Teachers Seek Extra Pay Based on Class Size

Upper elementary grade teachers at Saddleback Valley Unified School District are throwing an unusual demand on the contract negotiating table: They want $500 per student annually when their classrooms grow above 33 students.

Teachers in grades four through six contend the $500 payment would provide the district incentive to prevent overcrowding.

The teachers said they deal with nearly double the number of students as their counterparts in primary grades, where class sizes are limited to 20 pupils under state reduction programs.

“At the fourth through sixth grade level, there is no real strict control on how large class sizes can get,” Saddleback Valley Education Assn. President George Anderson said.

“There is no penalty if the district exceeds that average.”

Teachers in the upper grades also think they should receive more pay for handling larger classes, Anderson said.

District Supt. Peter A. Hartman said he can understand the feelings of the teachers, but he believes a stipend would not solve the problem and would create financial difficulties.

“Are we going to start paying [stipends] at all grade levels?” Hartman asked.

“Should special education teachers with 12 kids get half the salary?”

The district has tried other things to help teachers with larger classrooms, Hartman said, including extra relief time and help from aides.

Negotiations between the 1,500-member teacher association and the district began last week.

The teachers’ contract ends June 30.

The association is asking for a one-year contract, but the district is arguing for a three-year agreement.

The union also is seeking increases in the number of sick days allotted and other benefit changes.