system long enough to really be able to see the results. Also, if we are talking about bloated administration, I’d personally love to see historical data on the past 30 years, what positions existed then, and which ones exist now. If you are able to provide us with a link, or data, I would greatly appreciate it.
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I believe the major contributor to the demise of our schools, and edcation system is/was prop. 13. One of these days some brave polition is going to have to tell us the truth, that this Prop. has run its course, and is doing more harm to our state than what it was intended for.
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Jenn, allow me to sincerely thank you. Your comments about the lack of a long view are making my original point far better than I made it. You’ve got it. Whether we call it bloated administration or indecisive administration or something else, that is the real problem. Changing the curriculum for no reason is poor management. It isn’t the teachers but rather their union that is trying to politicize things as KRN noted. I appreciate how KRN is trying to walk the middle ground of saying it is pure politics by both sides and shouldn’t be, but when it comes to the state budget what else could it be? We are spending 53% of the state budget on education now. When you think of all the other things the state is supposed to do with the other 47% is 53% really unreasonable? I don’t think so.
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A closer look at the budget reveals that we are dealing with a percentage of the budget and NOT pure dollars. 53% of a reduced budget in recession year is far less than 53% of a budget in a positve year.
Education is expensive and is also a responsibility of the state. Everything is politics. Arnold states that teachers are interest groups but so are corporate Political Action Committees who are funding his war chest. The CTA is having to raise $60 per teacher in California to battle Arnold and save their own pensions. We just watched United Airlines retirees get dumped and now teachers are fighting for their own retirements. How many teachers will join the system if they can’t recieve a quality retirement and benefits to off set their public sector wages?
Interested readers should take a look at Paradise Lost by Peter Shrag of the Sacramento Bee. In this book Shrag chronicles the rise and fall of California’s K-12 and Higher Edcation systems.
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Mary, I don’t need more quizes, I have enough exams. 1) I always do my research. 2) Bottom line it is the children who are being hurt, I don’t care how you flex it… 3) I don’t watch TV, but I read as much as I can and I haven’t seen the commercials you referenced, 4)Throughout the recall campaign and his young administration, Schwarzenegger had said repeatedly that he wouldn’t cut education. All lies. His legacy will be the undereducated criminals of our future that we will have to pay to incarcerate… He is not a Governor of his word.
The Govenor’s own stats are that Thirty percent of students who enter 9th grade do not graduate; Barely 40 percent of our students are proficient in math; Nearly half of all freshmen admitted to CSU need remediation in English; Thirty-five percent of California schools failed to meet the federal Adequate Yearly Progress criteria…
The practical effect of the Governors actions are undeniable. Schools are closing. The student teacher ratio is going up. Do you really think those statistics on the poor health of the Califonia education system is going to improve with less schools? With less time each teacher has for individual attention to students? I understand all the Prop 98 Test 1-3 nonsense and I understand the suspension requirements. Like I said I do my homework… You are the discounting the practical effects. The real world effects. It is short sighted and the children are paying the price. Talk to teachers… This is not some grand conspiracy against Arnold. In San Francisco the school board is making a decsion to close two more schools… One that deals with the special needs of children…. EVERY MEMBER OF THAT SCHOOL BOARD SAID IT IS A DIRECT RESULT OF DECISIONS MADE BY ARNOLD! Don’t dismiss my view as political or pc, just because I focus on the human interest…
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My son was lucky. His math teacher was so exceptional at BHS, that he probably wouldn’t have needed a textbook to teach. His honors history as a freshman, was taught out of a book from the late 60’s or early 70’s. I was quite surprised that history, which should certainly include the last 30-40 years, particularly with regard to changes in Europe, was not included. Again, he got lucky, his honors teacher was exceptional and was able to fill in the missing pieces. We are very dependant upon the quality of the teachers. A great teacher can perhaps do fine with outdated materials, but a poor teacher probably wouldn’t be able to fill in the blanks. Also, I wouldn’t expect a less effective teacher to be able to teach better with new materials. I do wonder, however, how a district determines which subjects will be updated. Who determines this, the State? Does one subject receive more funding, or “clout” than another, etc. Maybe KRN can enlighten us. I also have a concern with all the technology the schools have. It is a nice “frill” to have, but my son’s handwriting looks like it hasn’t evolved since the 3rd grade. He’s almost 16. What will happen if the computer or printer breaks when he applies for a job!?
