Draft 2
Radical Revision
Lately, there has been much controversy with teachers unions. With the recent budget cuts in many of America’s school districts, parents, faculty, and students have on the search for the root problem that is causing the budget cuts and a way to formulate a proper solution to the problem. The current scapegoat seems to be America’s teachers union; more specifically the teachers union’s tenure policy. Tenure is a policy written in each teachers’ contract that prohibits their termination for insignificant reasons. Teachers earn tenure by completing certain requirements. The requirements for tenure differ from state to state: for example, in Pennsylvania, teachers must complete 3 years of teaching that is deemed “satisfactory” to earn tenure (LEGIS. PA), whereas, in South Dakota where there are no performance standards, teachers only have to complete 4 years of teaching to earn tenure (LEGIS.SD). Critics of tenure argue that this policy continues the career of ineffective teachers, which creates an inadequate learning environment for students. The purpose of is misinterpreted. Tenure is thought of as a misfortune in the American education system. However, tenure is very much an asset to society.
When debating the legitimacy and importance of tenure, people must consider the comfort that this instills in teachers, the money that is saved by tax payers, and the indirect benefits that students receive. Tenure is a misunderstood policy that is beneficial to the American society.
Teachers do not select their profession based on salary wages. If teachers were choosing a career based on the profitability of the job, then it is likely that they would not become a teacher. People desire to become teachers because they want to improve the lives of students. Those of who that posted on the internet reveal that they intend to provide a holistic environment for their students as well as improve upon current teaching methods so that students get a better understanding of what they are learning (studymode). Teachers begin their jobs hoping to change the way that their students learn. Although teachers begin with the heroic intent of educating the children who are struggling with school and building upon knowledge that is already there, finding a way to connect to the many kids in their classroom proves to be a difficult task for some. The intentions of the teachers are heroic, but they need time to master their skills and find ways to connect to their students. Tenure can help teachers accomplish this.
Students can build stress on teachers throughout the year. The stress that is on the teachers along with the pressure to make sure that each of their students understands the lessons that are taught in the classroom builds up and can eventually effect their teaching abilities. This additional friction can cause the disconnection between teachers and students to increase. With this, teachers have poor performances. Chicago teacher, Allie Griffin wrote in her CNN iReport "I teach special education in Chicago because regardless of the working conditions, I am going to find the resources somewhere to make our classroom function," (CNN). In this brief quote, Griffin displays the love and dedication that she has to her job. Griffin, along with the majority of American teachers have the intention to enter the classroom and provide their students with the best learning and care possible, but this disconnection can affect their performance. The job safety that comes with a teacher’s tenure can instill them with the confidence that they have time to decide what works in the classroom and what does not. Also, when teaches are discouraged by a disconnection between them and their students, they can find confidence that they can improve overtime. This confidence will give the teachers the ability to overcome their lack of confidence and rediscover the original purpose that brought them to their profession. Tenure is a positive sense of security for teachers and can inspire teachers to improve in the future.
Another reason that legitimizes tenure for teachers is that it compensates for the low starting salary wages that teachers get. The average starting salary for teachers is $39, 000 (cdp.ca.gov). An accountant makes on average about $53, 000 for their first year of employment (accountingweb.com). According to usnew.com, accounting is only two ranks higher than a teacher (money.usnews.com). Experts say that accounting is a better job and it is proven to pay on average about $14,000 more, but many people may argue that a teacher is more significant than an accountant. People can even argue that without teachers, there would be no accountants. Teachers willingly devote their time to a career that makes, on average, $14, 000 less than an accountant, which is a career that calls for the same amount of time commitment as a teacher. Even though teachers and accountants rank closely in usnews.com’s Top 100 Best Jobs of 2013, there is a significant salary difference between the two careers. Tenure is considered as compensation for this pay difference. As a teacher with tenure, you have more job security than an accountant. It would not be fair for tenure to be omitted from teachers’ contracts. If tenure were to be omitted, college students realize that there is less of an incentive to dedicate themselves to a low paying job, which can distance people from the job.
Another problem that arises with the potential omission of tenure is that there could be a decrease in teachers. The low wages and lack of job security in the education field could discourage potentially effective teachers from joining the education field. Taking tenure out of the teacher contracts affects the education of students and could potentially cause a shortage of effective teachers. Economically speaking, a decrease in the supply of teachers will cause an increase in demand for teachers. This will force the government to increase the salaries of teachers in the union so that people remain interested in joining the education career field. The increase in salary will call for an increase in the education budget, which is something that the government is currently having trouble paying for. Keeping the tenure policy in teachers’ contracts may keep some ineffective teachers in schools, but it saves taxpayers money by decreasing the demand and salary of teachers. The job security that is offered with tenure legitimizes the low salaries and saves the government money.
