LA’s Teachers Strike Will Be the Toughest Yet

The Los Angeles teachers’ strike begins today. It’s going to be the most difficult struggle so far in the educators’ revolt sweeping the country. By Eric Blanc January 14, 2019   After 20 months of fruitless contract negotiations, Los Angeles teachers are walking out today. Their strike will be the most bitter battle yet in the…

Chicago Teachers Union Weighs in on Race for Mayor

Andrea Guthmann | January 10, 2019 https://player.pbs.org/partnerplayer/T6vSQ6klqVByZCM-3JmD8g==/?topbar=true&end=0&endscreen=false&start=0&autoplay=true Last month, the powerful Chicago Teachers Union endorsed mayoral candidate Toni Preckwinkle. But some CTU members are calling for the union to rescind that endorsement because Preckwinkle has ties to Chicago Ald. Ed Burke, who’s facing a federal corruption charge. Below, an edited Q&A with Stacy Davis Gates, vice president of…

Long hours, crowded classes, low pay driving Arizona teachers to quit

BY GRISELDA ZETINO UPDATED: JANUARY 10, 2019  Alexis Baich teaches world and American history at Mesa High School. (Photo by Griselda Zetino) PHOENIX — Tiring and exhausting. That’s how Alexis Baich described her first year teaching. “During my first year, I did question whether or not teaching was for me because it is so much work,”…

Can charter schools be reformed? Should they be?

By Valerie Strauss December 16, 2018 In 2013, I published a post with this headline: “Why charter schools need better oversight.” The author of the piece, Jeff Bryant, wrote: There are undoubtedly wonderful charter schools in existence, and Americans generally have a favorable opinion of charters, but hardly a week goes by without news of a scandal or…

Mayoral candidate Bill Daley proposes massive CPS overhaul, cutting school councils from more than 500 to 60

By: Juan Perez Jr. January 10, 2019 Mayoral candidate Bill Daley called for a series of complex overhauls to Chicago Public Schools this week, as he advanced a government-shrinking policy agenda that included plans to slash the City Council’s ranks and constrict its remaining members’ power. On Thursday, the former U.S. commerce secretary and heir to a Chicago political dynasty…

Audit: Many Problems At PPS, Oregon Department Of Education

by Rob Manning Follow OPB Jan. 9, 2019 Portland, Ore. UPDATE (11:24 a.m. PT) — State auditors released a blistering review of Oregon’s education department and its largest school district Wednesday, recommending that legislators take a hard look at how administrators spend existing money as they consider significant new educational investments sought by Gov. Kate Brown. Auditors working for Secretary of…

SC teachers’ patience waning as lawmakers again pledge to fix public education

BY MAAYAN SCHECHTER AND TOM BARTON   January 06, 2019 COLUMBIA, SC  Two days before S.C. lawmakers return to Columbia with an unprecedented desire to overhaul the state’s public education system, there is no consensus on how to stop the ongoing teacher shortage and fix the state’s K-12 education woes. Influential S.C. House Speaker Jay Lucas,…