West Virginia has some of the worst public schools in the nation, coming in at 42nd place in a recent evaluation of public schools conducted in 2018. The state also has the worst school bullying problem in the U.S. However, these facts seem to matter little to public school teachers who are striking not to improve the state of their problematic schools but rather to prevent charter schools from opening in their state.
The West Virginia Senate Bill 451 would not only have permitted seven charters schools to open in the state of West Virginia, but also allowed education savings accounts to enable parents to pay for private school. The bill also included a 5% raise for teachers in the state.
Ironically, the first two points in the bill have led teacher unions to accuse state politicians of attempting to get revenge on them over last years’ teacher strike. The teacher unions then called for a strike, and nearly all the teachers in the state answered the call. The stunt shut down classrooms for two days. Sadly, the bill was killed in order to pacify the teachers who have now returned to their jobs. However, the unions have made it clear that they will strike again if the bill is ever revived. The only portion of the bill that is apparently acceptable to the teachers is, of course, the 5% raise that comes on top of the raise they received when they went on strike last year.
Unfortunately, West Virginia teachers aren’t the only ones who think that a strike is in order. One of the demands of teacher unions involved in the LA teachers’ strike was to prevent additional charter schools from opening in the LA area. Not surprisingly, local officials almost immediately caved to the unions’ demand.
Randi Weingarten, the national president of the American Federation of Teacher and a close personal friend of Hillary Clinton, has naturally backed the West Virginia teacher unions, stating that the teachers had “no choice”. However, while the news media focuses on the teachers’ demands and why they may or may not be entirely fair, it is the parents and children who suffer. Children lose school days that they have to make up for while parents may be forced to take unpaid time off work to care for kids who are supposed to be in school. Special needs students often suffer more than anyone else because it is hard for them to study normally.
West Virginia Senate President Mitch Carmichael said it best when he told reporters that the teacher unions were on the wrong side of history, and that the move to open charter schools and allow for education savings was a marker in the process of education reform.
Currently, forty-three states and Washington DC have laws allowing for charter schools to provide an educational alternative to children who either don’t do well in a traditional public school or whose only option are to attend sub-par public schools. Unfortunately, West Virginia teachers have now ensured that their state remains behind the times by limiting educational choices for parents and kids.
While parents can opt to homeschool their children, the state doesn’t make the process easy, forcing parents to provide the state with a detailed outline of what they intend to teach and, in many cases, submit to yearly testing to ensure their children are up to par. It is ironic that a state that has serious problems with offering their children a proper education would cave to the demands of a few noisy individuals and well-funded unions instead of standing up to them and putting the needs of kids and parents first.
~ Conservative Zone
That’s on the people of the state – they can vote. If that’s the kind of state legislators they voted for then that’s what they get.
I worked in public schools at the elementary level. Public schools and colleges are training sites for the Democrats so that they can get elected. There is no education to make the students successful in America, the greatest country in the world! There are only two areas that the children should study: how to be a business person and an investor not a cheap employee!
Excellent piece of writing, sir. You nailed it. Contrary to popular notions, unions have hampered more progress than any other organization…except perhaps for the ACLU.
The only UNION that works in the best interest of humans is MARRIAGE BETWEEN A MAN AND A CHRISTIAN WOMAN who stays home to raise the children and a MAN who earns enough MONEY to take care of the whole FAMILY! America was destroyed when the mother had to leave the house to help with the bills!!!!
Unions are one of the reasons jobs have moved overaeas.
Hateful bunch of hypocrits(sp).
Unions are out of control. Don’t understand why they keep backing Democrats. Medicare for all wipes out all the negotiations they made for benefits for their union members yet they donate heavily to Democrats. Why are they not even speaking out on Medicare for all? They are part of the problem. And not to mention open borders. These people coming across our border take jobs away from American citizens and the green new deal??? All manufacturing jobs will move overseas. What the hell is wrong with Union leadership?
The union had an honorable beginning but as their power and political affiliation grew more powerful they forgot their beginnings and begin to fight against the very people they had fought to help. As members contributed more and more the union bosses confiscated more of the dues and contributed them to power hungry and corrupt politicians to buy votes that were favorable to union greed and politicians power grab.
Union members are required to donate through dues and donations to unscrupulous, unethical politicians, projects, immoral, and UNCONSTITUTIONAL act against the greatest country in the world.
MAGA
I have no use for unions………………..they do more harm then good.
The unions are only looking out for their own interests as they see it. Blame the gutless legislators who the people of the great state of west Virginia voted for.
Unions are a product of the Communist Manifesto, they promote socialism and corruption.
This Strike wasn’t AT ALL about “the children” as they said it was. It was about insurance against Charter Schools upsetting the apple cart & placing Union Teachers’ jobs in jeopardy. If there were actually a choice here in West Virginia, Public Schools would become a thing of the past & there’d be Charter Schools EVERYWHERE because of how much of a joke Public Schools are here. I know that in my County, the School Board & the Administration at the High School deserve to be FIRED & never allowed to even be a Janitor at a school EVER AGAIN. They’re a complete joke & it’s not funny at all. I can’t believe the Hell they raised about “The Children”, but the minute they got rid of Senate Bill 451 & got their 5% raise, all was well in the world again. If they TRULY cared about “The Children”, they would’ve BACKED S.B. 451 & realized it as the OPPORTUNITY for Teachers & Students that it really was. Teachers could probably do MUCH better in an environment where there is competition for the best jobs, provided that they’re worth the powder to blow them to Hell as a Teacher in the 1st place. They wouldn’t have the Union protecting them if they weren’t, but I somehow think that’s the whole point behind it all. The State Legislature as a whole should’ve NEVER caved on this one, even if the Strike lasted the rest of the school year & into next, if they REALLY CARED AT ALL about “The Children”…..THIS is what happens when you keep Electing Democrats time & time again – WAKE UP, WEST VIRGINIA !!!!!
Not everyone wants their children dumbed down by the communist government run education system . The education our sons and daughters have been and are receiving is nothing more than the mentality of one collective mindset .Being able to use the God given abilities and individual has is the right of every free thinking individual.
Here lies the problem . Ever since the no child left behind crap ! There have been no students allowed to achieve their potentials . Charter schools allow them to receive a better individual designed edducation to his or her needs .
Teachers unions have killed education in our beloved USA. Ever since they became so strong, the level of skills in our kids has devolved and continues to go down annually.
VA., is a lousy DEM/RINO state……….If the people don’t like their schools, maybe they should stop voting for those idiot DEMS that do no give a hoot about your kids……….
If the teachers did their jobs correct the Charter schools would not be needed. I support the Opening of the Charter Sschools and not let the Rip-off Unions in. Unions are nothing but trouble
I grew up in a closed shop state and watched the union crap happening on pretty much a daily basis, and while I was still a Democrat, I left the state forever the day after I graduated high school never to return. While they may have been good initially, they have turned into useless organization where only the leaders live on the high hog.
This is the problem with allowing unions in schools and allowing teachers to join them. They need run the schools in the ground. We corrected that problem with a rating system and if they get a certain amount of bad ratings the schools will be closed period. They know what will happen and they are working with churches to have people come one hour per week to help with reading. You have to play hard ball with unions. Remember they make more money in public schools and teach less than private schools.