Thursday, March 10, 2016
Monday, October 5, 2015
When Teachers Strike
In Washington State, we have recently watched as our Washington Education Association, (WEA) (or state branch of the National Education Association, the NEA, (or teacher's union..) encouraged school teachers to don red t-shirts and illegally go on strike. In other-words...the teacher's union, is encouraging and organizing it's members to oppress parents and students and politicians in order to strong arm their own way... and get what they want.
Not only is it illegal, but this is a type of bullying. Let's consider....
"Bully," as in to bully someone, is a verb. It means, to "use superior strength or influence to intimidate another person," ( typically to force him or her to do what you demand.) The word, bully has synonyms, including words like to oppress, intimidate, strong-arm, and coerce There have been mass anti-bullying ads on television renouncing "bullying" as typically is done between school children, alarming the public as to this problem of bullying in the schools, but bullying is not just a problem with kids... no... no... adults do it too.
"Higher cost-of-living raises."....
Interesting note here might be that there is never any issue of curriculum content, better textbooks or free pencils and crayons for students. No, when it comes to teacher strikes it is always about the pay check and the hours.
The teacher's union, the NEA, does not advocate bullying, In fact, they have their own "anti-bullying" campaign. So why then does the NEA use teacher power intentionally... to inflict pain on the education system in place by striking? The answer is easy.... It works. Then get what they want, because after all, they have the power to disrupt the flow of things and inflict pain in doing so.
Teacher strikes are no small matter. They negatively affect everyone in the community, and unions use this to their advantage as they tear down local control of schools by encouraging their members, local public school teachers, to strike, and to make it hurt parents, students and legislators s much as possible when they do.
You can bet that legislators feel the pain when they work for votes after the public sees how the strikes are handled, or scramble for more funding to pay for the effect of a teachers strike and facilitate the legal ramification that ensue. You can bet that parents feel oppressed as they are challenged to make adjustments for the absence of a child's overseer for the day if the parent is working outside of the home, or come up with activites and lesson plans to keep the kids busy while at home. You can be confident too that they and their children all feel the threat of a loss of normalcy for the month of September, an effect that could quite possibly last the entire year. Concerns about academia, sporting events and future in-school relationships with those who had been depended upon to teach that use the civic duty entrusted to them by the public for personal gain.
Students not only feel the abandonment of not having a classroom to go to or a teacher to teach, but must also pay the penalty of extended days of school to make up for the lost required hours of learning mandated for schools and teachers to provide in a year.
In the city of Seattle this year, the strike cost $100,000 per day. Striking for five days cost the city $500,000. Tax dollars are supposed to be hard at work, instead they were on strike. It makes you wonder what kind of learning could have taken place per buck, but teacher strikes are not done with students and their needs in mind. They are about money, and control of the schools. When all is said and done, the net result will be the nationally organized unions, such as the WEA and ultimately the NEA, ( opposed to local/state governments and legislation,) will have more power over the management of our public schools.
Yes, striking teachers walk on out on students, parents, and legislators, ignoring laws, and contractual agreements. you don't see the teachers marching for their own cause on the street in July or August, because they know all about bullying in the union, and it works. A strike will most effectively strong-arm the public into giving-in to their demands.
And what about teachers, parents or students, who cross picket lines? Oh, it's dangerous to think differently than the crowd, You have to consider what you plan to do and why you do it, because history shows us that often, these people are "bullied" too.
"Teachers in eight Washington school districts have decided to walk out of class for one day to protest what they say is too little funding for the state’s public schools. Teachers want to see better health-care benefits for school staff, more money to pay for voter-approved class-size reductions and higher cost-of-living raises than the state House or Senate have proposed so far." SeattleTimes, Originally published April 17, 2015
"Too little funding?" (Don't people often vote to fund levies and bonds for our schools?)
"Better health care benefits for school staff." ( The teacher's union offers health care benefits too.)
"More money?" The salary for Seattle teachers, as reported by one article about the recent Seattle teacher's strikes, a salary which includes some extra school hours and other pay, was $67,124 on average, but salary for teachers is usually not for an entire year as it does not include summer months and depends on the experience level of the teacher. (Spokane Schools teacher's salaries can be viewed here. Hint: Look at salary by job title figures..)
"Class size reductions." (Is class size REALLY the issue?)
"Better health care benefits for school staff." ( The teacher's union offers health care benefits too.)
