Here it is December and I finally was given the UFT 2011-2012 teacher planning book titled "We Are One" by a sympathetic Chapter Leader. Reading the UFT's motto I had to laugh since the union Leadership has treated the ATRs as "second class citizens". It is bad enough that the DOE treats the ATRs as some "tool" to be used and abused weekly by principals but it is something else when our union allows the DOE to ignore the ATR Agreement and close their collective eyes to the principals who fail to interview or hire an ATR to cover their hidden or listed vacancies.
Why do I believe the union has treated the ATRs as "second class citizens"? Lets look at what the union leadership has failed to do for the ATRs.
- ATRs must go to 65 Court Street to receive their paychecks, not the school they are placed in.
- ATRs no longer get paper pay stubs.
- The union refuses to give ATRs a voice in determining their future.
- The union failed to place an ATR on their oversight committee and to make matters worse refuses to identify who is on the committee and what has been discussed.
- Many high school ATRs are subject to insane commutes, especially in District 76 and the union remains silent about this hardship.
- Schools continue to treat ATRs differently from teaching staff. No parking permits, no keys, and many of the Chapter Leaders fail to meet with the ATRs.
Remember, it was both the DOE and UFT that caused the ATR crises in the first place and it is time to restore the old excessing rules if the ATR crises is to be resolved and that the ATRs are not treated as "second class citizens". For the UFT to ignore this issue and the only action they do is propose "toothless resolutions" rather than publicly show how the DOE continues to violate the ATR Agreement is unacceptable.
Update: The DOE is setting up a pilot program for the Brooklyn schools to evaluate (terminate) ATRs. You can read the complete letter below.
From: Atrassignment <Atrassignment@schools.nyc.gov>
Subject: Important Update on Supervision
To:
Date: Monday, December 5, 2011, 10:37 AM
Dear Teacher,
The Department of Education is piloting a new model for supervision of teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR). This pilot will be implemented for most ATRs assigned to community school districts in Brooklyn as well as the Brooklyn High School superintendency, District 73; you are receiving this email because you will likely be included in the pilot. Under this initiative, you will be supervised by a licensed administrator, called a Field Supervisor, who will periodically observe your practice and provide you with feedback to support your professional development. The Field Supervisors are aware that as an ATR you do not have a regular program and that you rotate school assignments and they will take this context into account in their work with you.
At some point in the next two months, you should expect your Field Supervisor to visit your assignment site to meet with you in person. At this initial meeting, the Field Supervisor will work with you to develop a plan to support your professional growth and job search process. The Field Supervisor will make an effort to contact you via your DOE email in advance of the initial meeting to give you a sense of when you can expect him or her; however, he or she may not always be able to provide advance notification.
Sincerely,
NYC Department of Education
Sounds like bullshit to me. What has been the union's response to this outragouis attempt to go after ATRs? Nothing, absolutely nothing. Maybe this is what the union and DOE agreed to in their secret meetings to screw the ATRs,
27 comments:
how about the worst injustice of all - we are not teaching - we are wasting our time sitting as subs in classes that are not in our subject areas - we are doing nothing all day except trying not to fall asleep - i have never felt so unproductive in my entire life - I get more teaching done during summer vacation and I have never even taught summer school - we are not teaching and we are being humiliated and treated as subs by the students and by most of the faculties in the dozen schools that we have already been sent to - I read 2 newspapers everyday at least and i have become really good at the NY Times crossword puzzle - thank you DOE and UFT
I certainly agree with you. The union created the ATR crisis and they should bring back the excessing rules. No other proposal will work with the DOE.
Get this..in the school I am in this week I met a young teacher in the bathroom. They are paying her a paras salary! This principal is getting a full time teacher at a para's salary! How is this allowed????
That teacher may have been hired as a para or lost her certification. In any case, it is wrong.
Did you guys get the email about the pilot program of ATR supervision? A licensed administrator is supposed to meet with us in the next 2 months to discuss our long term professional goals.
I will tell him my goals are to not be bored out of my mind, to type in the proper address in my GPS, to pray the school I am at has parking each week, to find out where the bathroom is, and that maybe, just maybe,one teacher will actually know what an ATR is instead of asking me if I get 'called to sub each day.'
here's the bs email
i like where it says my 'practice will be observed' what practice is that? I am a 7-12 teacher and I have only been in elementary schools. I hope the DOE does this because it will make a harassment grievance easier
Dear Teacher,
The Department of Education is piloting a new model for supervision of teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR). This pilot will be implemented for most ATRs assigned to community school districts in Brooklyn as well as the Brooklyn High School superintendency, District 73; you are receiving this email because you will likely be included in the pilot. Under this initiative, you will be supervised by a licensed administrator, called a Field Supervisor, who will periodically observe your practice and provide you with feedback to support your professional development. The Field Supervisors are aware that as an ATR you do not have a regular program and that you rotate school assignments and they will take this context into account in their work with you.