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There’s a recap of the proposed state budget in today’s SF Chronicle (pages A6,7). It shows K-12 and Higher Education getting 52.2% of the budget. The next two largest categories are Health & Human Services and Corrections & Rehabilitation which get 38.5% combined. That leaves 9.3% for everything else.
One thing that I didn’t quite follow is the paper’s statement that “funds had been borrowed from schools in the mid-1990s”. Things were pretty good in the mid-90s and the state was certainly flush for several years in the late ’90s so I’m stuggling to see how this is Arnold’s fault or what any other governor would do differently.
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The SMUHSD buys new textbooks every seven years. The State sets the curriculum and the students must meet these standards through exams. There is little or no room for teacher innovation or passion for certain area of a subject. There is extreme pressure to perform on exams which measure….? There is no official priority for funding but Science seems to get preference over other subjects. BHS has limited technology and limited technology integration. The Superintendent recently stated that most students have technology at home and therefore there was no reason to include it as an area of instruction. The schools are adopting a “script” for education where one size fits all. This system may raise test scores but will come at the cost of some of our brightest students who fail to recieve a challenging education. BHS has been lucky to have had some excellent teachers who have excelled despite these changes. Sadly, many of these teachers are retiring and taking their passions and skills with them.
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Amazing and solid stuff in these responses. But the bottom line, really, is pretty simple: If you live in a decent ZIP code area, California public schools are, by and large, OK. Just ask the UC admissions folks. When you venture into the inner cities or, sadly, Los Angeles County or Orange County in particular, it’s a nightmare. Burlingame and Hillsborough? Please. Kids from educated families are doing very well. Kids from uneducated families are not. We have two societies in this state today. It’s not 1955. The vast white middle class is a shell of its former self. Is that bad or good? Who knows. But, down the line, this state is changing without question. Our children and grandchildren will have to deal with all of this. God bless them.
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I do not have the answer, but my life experience has shown me that $$$$$ does not seem to be the answer to the education problem, we are currently facing. For years, more than I care to count, I have heard this argument and have seen ballot measure after ballot measure asking for more $$$$$ and getting it to solve the education problem, but the problem just keeps getting worse.
I am sure this is a single-issue problem and as a result, finding a starting point is very difficult. As I look back on some of the issues, it appears to me one of the possible trouble causing issues could be inconsistency with what and how subjects are taught.
English was plagued with the seesaw of teaching and not teaching of phonics. There were numerous experiments with math. Can we forget the disaster “New Math” wreaked upon the children? And there was “Outcome based education (OBE).” Unfortunately a student, who was considered excellent in OBE, had a difficult time in college. Generally an OBE student had to take bonehead-english and bonehead math because they did not possess the skills needed to move into regular college english or math. Now the system is attempting to eliminate the standard grading system A thru F, because some administrator feels this is too harsh on some students. Some other administrator felt using red was an inappropriate color to use to correct papers, so countless hours were spent discussing and changing what color should be used to correct a paper. The list of administrative flip-flops just continues and the $$$$$ just keeps pouring into the system, without results.Personally I would like to see the focus on the three R’s and all of the other social programs allowed as the student demonstrates he or she has mastered a specific grade level proficiency. It is not fair for the children to be passed on and then dumped onto society without the basic skills associated with the three R’s.
If you are one, who likes a little humor, go on the web and take the CBEST test, which is a standard test used to measure a teacher’s academic ability. What really concerns me is there is a significant number of teachers, who have not or cannot pass this test.
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I agree with Rich (on where the focus should be). I think there has to be consistency.
Creativity in implementation of teaching the basics will be up to the teachers, but solid curriculum is all the students need.
We need to ensure that our students graduate with a fully loaded toolbox…
Some of the high schools in the area are an absolute joke… I am not trying to knock them, but my friends who went to these schools had zero academic responsibility. They were never challenged. There were a million different ways that they could be out of school by noon.
