General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsStriking Teachers, Parents Join Forces to Oppose "Corporate" Education Model in Chicago
Striking Teachers, Parents Join Forces to Oppose "Corporate" Education Model in Chicago
watch: http://www.democracynow.org/2012/9/10/striking_teachers_parents_join_forces_to
To discuss the Chicago teachers strike, were joined by two guests: Phil Cantor, a teacher and strike captain at Chicagos North-Grand High School and member of Teachers for Social Justice, and Rhoda Rae Gutierrez, the mother of two public school students in Chicago and a member of the grassroots group Parents 4 Teachers. [includes rush transcript]
Guests:
Phil Cantor, has taught science for the last nine years. He currently teaches at North-Grand High School in Chicago. He is a strike captain at his school. Cantor is also part of the group Teachers for Social Justice.
Rhoda Rae Gutierrez, mother of two public school students in Chicago and a member of the grassroots group, Parents 4 Teachers. Her kids attend Coonley Elementary School.
PHIL CANTOR: Were striking for a lot of reasons. If you just see whats in the mainstream media, all they talk about is that teachers want more money. But thats really far from the truth. Were fighting for reasonable class sizes. Were fighting for wraparound services for our students. I teach in a school with a thousand students; we dont even have one social worker in that building for most of those kids. So were fighting for the education our students deserve in Chicago. Were fighting against reforms that we see, from the classroom level, are not going to work.
AMY GOODMAN: Explain why the emphasis on salary then. Is that the legal issue of what allows you to strike?
PHIL CANTOR: Thats absolutely right. You know, Rahm Emanuel has pushed through laws in Illinois, basically designed for his political gain, in my opinion. Were not allowed legally to strike over anything but compensation. But teachers are not most interested in compensation; were most interested in being able to do our jobs for the students we serve. So, you know, I think were trying to tie other issues that we feel are very important to compensation, so theyre part of the bargaining table agreement.
RHODA RAE GUTIERREZ: Well, so last night we watched Rahm Emanuel on hisMayor Emanuel on theat his press conference, and I was incredibly disappointed. I was disappointed because he said that one of the things that hes going to measure teachers on is essentially test scores. And what I know as a parent is that when teachers are measured in terms of their performance because of test scores, what happens is that teachers are forced to teach to the test, and they have to narrow the curriculum on veryon very, like, minor skills that are taughtthat are tested on these standardized tests. And so, he calls for a rich curriculum, and yet he calls for, what he says, merit pay, but what it is is test-based pay. And that is not a rich curriculum. It is narrowing the curriculum. And it was incredibly disappointing to me when he said that at the press conference yesterday.
http://www.democracynow.org/2012/9/10/striking_teachers_parents_join_forces_to#transcript
Le Taz Hot
(22,271 posts)can tell you great changes often come from small little sparks. I think the actions in Wisconsin was one of those (still spreading) and I think the Chicago teachers strike of 2012 will be another.
sabrina 1
(62,325 posts)Also other Wisc organizations such as the Wisc State Engineers Assoc. They even have support from Canada, The Greater Toronto Workers Organization, I believe.
The greedy corporatists pushed too hard, they got too greedy, and now the people are beginning to push back.