At some point in the next two months, you should expect your Field Supervisor to visit your assignment site to meet with you in person. At this initial meeting, the Field Supervisor will work with you to develop a plan to support your professional growth and job search process. The Field Supervisor will make an effort to contact you via your DOE email in advance of the initial meeting to give you a sense of when you can expect him or her; however, he or she may not always be able to provide advance notification.
Sincerely,
NYC Department of Education
No, she was teaching a full program. She said they told her there was a hiring freeze and due to the budget they could hire her as a para...but she is TEACHING 5 classed!
What is this pilot program? What does it mean? Is it to help or hurt us?? OK don't answer that! and veteran teacher why are you being sent to elementary schools? That makes no sense.
that DOE EMAIL IS ATROCIOUS!! You mean the DOE is going to pay more idiots to check up on us - to figure out our goals - are they FREAKING out of their minds - let's all save these morons a lot of time and the DOE a lot of money by simply stating the following ; WE WANT OUR FREAKING JOBS BACK -WE WANT TO BE TEACHERS AGAIN IN A CLASSROOM WITH OUR OWN STUDENTS. This program must be stopped - doesn't it seem like it will be used to evaluate us in our ridiculous ATR duties of being a substitute??? - can you tell that my blood is boiling!!!!???
...until teachers en masse pony up to sue the UFT, this is what you'll get and more....from 52 Broadway. RECALL MULGREW....
PERB, PERB, PERB, PERB, PERB, PERB, PERB !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(NYS Public Employment Relations Board)
perbinfo@perb.state.ny.us
www.perb.state.ny.us
www.perb.state.ny.us/dec.asp
www.perb.state.ny.us/faq.asp
www.perb.state.ny.us/Staff.asp
How can UFT just sit there and let this "pilot" happen????? This is disgusting and outrageous!
I have noticed how the union has maintained complete silence on the ATR evaluation issue. Why?
vote out Mulgrew and his ilk. The UFT treats us like children, that's right, like we are kids in the classroom whining and so forth...how degrading
Get rid of Mulgrew...the dumb sh*&t
I'd like to see the 'pilot' program actually happen first, but if/when it does, ATRs must stand strong(demand union rep be present, tell these field supervisors the truth about the interviews, what we are doing day to day bla bla bla).
Also, we must make the field supervisors feel uncomfortable. If they ask us about interviews we have been on, I will flat out tell them about the nepotism, racism, sexism, ageism, bias towards non-spanish speakers, not getting called back, principals flat out saying they will not hire you because you are an ATR etc etc.
Great post. Your frustration reflects most of us. I actually spoke to a District Rep who claims most ATRs she talks to actually likes the weekly assignments. What shit! Every ATR I run into hate the weekly assignments and want their own classes to teach.
I wonder if the District Reps are deliberately providing misinformation to us.
This whole system is based upon mis-information and scare tactics by the DOE and district union reps. My district rep told me that the algorithm is working better than expected. Really? That is news to me.
You know it isn't a bad idea to sue the UFT for lack of representation....any other opinions on this???
Who likes the weekly assignments??? Not ONE ATR that I've talked tooo! At least they should give us a choice of what school we want to go to...I hate this...I must go now to babysit!
It appears the union did know about it and Michael Mandel's letter suggests that the DOE told the UFT of their intentions to evaluate ATRs. Nice job UFT.
very interesting
I'm wondering why I'm hearing from a friend in an elementry school that she sees two atr's every other week. These two atr's have been traveling together and been kept in the same 3 schools in the vicinity of Elmhurst. Why am I forced to go all over the entire borough of Queens, never hitting the same school twice. Are the K-5 teachers given a different set of rules?
None of you would like to launch a lawsuit?????
You can't sue the UFT unless they agree to let the city lay us off. Technically, the UFT is protecting our 'job' which is the job of a union. My beef is that they should not dropped the law suit last June about ATR hiring discrimination
Why can't we sue? This is misrepresentation!!!!
...you can sue about just about anything under the sun...if you want to...and have the do-ray-me to do so...
...ALSO...if you have the gold...you can create...and run your own ads in the media on what is REALLY going on...and how so many children of color are getting screwed ROYALLY from this piece of whitebread garbage from Boston (Bloomberg)...I refer to those ghetto/project kids who are getting such short shrift by this racist....as they are shuttled off from school to school, while most of their good neighborhood schools are shuttered....Come on...the UFT is in bed with that fag....
the public doesn't want to hear kids are getting shafted(even though they know it). that doesn't make a good story. talk to me about making ads when you have as much money as the mayor although no one in the city or state capital listens to him
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