This might be off subject, but many of the high schools allow a work-experience program, where students get to leave school at noon and get credit if they are going to a job. Now, while jobs are important and do teach responsibility but they are not solid curriculum. (It is different if a student is learning a trade) But we used to hire kids at Peets, and they didn’t learn anything. It was just a solid excuse to be out of class…
Really sticking to basic and core programs is important. Furthermore, there needs to be some force behind class attendance. At San Mateo, I know that people were free to leave with few or if any reprocutions.
Students don’t have to be absolutely proficient in everything but they need to know how to evaluate real world problems, apply skills they learn in the classroom, and once again have their toolbox handy for dissecting and comprehending problems…
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One other thing about last week’s protest march along El Camino Real. This was a direct product of the California Teachers Association, with HQ on Murchison Drive in Burlingame. The CTA is one of the richest and most powerful lobbying groups in the state. The anger directed at the governor stems from dollars and cents. The CTA wants higher salaries for teachers. Good for them. It’s just that its habit of using parents and students to promote their monetary agenda is really off-putting and disingenuous. For a lot of us out there, it’s been a turnoff.
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Bill- they want more resources for the classroom, they want texts books, and basic school supplies… don’t try to play it off like it some grand ploy to exploit parents/children in the hope of sustaining a higher wage for the teacher… Teachers work for a piddance and they are often times the only stability our country’s neglected children have… Thay are not hitting the streets for higher wages… come on.
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When I read about people commenting on “how well off” teachers are (with this benefit, or other) I wonder what their “finacial back ground/ education is.
1.Who paid your tution/living expences through school?
2.Who will pay for your childrens?
3.How are they going to pay that back?
It is terrible to compare the education most of us got (Baby Boomers)to what is the only show in town, now.
Only 40 years ago, my teacher was making less than $2.00 per hour, and paying for benefits.
Teachers need all the support we can give them. If they want money,smaller classrooms, computers,books, give it. They spend more time with your “babies” than you ever will. How could anyone possibly argue with the value of education? The time spent on these issues are so easy to solve. -
Sorry. The CTA has become a monster. And money is what drives it. Just listen to the union’s non-stop radio and TV ad campaign. The CTA has become part of the problem.
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I have no idea what teachers are paid but they probably do spend more time with our kids than we do. At my kids school, they were teaching our kids life lessons over and above the basics, as how to be kind to each other, how to apologize and work together. Their job is huuuuuuge. To watch great teachers in action is a life lesson in itself.
My daughter’s high school asks the kids to evaluate their teachers by how good or bad their teaching skills are. The evaluations are not anonymous and her AP calculus teacher called her into his office to discuss her evaluation. This is mind boggling stuff to me that the teachers are open to discussion, welcome their student’s evaluation and listen to how they could do better with their teaching skills for future students!
I wish teachers were given more credit for the work they do because they are there for our children and do more than teach English, Spanish and math.
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Bill
Do you know WHY the CTA is spending the money on ads? CTA is fighting the spin that Arnold is putting in the market. I know why he is going after teacher tenure -simple- break the power of the union. (Reagan and Air Traffic Controllers) But why is Arnold going after teachers retirnment accounts? Since when are the teachers the evil empire that brought down the Cal-e-forn-ya economy? Will breaking teacher tenure and their retirement system bring jobs to the state? Look deeper on this one. I’ll admit that CTA often spends my dues money on fluff, but this is a real battle that teachers and parents can lose.
If Arnold wins, the teacher in the classroom will recieved reduced wages and benefits and this will surely result in a decrease in the quality of education that YOUR child is going to recieve. Arnold’s plans will lead to a reformed education system like the “Employees must wash hands before returning to work” sign eliminates pee pee on a Big Mac. It looks good but it just doesn’t get the job done.
Our entire political system is driven by special interest groups and CTA is just one of many players on the scene. It MUST raise and spend big bucks if it wants to survice. This is the nature of today’s politics.
By the way, have you looked to see who is paying Arnold’s bills? Who are these people and what are they getting out of the deal?
