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Questions about Teacher Union Influence

Posted on | November 9, 2010 | Comments Off on Questions about Teacher Union Influence

Mitchell Landsberg questioned the political clout of teacher unions in a recent Los Angeles Times article.  “A nationwide school reform movement with bipartisan support has collided head-on with three ideas that labor has long resisted: expansion of charter schools, the introduction of merit pay for teachers and the use of student test scores…even seniority and tenure no longer seem sacrosanct,” he wrote.

I think that the picture may be more dire than the one Landsberg paints.  Unions have lost control over the education agenda, what gets talked about and voted on. They still have substantial protective power, both in their contracts and in statehouses.  They still have huge electoral influence, and if teachers sit on their hands in 2012 President Obama may join the ranks of the involuntarily retired.  But the big new ideas about how education is to be delivered and about what constitutes learning are coming from elsewhere.

Because I have been beating this drum for decades, it feels a little like nagging to raise the subject again, but teacher unions live in very dangerous times.  The danger comes not from the right, which has always hated any kind of worker influence as a violation of the divine right of management to do whatever it wishes. Danger comes at the hands of Democrats, particularly the new generation that comes to the party without roots in trade unionism.  Most of those labeled as reformers in education policy circles share an antipathy toward teacher unions.

In many ways, the wounds to teacher unions have been self-inflicted.  When Julia Koppich, Joseph Weeres and I wrote United Mind Workers more than a decade ago, we said that the unions faced a choice between a transformational vision and trench warfare.  They chose the latter.  They waste political capital on small fights rather than organizing around the emerging institution of public education.  In a speech to the National Education Association, titled Things that Go Bump in the Night, I described the signal changes taking place:  the use of computer and web technology to teach, and the emergence of network forms of school districts.  Each fundamentally disrupts existing employment relationships, and teacher unions do not have an effective way of organizing around either of them.

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Speaking at the Claremont Colleges Library on Thursday, Nov. 11.

Posted on | November 8, 2010 | Comments Off on Speaking at the Claremont Colleges Library on Thursday, Nov. 11.

Update: a video of the talk will be available soon.

I will be talking about our Los Angeles research at the Claremont Colleges Honnold Library on Thursday at 4:15 pm.  The talk is part of the library’s series of speakers from all the college campuses.  It is billed as:

Lessons from L.A Schools.: Some Gleanings from the Toils of the Past that Would Make the Work of The Future Easier if Only Someone Would Listen
Charles Taylor Kerchner, Research Professor, CGU School of Educational Studies
Thursday, November 11th, 2010, 4:15 PM
Founder’s Room, Honnold/Mudd Library

The story of public education in Los Angeles is one of institutional decline and hollowing out mixed with daily heroism and self-sacrifice on the part of teachers and administrators who try to make an old institution do things it was not designed to do.  Based on his books, Learning from L.A.: Institutional Change in American Public Education, and The Transformation of Great American School Districts (both published by Harvard Education Press in 2008), Professor Charles Kerchner will chronicle how a school district that was called “the best in the West,” came to be publically regarded as “failing,” even though by many criteria, it isn’t.  His lecture will also detail how the politics of Los Angeles just might work to transform public education here and elsewhere.

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Jerry Brown For Governor. Really!

Posted on | November 5, 2010 | Comments Off on Jerry Brown For Governor. Really!

I have an actual Jerry-Brown-for-governor pin.  Bought it from a Democratic Party booth at a street fair in Palo Alto.  The governor should remember that when he’s passing out those plum jobs.  While I didn’t witness a feeding frenzy for Brown or see too many of those pins being worn, I have high expectations for our recycled governor-elect.

He ran a brilliant jujitsu campaign, allowing Meg Whitman to destroy herself using her own money to do it.  (On the other hand, she didn’t need a lot of help.)   If Brown can carry those skills with him, he can tackle the huge job ahead.

Partly, my high expectations are a function of age.  I know what it’s like to be 70 and to have no ambitions other than doing the best I can in my present situation.  I’m not running for anything, looking for a job or for fame.  Neither is Brown.  He ran for president once, when he was about 38, in a farcical campaign that lasted about six weeks.  He’s not going to do that again.  He, like the rest of us grizzled veterans, can answer the question straight on: What kind of California do you want to leave to your children and grandchildren?

