The Winds Of Change

To the Editor:

In a recent interview, Randi Weingarten, head of the American Federation of Teachers, flatly refused to consider dropping tenure for teachers. She wants the teachers to evaluate each other in cooperation with the school administration.

Dear Ms Weingarten, you are advocating the use of a goat as a gardener. As long as tenure is in force, essentially all teachers will keep their jobs, the good, the mediocre, and the pathetic. Job security is what you want and change the cost and quality of education. Contrary to what you think, we are not the imbeciles for which you take us. You have authorized a television ad which claims that Connecticut children are superior in reading, but can they read French, German, or Spanish?

I am sure you know that in New Hampshire, the teacher of the year, since she had no seniority, was terminated because of cutbacks; alas the people saved her job, not the union. It is time for a change and many states have recognized this fact.

Wisconsin is not alone in addressing the problem of tenure and collective bargaining.

Florida has just enacted a law doing away with teacher’s tenure and replacing it with a one-year renewable contract.

Mayor Bloomberg in New York is struggling with the unions to make the laws more fair to children. Is not this what it is all about? Our children, yours and mine and how they will succeed in school. Do you want an incompetent or abusive teacher for your children? At present the school board can remove tenure, i.e. for the teacher in theory, but in practice the cost of a long litigation makes it impractical. It costs on the average $300,000 in legal fees, plus the teacher’s salary for the time of the litigation while on paid leave (up to five years), another $300,000 and that is if you win the case. New York City has about 55,000 teachers. Of these, 21 lost their tenure last year. It comes to 0.02 percent, making the city’s teachers the “finest in the world” if I accept Ms Weingarten’s creed.

In New Jersey, Governor Christie wants collective bargaining abolished along with tenure.

In New Hampshire, there is a move to extend tenure requirements to five years instead of three, such as the case in our state according to our tenure laws.

In Alabama, there is a legislative move to restrict or remove tenure.

In Tennessee, the legislature also wants to require five years probation before tenure is granted and remove tenure if there are three consecutive failed evaluations.

My friends, I am glad to say: I can feel the winds of change and with it there is a glimmer of hope for a more fair education for our children.

Oscar Berendsohn

34 Appleblossom Lane, Newtown                                     May 3, 2011