There is a lot to be learned in the classroom. This is true for both students and teachers. Teachers transform from the beginning of their career to their retirement. Vince Lombardi, former head coach of the Green Bay Packers, once said, “Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile,” (Lombardi). Teachers are the leaders of the classroom and they are not naturally gifted with the skills and social intelligence to connect and successfully teach their students at the beginning of their career. It takes a lot of effort and commitment for teachers to build upon their skills and achieve greatness. Former teacher Geoffrey Canada admitted that he was not always an effective teacher. In the documentary Waiting for Superman, Canada said that it took him three years to become a “decent” teacher (Guggenheim 2011). Canada has transformed from a decent teacher, who at year three of his career was still learning the ins and outs of being a teacher, to an amazing educator who seems to have mastered the art of teaching. Canada has created a charter school called Harlem Children’s Zone and is said to have a 100% graduation rate (dianeravitch.net). It took Canada years to build upon his teaching skills and finally draw out a plan to effectively teach students. Many critics of tenure complain that tenure prevents the termination of ineffective teachers and make it seem like the teachers are not improving upon their skills after each year. In reality, teachers improve their skills every year. Some states, like Pennsylvania, require that teachers participate in the continuation of their education by taking various workshops and courses to help build their skills (pde.state.pa.us). If a teacher is terminated for insufficient teaching within the first couple years of their career, they will be deprived of an opportunity to improve upon their skills and become a great teacher. As time goes on in a teacher’s career, their skills improve. Tenure gives teachers the opportunity to master their skills without fearing termination.
Much like the skills of teachers, tenure has much room for improvement. There are many innovations that can improve the controversial policy. An improvement that could be made to the tenure policy is that teachers must complete more years of their career to achieve it. Like mentioned before, with time comes experience. A teacher can only improve upon their skills with an extension of the policy and it would be in the best interest of the American Education System to have their teachers start to display their improvement over time, rather than to hand them life-long job security in exchange for a few years of teaching. Another way to improve this policy is to have teachers apply to receive tenure. This application process could be as lenient or strict as the states would like to make it, but it would require an evaluation of the teachers’ career. If the teacher shows improvement since the beginning of their career, they will be granted the gift of job security for their career.
Currently, there is a miscommunication about tenure and the great effects it can have on students. The positive effects that tenure has on teachers and the American Education System are drowned out by the negative effects that it has that are being made recognized loudly by the media. Tenure promotes the moral intentions of teachers, compensates for the low wages that they receive, and allows them to improve upon their skills in a safe environment. Tenure is a policy that directly affects teachers in a positive way, while indirectly affecting the lives of tax payers and students.
Lately, there has been much controversy with teachers unions. With the recent budget cuts in many of America’s school districts, parents, faculty, and students have on the search for the root problem that is causing the budget cuts and a way to formulate a proper solution to the problem. The current scapegoat seems to be America’s teachers union; more specifically the teachers union’s tenure policy. Tenure is a policy written in each teachers’ contract that prohibits their termination for insignificant reasons. Teachers earn tenure by completing certain requirements. The requirements for tenure differ from state to state: for example, in Pennsylvania, teachers must complete 3 years of teaching that is deemed “satisfactory” to earn tenure (LEGIS. PA), whereas, in South Dakota where there are no performance standards, teachers only have to complete 4 years of teaching to earn tenure (LEGIS.SD). Critics of tenure argue that this policy continues the career of ineffective teachers, which creates an inadequate learning environment for students. The purpose of is misinterpreted. Tenure is thought of as a misfortune in the American education system. However, tenure is very much an asset to society.
When debating the legitimacy and importance of tenure, people must consider the comfort that this instills in teachers, the money that is saved by tax payers, and the indirect benefits that students receive. Tenure is a misunderstood policy that is beneficial to the American society.
Teachers do not select their profession based on salary wages. If teachers were choosing a career based on the profitability of the job, then it is likely that they would not become a teacher. People desire to become teachers because they want to improve the lives of students. Those of who that posted on the internet reveal that they intend to provide a holistic environment for their students as well as improve upon current teaching methods so that students get a better understanding of what they are learning (studymode). Teachers begin their jobs hoping to change the way that their students learn. Although teachers begin with the heroic intent of educating the children who are struggling with school and building upon knowledge that is already there, finding a way to connect to the many kids in their classroom proves to be a difficult task for some. The intentions of the teachers are heroic, but they need time to master their skills and find ways to connect to their students. Tenure can help teachers accomplish this.
Students can build stress on teachers throughout the year. The stress that is on the teachers along with the pressure to make sure that each of their students understands the lessons that are taught in the classroom builds up and can eventually effect their teaching abilities. This additional friction can cause the disconnection between teachers and students to increase. With this, teachers have poor performances. Chicago teacher, Allie Griffin wrote in her CNN iReport "I teach special education in Chicago because regardless of the working conditions, I am going to find the resources somewhere to make our classroom function," (CNN). In this brief quote, Griffin displays the love and dedication that she has to her job. Griffin, along with the majority of American teachers have the intention to enter the classroom and provide their students with the best learning and care possible, but this disconnection can affect their performance. The job safety that comes with a teacher’s tenure can instill them with the confidence that they have time to decide what works in the classroom and what does not. Also, when teaches are discouraged by a disconnection between them and their students, they can find confidence that they can improve overtime. This confidence will give the teachers the ability to overcome their lack of confidence and rediscover the original purpose that brought them to their profession. Tenure is a positive sense of security for teachers and can inspire teachers to improve in the future.