But mostly my expectations for our governor-elect rest on the fact that he is what Meg Whitman said he was: a career politician.  I like career politicians; the ones that are not criminally corrupt or sold out, which does diminish the numbers by some.  They know stuff.  During its glory days, Sacramento worked because long-standing legislators, office holders, and staff deeply understood how at least a portion of government worked.  They also know how to get stuff done.

Not unsurprisingly, there’s been lots of advice and commentary.  The best summary of the California election comes from George Skelton, the capitol’s wise man.  Brown is going to need all the wisdom he’s got, because the voters have made it difficult to fundamentally fix the fiscal problems.  Brown will have to restore trust in government before the voters will come close to funding education and fixing the infrastructure.

John Fensterwald and his stable of scriveners have dished up some thoughts about what to do about public education.  Installments one and two feature a range of writers from Arun Ramanathan at Ed-Trust West to former U.S. Education deputy secretary, Mike Smith and editor/sage Peter Schrag.  My contribution is there, too.

I’ve also weighed into policy windmill tilting with a piece on labor relations based on a piece that Julia Koppich and I did some years back in the American Journal of Education.  For the full text of the AJE piece, go to the projects link above.  For the shorter piece at Top-ED, click here.

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A New Case Study Explores Teacher-Run Schools

Posted on | September 30, 2010 | Comments Off on A New Case Study Explores Teacher-Run Schools

Many thanks to all those who helped, particularly to the students and the teacher/advisors at Avalon School in St. Paul, MN and to John and Cris Parr who graciously arranged my visit to Milwaukee.

Can Teachers Run Their Own Schools? Tales from the Islands of Teacher Cooperatives is published, and it can be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use here. Another link can be found under the New Projects heading in the next column.

Your comments are most appreciated.

The teacher-run school idea is one that should inform our education practices.  As the case says, I do not expect these small islands of schools to replace the school district mainland, but these schools stand as existence proofs that teachers can create much more interesting jobs for themselves, that much of what we think as the barrier between teacher work and administrative work is poorly drawn, and that students are capable of much more self-control and direction than we commonly think.

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“Superman” and a Few Convenient Half-Truths

Posted on | September 27, 2010 | Comments Off on “Superman” and a Few Convenient Half-Truths

Waiting for Superman opens in theaters in L.A. and New York this week and goes nationwide next week.  It’s a powerful film that will move those who see it, and it is ushering in a media blitz about education. NBC and CBS have announced new education programs.  The Huffington Post, for which I occasionally write, is planning expanded education coverage starting next week.

But under the emotion, Superman is loaded with hubris, B-grade Western movie moralizing, and some dangerously shallow policy analysis.  My review for John Fensterwald’s new site, Thoughts on Public Education.

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Thanks to all for a wonderful evening with Fr. Greg

Posted on | September 22, 2010 | Comments Off on Thanks to all for a wonderful evening with Fr. Greg

Fr. Greg Boyle did his thing last night, and we did ours.  G, speaking without notes, held a crowd of 400 spellbound as he moved from outrageously funny stories about his beloved Homies to quiet moments of homily: you are exactly what God had  in mind when he made you.  An extraordinary man with an extraordinary mission.

Our thing was to support Boyle’s Homeboy industries.  When Jacek Kugler, Joe Hough and I thought to initiate this event, we thought that perhaps 150 people would come out on a weeknight.  Nearly three times that number appeared at the Claremont United Church of Christ, and they contributed more than $11,000.  Update: contributions have now reached $25,000.

Some folks who wanted to attend but could not have asked me about how they could make a contribution.  Just contact Homeboy Industries at their web site. Or if you wish, contact me, via the CONTACT tab at the top of this page, and I will send you a flyer about Homeboy and its work along with a donation envelope.

