Schools Must Prioritize Funding

The Los Angeles teachers union, eyeing the new money flowing from Sacramento to local school districts, wants another pay raise, a 2% hike on top of the 10% raise over three years guaranteed by the current contract. The union’s members might well deserve an increase, but the funds would be better spent on more training for teachers and principals, as well as on tutors, summer school, library books and increases in staff. The board of the Los Angeles Unified School District should reject this raise request at this time.

The LAUSD could end up with $50 million to $90 million extra from the state this year. Neither the governor nor the Democratic-controlled Legislature intended the new resources to subsidize another round of pay raises. The school board should target the new revenues on improving instruction. For instance:

* Pupils who can’t keep up at the 100 lowest-performing schools already get individual tutoring. The intervention program should be expanded districtwide.

* Social promotion, the practice of advancing a failing child to the next grade, is no longer to be allowed. The district should expand mandatory summer school, especially for the primary grades, to give students a chance to catch up before being held back.

* Computer literacy depends on access to technology and the Internet. The federal government will pay 80% of some costs, including wiring. The district should take maximum advantage of the federal program.

* Many school libraries do not meet the LAUSD goal of 18 books per pupil and contain books older than some teachers. The lack of books, along with library staff shortages, should be relieved.

Teachers will argue that they are more important than books. They are. Their union, United Teachers Los Angeles, will say they are underpaid and they took a 10% pay cut during California’s hard times. That’s true as well. But accountability remains an issue. In exchange for bigger paychecks, what, if anything, would the union be willing to give? If failing schools do not improve, is the union willing to give up some job protections so the superintendent can reconstitute those schools’ staffs? Is it willing to change tenure rules that protect teachers who have no business being in a classroom? To allow principals to assign teachers based on student needs instead of allowing teachers to choose their assignments based on seniority?

Real trade-offs could be worth another pay increase. But for now, the school board should just say no.