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An editorial in The Chronicle reveals Arnold’s true objective in removing teacher tenure using state initiative process.
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Thanks, KRN for informing us about this article. It is very interesting. One more question I have is, how long has the tenure system been in place in this state. Perhaps you know the answer. In a way, it seems like it might be used in place of higher salaries (job security vs. job compensation?). There have always been very good teachers, some bad ones, and a bunch in between., at least that is the way I remember it. I also wonder if the pay scale has always been on the lower end. I seem to remember far more male teachers in elementary school a few decades ago, than we currently have. It seems as though in many cases, it is used as a secondary income, certainly not as a primary income. For single people whom I know, who are teachers, they have always had to supplement their income by tutoring students in summer and after school.
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There is no promotion system in teaching. There are teachers and administrators and nothing in between. If a teacher wants to make more money in education, then they have to become an administrator and leave the classroom. The tenure system enables school districts to hold on to teachers that they believe are valuable to the district. The solution to tenure is very simple, administrators should not grant tenure to bad teachers. We also have an evaluation system that CAN be used to detect and retrain BAD teachers. Here again, the administration is in charge of evaluations, yet they don’t give bad evaluations to bad teachers. The systems are in place, they just need to be used properly.
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what is the motive for administrators to give bad teachers tenure and not give them bad evaluations? I the ole corporate world (with no union) those administrators would be fired. So would the bad teachers. So, what is their motive to continue to grant tenure to bad teachers? To prevent turnover, to avoid conflict??
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Administrators have a union but DO NOT have job security, in fact they are on one and two year contracts. Administrators can be fired at most any time.
Teacher tenure is given when a “good” teacher is found and the district wants to retain this individual. Like at the university level, teachers will stay in a district only if they get tenure, otherwise they will leave. School districts are hard pressed to find quality talent and may tenure a teacher quickly as to not lose them. Principals define a good teacher with different criteria including “nice person,” and diversity.
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Great info here. I’d still like to know if each state has a similar system of tenure, etc. What part of the equation is different here in CA, and can it be tied to Prop 13, to one extent or the other? I read an article from 2000 last night about all the various tiers of administration: at individual schools, at district, county, state and national level and how they are run basically independent of one another, at least according to that author.
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CTA is part of the NEA so I suspect that there are similarities regarding tenure in each state. States do establish there own procedures for tenure and all hiring and retention practices. The national, state, county, and local levels work together, and independent from one another.
The one reason that education still works is because teachers agreed to keep providing the same level of service AFTER Prop. 13 rather than just reducing services and/or shutting down. Many older teachers NOW say that teachers should have cut off services in accordance with budget reductions after Prop. 13. As a result, California EXPECTS teachers to keep working at the same level of service even though funding slows, salaries level off, and benefits erode. This is not the practice in terms of prison guards, police, or firefighter. If we see significant reductions in these areas, then the public safety is in jeopardy. If we don’t fund education, then it is only our children who will suffer.
A significant question I ask all of my classes “What role should government play/” “What is the level of service and infrastructure that the government should provide to establish and maintain an effective and growing economy?” Is the current level of education funding (no matter what the percentage) an adequate amount to continue California’s economic growth?
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It’s important to note that at least 9 San Mateo County public school districts are basic aid districts that get the bulk of their money courtesty of skyrocketing property taxes. Top scale for teachers in places like Atherton, Portola Valley, Woodside, Hillsborough, Sequoia Union and San Mateo Union is well into the $85,000 range. There are some veteran instructors who make $90,000 and more. And that’s for nine months work. The CTA prefers not to mention this. Who can blame it?
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Not sure about those high salaries, but let’s say you are correct. That is the salary of a teacher who has spent perhaps 40 years at his or her craft. That same teacher might have started their career in the low to mid-$20,000 range. I could be wrong, but if you would track most other careers that require a few years of college and thereafter, I would think that their salaries would have risen a lot higher than 90K after several decades. Keep in mind that the first half of such a career is probably hovering around 40K, and that is not much in this area. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong. I think that may be one of the reasons that men are a vanishing breed in teaching careers.