Another reason that legitimizes tenure for teachers is that it compensates for the low starting salary wages that teachers get. The average starting salary for teachers is $39, 000 (cdp.ca.gov). An accountant makes on average about $53, 000 for their first year of employment (accountingweb.com). According to usnew.com, accounting is only two ranks higher than a teacher (money.usnews.com). Experts say that accounting is a better job and it is proven to pay on average about $14,000 more, but many people may argue that a teacher is more significant than an accountant. People can even argue that without teachers, there would be no accountants. Teachers willingly devote their time to a career that makes, on average, $14, 000 less than an accountant, which is a career that calls for the same amount of time commitment as a teacher. Even though teachers and accountants rank closely in usnews.com’s Top 100 Best Jobs of 2013, there is a significant salary difference between the two careers. Tenure is considered as compensation for this pay difference. As a teacher with tenure, you have more job security than an accountant. It would not be fair for tenure to be omitted from teachers’ contracts. If tenure were to be omitted, college students realize that there is less of an incentive to dedicate themselves to a low paying job, which can distance people from the job.
Another problem that arises with the potential omission of tenure is that there could be a decrease in teachers. The low wages and lack of job security in the education field could discourage potentially effective teachers from joining the education field. Taking tenure out of the teacher contracts affects the education of students and could potentially cause a shortage of effective teachers. Economically speaking, a decrease in the supply of teachers will cause an increase in demand for teachers. This will force the government to increase the salaries of teachers in the union so that people remain interested in joining the education career field. The increase in salary will call for an increase in the education budget, which is something that the government is currently having trouble paying for. Keeping the tenure policy in teachers’ contracts may keep some ineffective teachers in schools, but it saves taxpayers money by decreasing the demand and salary of teachers. The job security that is offered with tenure legitimizes the low salaries and saves the government money.
There is a lot to be learned in the classroom. This is true for both students and teachers. Teachers transform from the beginning of their career to their retirement. Vince Lombardi, former head coach of the Green Bay Packers, once said, “Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile,” (Lombardi). Teachers are the leaders of the classroom and they are not naturally gifted with the skills and social intelligence to connect and successfully teach their students at the beginning of their career. It takes a lot of effort and commitment for teachers to build upon their skills and achieve greatness. Former teacher Geoffrey Canada admitted that he was not always an effective teacher. In the documentary Waiting for Superman, Canada said that it took him three years to become a “decent” teacher (Guggenheim 2011). Canada has transformed from a decent teacher, who at year three of his career was still learning the ins and outs of being a teacher, to an amazing educator who seems to have mastered the art of teaching. Canada has created a charter school called Harlem Children’s Zone and is said to have a 100% graduation rate (dianeravitch.net). It took Canada years to build upon his teaching skills and finally draw out a plan to effectively teach students. Many critics of tenure complain that tenure prevents the termination of ineffective teachers and make it seem like the teachers are not improving upon their skills after each year. In reality, teachers improve their skills every year. Some states, like Pennsylvania, require that teachers participate in the continuation of their education by taking various workshops and courses to help build their skills (pde.state.pa.us). If a teacher is terminated for insufficient teaching within the first couple years of their career, they will be deprived of an opportunity to improve upon their skills and become a great teacher. As time goes on in a teacher’s career, their skills improve. Tenure gives teachers the opportunity to master their skills without fearing termination.
Much like the skills of teachers, tenure has much room for improvement. There are many innovations that can improve the controversial policy. An improvement that could be made to the tenure policy is that teachers must complete more years of their career to achieve it. Like mentioned before, with time comes experience. A teacher can only improve upon their skills with an extension of the policy and it would be in the best interest of the American Education System to have their teachers start to display their improvement over time, rather than to hand them life-long job security in exchange for a few years of teaching. Another way to improve this policy is to have teachers apply to receive tenure. This application process could be as lenient or strict as the states would like to make it, but it would require an evaluation of the teachers’ career. If the teacher shows improvement since the beginning of their career, they will be granted the gift of job security for their career.
Currently, there is a miscommunication about tenure and the great effects it can have on students. The positive effects that tenure has on teachers and the American Education System are drowned out by the negative effects that it has that are being made recognized loudly by the media. Tenure promotes the moral intentions of teachers, compensates for the low wages that they receive, and allows them to improve upon their skills in a safe environment. Tenure is a policy that directly affects teachers in a positive way, while indirectly affecting the lives of tax payers and students.