The Chicago teachers' strike is NOT about money but about the use of test scores to evaluate teacher performance. Most reading this blog would quickly admonish the teachers and support the notion of evaluation of teachers through the test scores of their students. Before you run to the back of that line you may wish to consider the following scenarios.
A few years ago, I plotted the local television stations evening weatherman's forecast. I noted his predictions for the next week and I compared those prognostications to the actual weather events at the week's conclusion; he was incorrect more often than correct. He still has his job and I would suspect he has had a salary increase or two. A few years back, my sister-in law died of a massive heart-attack one week after having extensive and sophisticated heart evaluation tests scrutinized by a famous Barnes Hospital cardiologist (St. Louis). The heart-doctor said her tests indicated that she was in 'good shape.' The doctor oversees my brother's heart conditions, today.
My point is this: You can no more hold teachers' responsible for the test outcome scores from a student than you can hold the Catholic Church responsible for every Priests' behavior around little boys. Former President George W. Bush promoted that cute phrase, 'No Child Left Behind' but you would have to be an idiot to think for a moment that all children can be classroom success stories. I ask you to recall the families in your childhood neighborhood, the people you saw at your son's Little League games or the crowd's behavior at the last NFL game you attended or the folks in the pro-wrestling audience; are you crapping me!
Year after year and decade upon decade, we Americans have elected politicians from both the left and right for the purpose of securing peace, protecting our most vulnerable and stabilizing an economy; check out those test results!
Many of those inept political leaders push for the demise of trade unions, teachers' unions, insurance protection and retirement plans while hiding taxable monies from our Nation; shameful!
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