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The School Accountability Report Card for the School Year 2003-2004 (published during 2004-2005) for the Burlingame School District has loads of information and is readily available at the schools or district office. Concerning salaries, there is a comparison for our district to the state average. For our district:
Beginning Teachers $35,695
Mid Range Teachers $59,462
Highest Teachers $71,545
Principal Elementary $95,409
Principal Middle $102,740
Superintendent $122,091Percent of budget for teacher salaries for our district is 44.3, compared to the state average of 42.5.
Percent of Budget for Administrative salaries is 8.1, compared to the sate average of 5.9. Heavy on administration here.
With the exception of a few hundred dollars for beginning teachers, all other categories are above the state averages.
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Read the Los Angeles Times article by Senator Tom McClintock which is certainly food for thought for those of you who seem to be confused by it all…..
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From the Burlingame School District 2002/03 Revenue per Student:
Hillsborough $10,998
Menlo Park $8,791
Belmont/RS $7,985
Burlingame $6,767
Millbrae $6,417
San Bruno $5,842The Burlingame School District depends on other sources of funding to maintain what the State can not provide: grants, parcel tax, BCE.
Yeah to our residents that continue to support our schools.
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Lots of good information here and a clear example of why Burlingame schools continue to excel. We have a very involved, informed and dedicated community. Thanks, Jean, KRN and Sue for very useful information, not only for us school parents, but for Burlingame at large.
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Teachers in the SMUHSD at the TOP of the salary scale earn about $85,000. This teacher has been on the job for 20 years, holds a B.A. degree, 30 unit graduate teaching credential, Masters Degree, and 15-30 additional upper division and graduate units. The B.A. and teaching credential were needed to start the job after student teaching with NO pay for six months.
Teachers are required to teach a full course load of five classes as well as provide supervision (clubs, sports, student government, prom) , communication, and evaluation. Teachers also have to pay the same rent and mortgages as others in the Bay Area. Many teachers could leave the profession and make more money in the Bay Area Economy, but they choose to stay in education.I teach five classes each day. I teach four Advanced Placement classes consisting of 140 students. These students may recieve college credit for these courses and therefore will not have to repeat them in college . If 50% of these students recieve college credit in the two AP courses I teach (140 x 2 = 280/2=140) then these students will save almost $70,000 in college tuition. ($500 per class @UC x 140) This is a financial savings for EACH family. The financial savings I generate almost matches my salary. This is why the SMUHSD pays for quality teachers, because it SAVES families money in the long run and makes a strong human capital investment in the community and state. Education is an investment, not a burden.
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Sue
GREAT article, hope everyone takes the time to read the article.
Thank you for sharing this information.
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Teachers should one of the pillars in the formation of our children’s education. As Rich said, the three R’s should be the foundation for our children’s education. Social engineering should be eliminated from what is being taught in our schools.
As a parent it seems the school district’s position towards parents is: “we know better than you, what is good for your children.” Our household has certain religious values and we do not want a stranger teaching our children how to put on a condom, how to get and take certain birth control items, and how to get a abortion. I do not want a stranger giving our children any form of medication that we haven’t authorized.
When the system can show they can teach our children the knowledge they will need to succeed in their furture, monitary rewards will follow.
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Sue/Rich,
I agree the LA Times article was an interesting read; however, if you scratch the surface a bit you’ll find it’s mostly just hot air.
For instance, just change the suggested 36:1 student-teacher ratio (5 teachers for 180 students) to something more in line with what BSD now provides (around 20:1) – this adds more to the budget than Mr McClintock allocates for the luxury office space, new desks and fitness club combined.
Next, decide whether we want to eliminate the librarians, music programs, art programs, etc, none of which are mentioned here (and which local donors to BCE seem quite willing to vote for with their dollars).
Finally, if anyone doesn’t understand why a school needs a principal and secretary (“because, well, I don’t know exactly why, but we always have”), spend an hour in the office of your local school.
Bottom Line: If the rest of the article is as full of holes as the pieces I know a little bit about, it’s pretty thin. If this is representative of the argument in favor of the governor’s proposed education budget, it hasn’t convinced me.
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