It’s one thing for employees at a private company to strike. Their customers can go elsewhere and the employees are really only harming the company and themselves. But these kids are required to attend government schools and many of them can’t afford private schooling. They don’t have the choice to just go to another school. What these teachers are doing to these kids should be a crime. We have 3% unemployment in this country. If the teachers aren’t satisfied, they can get another job. Instead, they choose to hold kids hostage in their quest to wrangle more money out of the taxpayers.
Thousands of high school athletes, shut out of class for more than a week, are arguing, rallying and even filing lawsuits for the chance to compete in post-season play. Hanging in the balance, they say, are not just the pursuits of state-championship glory and lifelong memories, but scholarships that for some represent a lone opportunity to attend college and, in some cases, escape drugs and violence in city neighborhoods.
“We’ve been working for this goal of making this stage, running in the postseason, since June,” said Ian Bacon, a senior cross-country runner at Jones College Prep and a plaintiff in a lawsuit filed Thursday against the Illinois High School Association. “This fight … it’s not just for us. It’s for all the future student-athletes that may find themselves in this situation.”
About 25,000 members of the Chicago Teachers Union walked out Oct. 17 . They continue to negotiate with administrators for the nation’s third-largest school system, but disagreement remains over issues such as class sizes and staffing. The work stoppage also idled action on the gridiron, tennis court, soccer field and cross-country course.
As a former teacher, I am so embarrassed by the Chicago thug teachers. They dont care about the childtrn. They are striking to put more members in their union.
The teachers think they are professionals but they act more like union thugs, like the Teamsters.
As I said before, just because you have a degree, doesnt make you smart. Most teachers never had a real job in their life. They go through elementary school, high school and then to college. After graduating from college, then they go straight to teaching. Many teachers couldnt get a job in the private sector.
The only issue I agree with teachers is that they dont loke the high cost of living. They should get rid of the residency requirement.
What’s a “real job”, Mar? You think that “most” never had a job in high school or college? Isn’t teaching a “real job”? And why couldn’t they get a job in the private sector? All those teachers at private schools aren’t in the private sector?
jjf, good question.
I spent 20+ years in teacher lounges and mail rooms talking with my felliw teachers.
I can say this with certainty:
I have worked with over 300 teachers and maybe 10 of those were ever in the military.
Yes, many never worked in college or hifh school because these, mostly women, come from the middle to upper middle class families. But no, if you work in high school, thats not avreal life job, unless they are paying rent, utilities,
insurance and other adult expenses.
As for the private sector, if you have a degree in history, english, gym, art, music or drama, your chances of finding a professional job would be almost impossible. And labor intense jobs would not be pleasing to these folks.
I’ve spent over 2 decades with these teachers and i have to shake my head at times at how stupid and arrogant these people are. Many of these people cannot understand why a parent cannot drop everything and go meet with the teacher M-F, 8:00-3:30.
Again, why isn’t teaching a “real job?” They went to college, got a cert, probably moved out of the dorms at some point, worked as a student teacher, had to pay rent and utilities. You’re making it sound like someone else was taking care of “most” of them.
And then you bring up the military… where someone is more literally taken-care-of in all of the senses you say are so important. You don’t need to worry about food or rent or utilities when you’re in the service. So that’s the “real job?”
There’s plenty of people with degrees in those subjects who have professional jobs. There are comm arts majors working as computer programmers. Your degree is not your predetermined destiny. You went to college to learn how to learn and how to adapt.
Stupid and arrogant? You’re hanging with the wrong people.
jjf, teaching is a job in the terms they receive a paycheck and work a certain amount of hours a day. That’s true.
But most teacher contracts are for 190 days a year. Weekends, holidays, extended breaks during the year and summers off, in addition to sick days and personal days… Then, in an 8 hour day, and I’ve worked at some districts, It’s much less than that, we ysually only worked at actual teaching for 6 periods, less than 6 hours a day. That is not a job in terms of reality.
As far as the miitary is concerned, obvioysly, you havent been in the military or know someone who has been because that is such a stupid statement.
There are teaching jobs that do translate to the real world. Shop teachers, special ed., math, science teachers could find work outside of school easily. Same with administrators and school nurses.
As far as arrogance, you’re right, and a main reason why I don’t teach in the classroom anymore and work in the private sector.