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Tickets Selling for Fr. Greg Boyle Speech and Book Reading to Benefit Homeboy Industries

Posted on | September 13, 2010 | Comments Off on Tickets Selling for Fr. Greg Boyle Speech and Book Reading to Benefit Homeboy Industries

Tickets are selling fast for the Fr. Greg Boyle speech and book reading at 7 p.m. on Sept. 21. at the United Church of Christ in Claremont, 322 W. Harrison.

(Update: There will be tickets available at the door.)

The UCC in Claremont is co-sponsoring the event along with a group of volunteers, The Claremont Friends of Homeboy Industries.

Here is the vital information:

  • Tickets are on sale for $20 (less if you need to.  We would be pleased to support groups of high school students who would like to hear from those who have given up the gang life.)
  • If you can afford a $100 contribution, please join us at a reception for Fr. Greg before the book reading.
  • Tickets are on sale at the UCC church office, at the Claremont Presbyterian Church, and at the Folk Music Center, 220 N. Yale Ave., Claremont.
  • (Posted at 3:30 pm. Tuesday:  Please come to the UCC Church before 7.  Tickets will be available at the door.)
  • We now can take cash, check, or credit card.

Fr. Greg will read from his best-selling book Tattoos on the Heart, the story of his remarkable ministry and the young men and women who have left the gang life to join Homeboy.

For more about Homeboy: Read more

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September 21: Hold the Date. Fr. Greg Boyle to Speak in Claremont

Posted on | August 13, 2010 | Comments Off on September 21: Hold the Date. Fr. Greg Boyle to Speak in Claremont

Knowing that Homeboy Industries is in dire financial condition, some of its friends in town are sponsoring a fundraiser/book reading with Fr. Greg Boyle on September 21.  Fr. Greg founded Homeboy in 1986, and it has become both an extraordinary ministry and a national model of gang intervention.  As their logo says, “Nothing Stops a Bullet Like a Job.”  Fr. Greg will talk about and read from his best selling book Tattoos on the Heart.  Please hold the date.  More details on this site in the next few days.  If you would like information sent to you please click on the CONTACT button above, leave me your name and email address and I will be back with you promptly.

The suggested donation for tickets is $20.  All of the ticket price will go to support Homeboy Industries.  Fr. Boyle will also be signing copies of Tattoos on the Heart. The net proceeds from the book also will be donated to support Homeboy.

The event is co-sponsored by the Claremont United Church of Christ, and it will be held at the church, 322 W. Harrison, in Claremont.  7 p.m. sharp.

(Driving directions:  From I-10.  Off at Indian Hill Blvd.  North about 1 mile through the Claremont Village to Harrison, right two blocks to the church.  From I-210 coming east.  Off at Towne Ave. south.  Left on Foothill.  Right on Indian Hill to Harrison, then left to church.  From I-210 coming west.  Off at Baseline.  Left on Claremont Blvd.  Right on Foothill.  Left on Indian Hill to Harrison, then left to church.)

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Missing the Point on Cortines

Posted on | July 30, 2010 | Comments Off on Missing the Point on Cortines

The Los Angeles Times editorial about Ray Cortines missed the point big time.  I’ve written a Huffington Post piece that I think gets things into the right perspective.  Comments welcome here or on especially on the Huff Post site.

Meanwhile, happy to be back from vacation.   Many thanks to Kamil and Meral Ozerk for their hospitality and to the whole world for putting on the Cup, which we watched almost nightly while away.

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Action on the Parent Movement for Commercial Property Taxes

Posted on | June 12, 2010 | Comments Off on Action on the Parent Movement for Commercial Property Taxes

Since I wrote about Jennifer Bestor and her research into inequities in commercial property rates in Menlo Park, I’ve read about additional activities in Silicon Valley.  John Fensterwald writes about parent activists in Cupertino and elsewhere in the Bay Area.  Read Here.  This thing may have legs.

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About

Charles Taylor Kerchner is an Emeritus Professor and Senior Research Fellow at Claremont Graduate University. My daily musings appear in the blog. The archives of my EdWeek blog are available via link under the 'On California' head. Some of my photography can be seen by clicking on 'Gallery.' And numerous links to academic work and other research and commentary can be found by clicking on 'Projects.'

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