Latest on the SEA Front
From SEA Facebook page:
These are all of the SEA proposals the district rejected today.
Then proposed increasing secondary and elementary day by 1/2hr.
And finally put out a proposal for a raise. 2%/2.5%/2.5%.
This made it clear to the bargain team, the district wants us (cert., para and SAEOP) to work more for less money.
These are all of the SEA proposals the district rejected today.
Then proposed increasing secondary and elementary day by 1/2hr.
And finally put out a proposal for a raise. 2%/2.5%/2.5%.
This made it clear to the bargain team, the district wants us (cert., para and SAEOP) to work more for less money.
Comments
Try to squeeze the teachers this contract go-round and Nyland + staff will sink like a stone.
DistrictWatcher
Hale Parent
The District's response to the SEA proposals on these issues? Rejected.
I wouldn't doubt that a lot of the district's last minute dumped-in-our-laps garbage will be ultimately accepted, and, I wouldn't bet against it being accepted. In the last decade a significant element of WEA-SEA "strategy" has been if we don't compromise with garbage dumpers the garbage dumpers will lie about us, and then they'll dump more garbage on us. At least the teachers who've cravenly or childishly supported Knapp's constant acceptance of garbage will get what they have earned and what
TheyDeserve.
Both Ways
Not saying that teachers don't deserve more than a 2% raise, but I'm also not sure that extra recess time is 1:1 with pay. If the extra time isn't going into lunch and recess, disregard the above.
@Eric B.
I'm an advocate of a longer day and adding time to lunch and planning time. Those are the real issues for elementary. I've contributed those thoughts to our negotiators but the words seem to drift off into the ether. And I have co-teachers who agree. An extra half hour properly used would be a blessing and we don't need extra pay for it. A longer lunch and planning time benefits teachers and kids.
One more thing which will probably not go down well with many people but I'm sick and tired of the efforts to address saeop and parapro issues. Neither category is rocket science and mentors for those positions is ridiculous. My school hired a past PTA president to be school secretary. I love her but if we now have to spend money on mentors to teach secretaries how to be secretaries, that is a waste of money. Provide initial training, a training manual, and get on with it. Our saeops and parapros are the highest paid in the state. They get the raises and bennies because those things do not cost the District as much as meeting teacher demands do. Meeting the demands of one or two secretaries, two or three IAs per school costs a lot less than adequately compensating teachers or devising schedules and programs for kids do.
questioning?
M
SEA is planning two rallies tomorrow. 300 SEA members attended a bargaining session last week. SPS dropped the SpEd IA idea.
SPS OT
HF
IA
Questioning? .. The district dropped the proposal about the special ed IAs. It wasn't thought out at all.
gh
unless, by contract, it is NOT under control of admin, then it will be: writing more crap to prove your PLC keeps admins happy? concocting more data crap for the Gate$ $ponsored lie 'student growth' to keep bureaucrats happy?
Count me on the
PicketLine
IA
It is *bizarre* to me to suggest that people be required to work a half hour longer each day without compensation. If you need help understanding why that is:
-Teachers oversee recess/lunch at many schools, so they'd be doing more work if this time were lengthened (which of course it should be - just with compensation)
-At schools where teachers don't have actual duties during lunch, many make themselves available to meet with students who need extra help
-Teachers have to pay for childcare for their own children - so more hours at work = more childcare expenses (and it goes up exponentially the later you get out due to Seattle-area traffic)
-Yes, teachers do a lot of work outside school hours - but being able to do some of that work at home is one of the few, vanishingly small perks of being a teacher today
-I cannot think of another job in which an employer would suddenly make all employees stay half an hour longer each day but not compensate them
I believe in the work of this blog because I believe the kids in this city deserve a better education - and increasing transparency in SPS is a critical part of that. I just wish that more people who posted here realized that another critical part of getting kids a better education is having passionate, excellent, experienced teachers. Once you realize that, it's clear that proposals like this that make life harder for teachers (yet again) are part of the reason we lose great teachers. If you care about the education your kid gets, you should care about the working conditions of the people who teach them.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/04/06/teachers-resignation-letter-my-profession-no-longer-exists/
-Parent&Teacher
Check out the pay scales for parapros and saeops in neighboring school districts and I'm talking North Shore and Lake Washington - not Puyallup. As for living expenses, teachers aren't doing so well either. A lot of people can't afford houses or even rents in Seattle. That's not a school district thing. And my point was that most contractual enhancements go to those groups representing the fewest people. Frankly, I can do without IAs. Some are wonderful and some are not. You have no responsibility, no extra hours (unless you choose) and few if any credentials required. If you want to become one of us "highly paid and respected" teachers, spend the time and money to become credentialed. If that's "pitting against..." so be it. I consider it reality and logical. Everybody today in social services deserves higher pay but until teachers catch up with pay that reflects the time, effort and qualifications, your points are moot with me.
@Parent&Teacher
What's bizarre about getting a more reasonable day? I'm there anyway - most of us are at my school. I dont' know of a job that sets it hours so its employees can get home at a certain time. You work that out personally. I'm talking about the quality of time at work for teachers and for kids. Rushed days do not enable good teaching and learning. So for me I am getting some out of adding a half hour and it isn't always about money. We all deserve more. But a less rushed day enhances my teaching and my kids' learning. Isn't that what it's about?
-Teachers oversee recess/lunch at many schools, so they'd be doing more work if this time were lengthened (which of course it should be - just with compensation)
When do these teachers eat? Is that contractual? I don't see how that adds extra work. Are you talking about the fifteen minutes of extra lunch students would be getting requiring adding fifteen minutes of teacher supervision? So your complaint is that you (or someone you know?) will have to give extra time to supervision? Don't teachers rotate that? I'd like to know more about that. Teachers at my school do a recess supervision one day a week but no lunchroom supervision.
-At schools where teachers don't have actual duties during lunch, many make themselves available to meet with students who need extra help
Yes, I do that. And that extra lunch would not only give me more time for that exact reason but also allow the student to get some of the recess in. I'm speaking elementary here. Actually, we don't like to take recesses and definitely not lunch away from kids. But I occasionally have kids come back.
-Teachers have to pay for childcare for their own children - so more hours at work = more childcare expenses (and it goes up exponentially the later you get out due to Seattle-area traffic)
We're talking a fairly small amount of time. I think you could work it out just like we all have to do. What might be a problem for one group doesn't necessarily generalize to the whole group. Personal self-interest is one of our problems as a union. We need to be flexible.
-Yes, teachers do a lot of work outside school hours - but being able to do some of that work at home is one of the few, vanishingly small perks of being a teacher today.
I don't think the opportunity to work at home or on weekends will ever go away. Me, my self-interest is not wanting to turn my home into my classroom. I like to get it done at my workplace. But I'm not using that as an argument for a longer day.
-I cannot think of another job in which an employer would suddenly make all employees stay half an hour longer each day but not compensate them
Back to money. There are other benefits to consider besides money. To me that's short sighted.
For me and some of my colleagues it is about a less-rushed day. Not everyone at my school agrees. We all have different priorities. I just wish we could get away from viewing everything through the lens of money. We all work hard and the one thing we agree on is that we all work well beyond the school day and we all deserve higher pay.
I'm wondering how many schools are open to teachers on weekends? I prefer working a weekend day over staying at school at the end of a fatiguing day or taking work home. My friend in Mount Vernon has key pad access to her building at will. Do Seattle schools offer that benefit.
Finally, I think there are differences between elementary, MS and HS and those differences should be accommodated.