Should Teacher Legislation Go to the Head of the Class?

Imagine the following scenario: You take your child to the doctor with an ailment. She diagnoses the condition and recommends a treatment.

But instead of providing that care, the doctor is forced to proceed with a completely different treatment imposed by a bureaucrat who has never seen your child, a bureaucrat who has little or no knowledge of the case and has never practiced medicine. The bureaucrat then warns the doctor that she will be held fully accountable for your child’s recovery.

No, this isn’t an HMO horror story. It’s the situation California students face on a daily basis in classrooms throughout the state.

Teachers, the trained professionals who work with students every day, are often powerless when it comes to the selection of the materials and methods they are required to use to help their students learn.

For too long, key education policies have been made without any meaningful participation by teachers.

Using a cookie-cutter approach, politicians, bureaucrats and school administrators have made curriculum and other important classroom decisions without consulting classroom teachers and have then expected those teachers and, more important, their students to live with those decisions.

This is bad policy.

It’s bad for teachers, and it’s especially bad for kids.

For this reason, the California Teachers Assn. has sponsored Assembly Bill 2160, legislation that would expand the current collective bargaining law to give teachers the right to negotiate the procedures by which local decisions are made about curriculum, textbooks, teacher training and other classroom matters.

We believe that teachers and parents, not administrative bureaucrats, know what is best for our kids.

Teachers are tired of being among the last consulted and the first criticized when it comes to student progress. It’s no wonder so many young teachers leave the profession, citing a lack of control and decision-making ability as a major frustration.

Meanwhile, veteran teachers sigh in dismay as the latest educational fad is adopted and imposed without their valuable input.

California teachers, parents and voters agree that it’s time for a change. The CTA recently conducted a poll that shows more than 75% of parents believe teachers should be able to negotiate with districts on issues such as providing additional teacher training, selecting textbooks and instructional materials, deciding how to improve low-performing schools and creating programs for parental involvement.

By a 3-1 margin, parents recognize that teachers are the state’s most valuable resource for enhancing student learning.

The California Teachers Assn. is proud to be behind many of the reforms that are producing lasting results for the schools in our state.

Six years ago, the CTA sponsored legislation lowering class size in kindergarten through third grade, which has provided one of the most dramatic improvements to student learning in our state’s history.

The CTA also led efforts in 2000 to lower the threshold for passing local school bonds, which has made it easier for communities to build much-needed new schools.

Last year, the CTA sponsored legislation that provided additional support for our schools of greatest need. This was a first step in leveling the playing field between our lowest- and highest-performing schools.

Assembly Bill 2160 is another important component in our efforts to improve California schools.

It will not relinquish any control currently held by local school boards.

It will not overturn any state or federal law.

It will simply give teachers and parents a participating voice into how local education decisions are made.