"More money?" The salary for Seattle teachers, as reported by one article about the recent Seattle teacher's strikes, a salary which includes some extra school hours and other pay, was $67,124 on average, but salary for teachers is usually not for an entire year as it does not include summer months and depends on the experience level of the teacher. (Spokane Schools teacher's salaries can be viewed here. Hint: Look at salary by job title figures..)
"Class size reductions." (Is class size REALLY the issue?)
"Higher cost-of-living raises."....
Interesting note here might be that there is never any issue of curriculum content, better textbooks or free pencils and crayons for students. No, when it comes to teacher strikes it is always about the pay check and the hours.
The teacher's union, the NEA, does not advocate bullying, In fact, they have their own "anti-bullying" campaign. So why then does the NEA use teacher power intentionally... to inflict pain on the education system in place by striking? The answer is easy.... It works. Then get what they want, because after all, they have the power to disrupt the flow of things and inflict pain in doing so.
"Bullying is aggressive behavior that is intentional and that involves an imbalance of power. Most often, it is repeated over time." http://www.violencepreventionworks.org/public/bullying_tips_for_administrators.page
Make no mistake, teacher have power. They control grades and seating in classrooms, they dominate parent teacher conferences. Unions have power too... over teachers.... and therefore students and parents too.
This year teachers in Seattle were on strike for a week. Current headlines read,"The last time teachers across the state held similar, one-day protests was in 1999, when thousands of teachers from about 50 school districts voted to walk out over a period of weeks, Wood said. That year, lawmakers granted a 3 percent raise for all public-school employees in the state." SeattleTimes, Originally published April 17, 2015
" School will resume Thursday for Seattle's 53,000 students after teachers who have been on strike for a week reached a tentative agreement with Washington state's largest school district."SeattleTimes,Bullying works.
Teacher strikes are no small matter. They negatively affect everyone in the community, and unions use this to their advantage as they tear down local control of schools by encouraging their members, local public school teachers, to strike, and to make it hurt parents, students and legislators s much as possible when they do.
You can bet that legislators feel the pain when they work for votes after the public sees how the strikes are handled, or scramble for more funding to pay for the effect of a teachers strike and facilitate the legal ramification that ensue. You can bet that parents feel oppressed as they are challenged to make adjustments for the absence of a child's overseer for the day if the parent is working outside of the home, or come up with activites and lesson plans to keep the kids busy while at home. You can be confident too that they and their children all feel the threat of a loss of normalcy for the month of September, an effect that could quite possibly last the entire year. Concerns about academia, sporting events and future in-school relationships with those who had been depended upon to teach that use the civic duty entrusted to them by the public for personal gain.
Students not only feel the abandonment of not having a classroom to go to or a teacher to teach, but must also pay the penalty of extended days of school to make up for the lost required hours of learning mandated for schools and teachers to provide in a year.
In the city of Seattle this year, the strike cost $100,000 per day. Striking for five days cost the city $500,000. Tax dollars are supposed to be hard at work, instead they were on strike. It makes you wonder what kind of learning could have taken place per buck, but teacher strikes are not done with students and their needs in mind. They are about money, and control of the schools. When all is said and done, the net result will be the nationally organized unions, such as the WEA and ultimately the NEA, ( opposed to local/state governments and legislation,) will have more power over the management of our public schools.
Yes, striking teachers walk on out on students, parents, and legislators, ignoring laws, and contractual agreements. you don't see the teachers marching for their own cause on the street in July or August, because they know all about bullying in the union, and it works. A strike will most effectively strong-arm the public into giving-in to their demands.
And what about teachers, parents or students, who cross picket lines? Oh, it's dangerous to think differently than the crowd, You have to consider what you plan to do and why you do it, because history shows us that often, these people are "bullied" too.
Friday, September 18, 2015
Curious About Common Core?
"Common Core – Common Core State Standards (CCSS) has been in the national and local news lately. Sometimes we hear negative comments, and sometimes positive. It’s important to re‐ member the state standards are there to help ensure teachers are teaching and students are learning. The new common core state standards will help lead all of our children to a successful future. The standards help to ensure students learn what they need to go on to pursue a technical, associates or bachelor’s degree after they complete high school."
Holmes Elementary School Newsletter, January 2015, Spokane
This is the propaganda going out to parents from schools regarding CCSS....otherwise known as Common Core State Standards, but are they "state" standards?
This may come as a surprise..based upon the name of the program, but. the answer is "No."
