Teachers Push for Broader Role in Policy

California’s largest teachers union is seeking to expand the power of public school faculties to help choose textbooks, set curricula and run academic programs--a proposal that is sparking sharp criticism from school district leaders.

The California Teachers Assn. is behind new legislation that would require local school districts and their teachers unions to negotiate over the ways to improve student performance.

School boards and district administrations now set policies on everything from textbooks to course work, and are required by state law only to consult teachers unions.

Supporters say the proposed measure, introduced this week in the state Assembly, is necessary to give teachers a greater voice in the policies that affect their classrooms.

“No one is more qualified to make education decisions than veteran teachers who deal with children every day,” CTA President Wayne Johnson said Thursday. “Right now we have decisions being made by bureaucrats in central offices.”

But superintendents from Los Angeles to Sacramento condemn the move as a power grab and vow to fight the measure, which they say would undermine educational reforms.

“I can’t imagine a more disastrous step for California to take than to pass this bill,” said Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Roy Romer. “It’s way out of bounds.”

Romer and other critics argue that teachers already are included in decisions in key areas. They say that formally including such discussion in labor negotiations--which take place behind closed doors and are often adversarial--would shift focus away from student achievement and cut the public out of important policy debates.

“I’ve been in this business for 36 years and it’s the most dangerous piece of legislation I’ve ever seen,” said Jim Sweeney, superintendent of the Sacramento City Unified School District. “It could create pure havoc.”

The fight comes at an awkward moment for Democratic legislators and Gov. Gray Davis, who count on CTA’s support as they seek reelection. Some political observers now question whether union leaders are pressing their cause at a time when the governor is politically vulnerable, a suggestion they deny.

A Davis aide said the governor had not yet taken a position on the legislation and would not predict its fate in the Legislature.

“I think [CTA leaders] are doing what they are paid to do, which is lobby for their cause. We understand that,” said Russ Lopez.

State law now gives teachers the right to negotiate with districts over wages, hours and working conditions. The proposed legislation would expand the menu of negotiated items.

Both sides would have to agree on the “procedures” for selecting new textbooks, developing academic programs to enhance student performance, setting curricula and choosing teacher training, among other things.

The legislation does not spell out precisely what those procedures would be.

Backers of the bill argue that it will motivate teachers to work harder by giving them a say in the policies they are asked to implement. The bill’s primary author, Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg (D-Los Angeles), lashed out at the opponents of the bill, which she said would foster better cooperation between labor and management.

“I think their reaction is absolutely knee-jerk,” said Goldberg, a former high school teacher and school board member in Los Angeles. “It tells you that they don’t have a lot of respect for the people who are teaching in the schools they are running.”

Another of the bill’s sponsors, Assemblywoman Virginia Strom-Martin (D-Duncans Mills), said the measure would send a message that school districts respect the opinions of teachers.

That, in turn, would help districts recruit more young people as teachers, she said.

“Teachers are on the front lines,” said Strom-Martin, who chairs the Assembly Education Committee and is a former schoolteacher and union leader.

“They know best what works.”