Finally, someone took on the California Teachers Association (teachers’ union) challenging permanent and lifetime employment practices aka: tenure. And guess what? They won! A judge ruled that tenure did not work in favor of providing children with a quality education.
But, let me see if I’ve got this straight… the ruling removing teacher tenure, which effectively grants a teacher permanent employment after 2 years, is, according to the teachers’ union, “deeply flawed” and strips teachers of their “professional rights”?
Exactly which “professional rights” are being stripped? How many other professions have the “professional right” not to be fired? Uh, none! It’s part of accountability. If a teacher is not performing well, they need to be fired. If there is downsizing or layoffs, only the BEST teachers should remain, not necessarily the ones who’ve been there the longest.
Schooling is about the kids. Unions are about the teachers. They aren’t working toward the same goal. That’s the problem.
You can read more about this landmark ruling here. To be sure, we haven’t heard the last of this one.
Photo credit MS Office ClipArt