Valerie Strauss, who studies this stuff reports that they are not state standards at all. She says, in her article, Common Core's, Fundamental Trouble, published in the Washington Post, June, 2013, "They’re national standards, created by Gates-funded consultants for the National Governors Association (NGA). They were designed, in part, to circumvent federal restrictions on the adoption of a national curriculum, hence the insertion of the word “state” in the brand name. States were coerced into adopting the Common Core by requirements attached to the federal Race to the Top grants and, later, the No Child Left Behind waivers."
The history and implementation of the "Common Core" as well as all the controversy is an interesting subject, but it's hard to know everything about it, could even take you years. Fact is, it is being used in a school near you and for this reason, people need to inform themselves about it, even if they are not subject to the Common Core Curriculum directly.
Homeschoolers, being independent of the direct oversight of public school, (and equal in competency to educate their own children from home in this manner legally) have never been required to participate in testing mandated for public schools. They have yearly testing requirements, but at this time are unaffected by "Common Core." Just the same, as citizens who pay taxes in support of public education, who's students will be attending colleges in the future, they are often concerned about the issues of public education. There is even a group in Spokane, parents with kids in the public schools, who are trying to stop Common Core in Spokane and they have created a Facebook page that can be accessed here.
What is wrong with Common Core... (you may wonder.) It depends on who you talk to.A group like, " Stop Common Core" finds it detrimental.... while the National Education Association, (NEA) for example, thinks it's great.
The NEA also spends a lot of money promoting it and financially rewarding teachers who get on board with it. Teachers who promote the Common Core concepts are no longer just "teachers," but are labeled "Master Teachers." In some states, like Massachusetts, those teachers chosen via application to join the program, who then work to promote the project receive a stipend of $15,000.00. But not all teachers think it's such a great thing, however, many find they have no choice. They believe their job is on the line when it comes to support of Common Core.
If you are curious about why some criticize Common Core, you might want to check out the video at Stop Common Core of Washington State of a little girl, Sophia, doing a math problem both the common core strategy of place value, and again using the standard algorithm for addition. It will have you wondering what is the out is in training teachers to train kids to do math this new way and have you considering how your tax dollars are working in the local schools. If you are a homeschooler, your home based educated students are automatically exempt from meeting common core standards, but you might want to know what all the hoopla about Common Core is about.
Teach Common Core methodology to your kids if you like it, don't teach it if you don't like it; because as a homeschooler, you can implement your own philosophy on the matter,,,, but you can bet that local school administers and teachers are being told to meet these standards. They have already been trained to teach to the tests.... and this is often to the tune of a lot of dollars and cents. If you are not a homeschooling family, just remember, your kids, even though they are in public school... are YOUR kids. You have parental rights and you have a right to know what they are learning and doing in school.
If you are curious about Common Core in our schools, here are some websites you might want to check out:
Learn about the Common Core "in 3 Minutes," (Watch the informative video promoting Common Core to and check out more information from a perspective in support of Common Core at www, corestandards.org
Have a look at National Public Radio's F.A.Q. and answers about Common Core.
Read from Joy Pullman, writing for The Federalist... as she discloses salaries of Common Core's co-authors. And if you want to know more about who they are and the company they created to make the Common Core, read a concerned Arizona's report about it here.
Test yourself! Try this Math Test Common Core Sampler for First Graders... Here. Check out a corrected first grade test, here. REad about the first grader's parent's complaint, in a 2013 Washington Post Article about Common Core in New York public schools by Valerie Strauss.
Watch the Sophia Abelita Video on Vimeo, (if you missed watching it in the link earlier.)
Read a Spokane librarian's report on being "trained." (Important note: she was not being "educated" about, but being"trained" in "Common Core." and there is a difference between educating a person and training a person. In "training," the outcome of the experience is already determined, and often rewarded. Education involved critical thinking of the student to determine what to do with what is learned.)
 |
| Note the foriegn political slant found being taught to students across the nation, vis Common Core (masquerading as "English" lessons.) (Fox News exposed this example while examining Common Core material.) |
And finally, here's some articles by Laurie Rogers about (against) Common Core in Spokane Schools.... (particularly in the area of Math:)
Common Core Leading Districts to Adopt Unproved Math Programs
A Battle for Our Freedom
Be informed, learn more about Common Core!
Thursday, September 10, 2015
2015 NEWS fromThe Christian Homeschool Network of WA (CHNOW) to Homeschoolers in WA
NEWS from The Christian Homeschool Network of WA. 2015
Intent to Homeschool Form due September 15th:
• The annual Declaration of Intent (DOI) to Homeschool form is due to be filed with your local school district superintendent’s office by September 15th, or within two weeks of the start of the school year.
