Chicagoland Residents Defend Teachers and Pensions in Tribune Letters-to-the-editor
Not the enemy
Our teachers are not the enemy. There are inefficient workers in every single profession. However, those interested in simple solutions would have the public believe that the state of our school system is due to bad teachers rather than taking a hard look at causes, such as poverty and the unequal distribution of wealth, the wage disparity between teachers and board administrators, the increased pressure to "teach to the test," the lack of educator input in public education systems, the increased privatization of our public schools or the multimillion-dollar contracts that testing companies receive.
We recently elected new leadership of the Chicago Teachers Union. If Chicago Public Schools is to have longer school days or a longer school year, that is a decision to be made between CPS and CTU. If the requirements for tenure are to be increased (and I think they should be), then that is to be decided between CPS and the CTU. Chicago is not a dictatorship, and the purpose of having a teachers union is to protect the rights of children and adults in that system who do not have administrative power.
It is absurd that you are suggesting that teachers who earn advanced degrees should not be paid more. This salary increase provides an incentive for teachers to increase their education and make them more knowledgeable teachers. It is interesting that you make no mention of cutting salaries at the Board of Education, where salaries average $100,000 to $200,000. I also find it interesting that you make no mention of TIF money when you argue for cutting teacher benefits. It is what you don't mention that is the most disturbing.
I absolutely loved teaching; it was the system I hated. In five years of teaching, I went from an upbeat, creative teacher to one who was burnt-out and needed a break from the classroom.
-Jessica Havens, Chicago
Click here to read the other letters from March 7, 2011.
