Unions seek bigger role in charter schools

AP via SFGate ^ | 6/22/9 | LIBBY QUAID, AP Education Writer

[SmithL]

As the Obama administration pushes for more charter schools, a teachers' union is pushing for a bigger role in them.

It's a new development for the charter school movement, a small but growing — and controversial — effort to create new, more autonomous public schools, usually in cities where traditional schools have failed.

On Tuesday in New York, the United Federation of Teachers expects to formalize a contract with teachers at Green Dot New York Charter School in the Bronx, a high school run by Green Dot, a nonprofit group that operates charter schools. Ten other New York charter schools are unionized.

And last week in Chicago, teachers voted to unionize three Chicago International Charter School campuses run by Civitas, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan made a point of talking about unions in a speech Monday in Washington to a national charter school conference.

"Charters are not inherently anti-union," Duncan said. "Many charters today are unionized."

[SmithL]

Unions continue promoting their "No child left educated" program.

[FlingWingFlyer]

So charter schools have decided to become as worthless as public schools. Why then do we need charter schools?

[ABQHispConservative]

I wish that we conservative get back into power we can wreck these unions. All they do is destroy everything they touch.

[SRJeff]

Same song, different verse.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Well, that kind of defeats the purpose of a charter school then. Pretty soon, unions will demand that homeschool parents be unionized.

[RobbyS]

“We’ll be hanged if we let them succeed. They have to use the same failed policies that the public schools do!”

[max americana]

Homeschool your kids. Here in mexifornia, there are reports coming out that the homeschooled kids performed better than the public school kids on the state performance tests. That’s why the teachers unions want to ban them. Cant indoctrinate Billy if he’s away from claws of the commie teacher...

[CurlyDave]

Why then do we need charter schools?

We need them to make parents think they are improving the schools for their kids.

DW consults in the education field, primarily in CA. Her observation is that successful charter schools are squashed after their initial 5-year charter. The unsuccessful ones are allow to continue because they do not represent a threat to the establishment.

[NoLibZone]

The NEA has done more damage to this nation than Al Qeda, MS-13 and Meth combined.

[familyop]

I had some neighbors who run an elementary charter school. They’re a group of drugged-up, family-hating weirdos getting over $40,000 per year, and they are, of course, employed by the government.

[VeniVidiVici]

Unions in charter schools? LOL! Why bother?

[oldenuff2no]

My wife is a teacher and worked as a sub for years. The charter schools she worked at were a joke. Most of the kids there were rejects who couldn't perform even in the regular public schools. There are a few good charter schools but many of them are a farce.
I won't say much about the home schoolers. Many do well in that situation but those who fail at home schooling are placed back into the public schools and instantly become a failing statistic of that system. The home schooling authority statistically drops their failures off of their books and out of their averages. It works out very well for their numbers. I would love any job that let me remove all of my failures from my realm of responsibility or statistical accountability.

[familyop]

I agree. I also worked as a sub.