• In most cases we encourage sending in this form via certified mail to avoid unnecessary interaction with school officials.
• And we encourage you to use only the form provided on our website. This form includes only the small amount of information required by the Washington Home-based Instruction Law.
o Be wary, sometimes a district forms will ask for more information than you are legally responsible to provide!
o Find the Declaration of Intent (DOI) form http://www.chnow.org/declaration-of-intent-form.html
o Filing instructions, here: http://www.chnow.org/declaration-of-intent.html
o AND note, This form is only required for students 8 years and older.
Growing Our Network:
• Homeschooling has not always been legal! So we need your help to keep it this way!
• CHN is working to build a large, vibrant network of homeschoolers, concerned about their future rights to homeschool and willing to become involved in the political process necessary to protect our rights.
• And being involved is as easy as 1 ... 2 … 3!
1) READ … our emails. Involvement starts by simply being informed!
2) LEARN … to understand our political process through events like Homeschool Day at the Capital (DAC).
3) PHONE … when notified about crucial issues by CHN. Use the State Capitol central legislative number enabling you to briefly inform all your state legislators of your position on important bills with just one call.
4) So Don’t Wait! Begin Today!
o VERIFY … this is the correct email for us to contact you.
o E-MAIL … five friends who would also like to take action.
o SIGN-UP … send our e-Alert link to your friends http://www.chnow.org/e-Alert.html
o VISIT … CHNow.org to see what we have available on our website.
Day at the Capital – March 1, 2016:
• This action packed day includes:
o Morning in the Columbia Room: Speakers include former Washington State Sen. Val Stevens and Rep. Jason Overstreet, plus a legislative update
o Noon Under the Dome: Rotunda events include homeschool musicians, hearing from legislators, and more …
o Afternoon Activities: Visiting your legislators; Tours of the Capitol
o Our Apple Pie Tradition: Delivery teams taking apple pies made by homeschooling families to all the legislators and key government officials.
• Mark your calendar now! And look for the DAC registration link coming soon at http://www.chnow.org/day-at-the-capitol.html
Intent to Homeschool Form due September 15th:
• The annual Declaration of Intent (DOI) to Homeschool form is due to be filed with your local school district superintendent’s office by September 15th, or within two weeks of the start of the school year.
• In most cases we encourage sending in this form via certified mail to avoid unnecessary interaction with school officials.
• And we encourage you to use only the form provided on our website. This form includes only the small amount of information required by the Washington Home-based Instruction Law.
o Be wary, sometimes a district forms will ask for more information than you are legally responsible to provide!
o Find the Declaration of Intent (DOI) form http://www.chnow.org/declaration-of-intent-form.html
o Filing instructions, here: http://www.chnow.org/declaration-of-intent.html
o AND note, This form is only required for students 8 years and older.
Growing Our Network:
• Homeschooling has not always been legal! So we need your help to keep it this way!
• CHN is working to build a large, vibrant network of homeschoolers, concerned about their future rights to homeschool and willing to become involved in the political process necessary to protect our rights.
• And being involved is as easy as 1 ... 2 … 3!
1) READ … our emails. Involvement starts by simply being informed!
2) LEARN … to understand our political process through events like Homeschool Day at the Capital (DAC).
3) PHONE … when notified about crucial issues by CHN. Use the State Capitol central legislative number enabling you to briefly inform all your state legislators of your position on important bills with just one call.
4) So Don’t Wait! Begin Today!
o VERIFY … this is the correct email for us to contact you.
o E-MAIL … five friends who would also like to take action.
o SIGN-UP … send our e-Alert link to your friends http://www.chnow.org/e-Alert.html
o VISIT … CHNow.org to see what we have available on our website.
Day at the Capital – March 1, 2016:
• This action packed day includes:
o Morning in the Columbia Room: Speakers include former Washington State Sen. Val Stevens and Rep. Jason Overstreet, plus a legislative update
o Noon Under the Dome: Rotunda events include homeschool musicians, hearing from legislators, and more …
o Afternoon Activities: Visiting your legislators; Tours of the Capitol
o Our Apple Pie Tradition: Delivery teams taking apple pies made by homeschooling families to all the legislators and key government officials.
• Mark your calendar now! And look for the DAC registration link coming soon at http://www.chnow.org/day-at-the-capitol.html
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