NYCEducator -
The more I see the UFT getting its lunch eaten by the DOE, the more I think they are working in concert to kill the profession of teaching. Kleingarten can play fight for the cameras, but at the end of the day the teachers -- to coin a phrase -- "do more for less," while Kleingarten go home to their cushy high-profile, high-pay jobs.
EZ
That's the way I used to do math--write something down and pray for a miracle! I was thinking about miracles and the Presidential race the other day, and was heartened to read that Palin is flaming out. Good news! Did you see the YouTube spoof of the 3 a.m. Hillary commercial, featuring France McDormand of "Fargo" fame? I posted it yesterday--she really does sound like Sarah Barracuda! BTW, on a completely different subject, we're Sharing the Caption Love over at my place today. Yup, it's time for the Silly Sunday Sweepstakes--come play along!
I take the contrary position that the UFT had its lunch eaten by the DOE. I think they knew exactly what they are doing. The longer you are in the system, the more you see and the greater the disaffection with the DOE and UFT. Thus senior teachers are not to be favored.
They are putting their chips on young, transient teachers who leave before they get to any point of disaffection. And those that stay, they feel they can buy the most vocal off by incorporating them into Unity. (They supposedly added about 700-1000 members in the last 2 years.)
The strongest UFT chapters were in large high schools. Some of us in ICE and TJC even made that point years ago when the large scale closings started. Yet the UFT cooperated all the way with the DOE - remember how Randi said Lafayette should be closed? Edwize's and Ed in the Apple Peter Goodman, who so hypocritically critical of BloomKlein, was paid to help write reports that led to school closings.
They are not that dumb. They have high priced consultants and a plan. They want to be seen nationally as "reformers" willing to end seniority and make it easier to remove teachers. They also see that as a way to put some money in people's pockets through selling off protections. That will buy them political support.
I remember Randi answering Kleins' charge that seniority was the major problem in reforming the schools at a City Council hearing by claiming that the UFT had already done a lot to cooperate and Klein's charge was unfair. She did NOT defend the concept of seniority.
They feel they can control the membership through a large core of Unity hacks and a massive public relations operation.
So far they're right.
I also wrote about the ATR crises and updated it with the Daily News article on how Tweed has hired 5,400 newbies.
What is our union doing about this. Nothing, nothing at all.
Sounds like a great deal. And that doesn't count the rubber room?
I don't live in NYC, but I was in a similar situation this year: I was a first-year teacher who had been offered a full-time contract, but the board didn't have a placement for me. Let me tell you, it was the most demoralising experience of my life. I felt absolutely useless, and that I'd somehow failed. I mean, sure I had friends who were new grads who were hired as subs, and some who weren't hired at all... but I felt even worse because I felt like the board changed their mind about me. I spent the first three weeks of the year sitting around doing nothing (well, make that photocopying and filing in a school where I was temporarily placed), on contract, before they found a job for me. And, surprise, when payday rolled around they didn't have my name in the system, nevermind that I'd been sitting in a school eight+ hours a day for the last month, as per the board's instructions. It was an absolutely awful introduction to teaching and the worst possible way I can think of to start my teaching career. Thanks, school board!
I'm a reporter from San Diego who is comparing teacher placement rules in New York and San Diego, and I'd like to speak with you. I couldn't
Oops. Sorry for the accidental post. I've just sent you an e-mail asking what I originally wanted to ask here!
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