Thursday, November 15, 2007

Any Questions On What The DOE has In Store For Teachers?


Despite an upcoming budget deficit that requires the DOE to reduce spending by 2.5% , the DOE has allocated one million dollars to hire a staff of lawyers and consultants to help principals terminated teachers for incompetence. I guess increasing the amount of the teachers in the rubber rooms by 233% is not enough for these non-educators. It is now quite obvious that the Bloomberg/Klein administration is anti-teacher. No matter how much Randi gives in they want more.


How do we put a stop to this witch hunt on teachers?

First, do not buy into the DOE policy to remove any teacher that they decide to, without a fair and unbiased investigation. Presently, that is not the case. The smallest item that OSI/SCI or the principal can substantiate results in the teacher's removal and a 3020a charge.

Second, do not hire any more arbitrators or NYSULT lawyers. If DOE wants to remove even more teachers, then stop helping them by buying into this perverted process. Further, the UFT must make sure that the arbitrators are handing out fair judgements.

Third, it is time that the UFT becomes pro-active in exposing the DOE's anti-teacher bias. Full page ads in the major newspapers and television showing how the DOE discriminates against tenured teachers.

Finally, 90% of the teachers in the rubber rooms should not be there and the DOE's perversion of the investigation process should be confronted by the UFT, not ignored.

To the UFT, talk is cheap, results are what is necessary.

2 comments:

NYC Educator said...

Welcome back, Chaz.

Patrick Sullivan said...

Good to have you back Chaz.

We had open school week and I went and saw my kid's 2nd grade class. A veteran teacher kept the kids and adults enchanted for the whole time. And this with 28 kids. I don't see how inexperienced teachers can do this type of classroom management yet that's precisely what DOE thinks -- staff the schools with novices who will leave after five or six years.