Teachers Unions Demystified

Posted by on Oct 20, 2011 in Educational Games, Featured | 88 comments

Teacher’s unions are a controversial topic in a nation sorely divided by partisan politics, where federal and state funding can depend on factors that, sadly, are not in the best interest of America’s young people, the students in our public schools, who ought to be top priority for all parties concerned.  Too often the special interests of teachers, politicians, and lawmakers get in the way helping to facilitate genuine achievement in schools.  Teacher’s unions, according to many, are no small part of the problem.

The NEA or National Education Association is the country’s largest teacher’s union.  It’s lobbying power is massive, and for the past 30 years, the candidates endorsed by this gigantic union have won the presidential elections.  Many of the current direct tv packages provide programming that keep people informed on the political involvement of educators. They have a great deal of lobby power, but is it too much?  The NEA, for its part, insists its purpose is to advocate for students and their best interests while protecting educators with legal defense insurance.  It promotes controversial institutions such as tenure for any teacher who has served a certain number of years — a tradition that makes it nearly impossible for a teacher of that level to be fired, even all he or she does is show up to work and sleep at the desk all day.

Here is one video offering just one perspective on the matter of teacher’s unions.  It seeks to explain what a teacher’s union is and how it operates.  Hopefully you will find it enlightening: