On November 6th the Idaho voters will decide the answer to that question. Currently the polls are showing that all three of the school reform propositions may be in trouble which means that the union could possibly win. If they do, what will happen next and what will be the result? We have all heard the phrase, “win the battle and lose the war.” Should the union win, that will be the appropriate description of the election. It will be a short-term win and a long-term loss for the union as school reform will not die as a result of the possible loss November 6th, nor should it. In fact, school reform will be back on the legislative agenda in just two months when the legislative convenes January 7, 2013. It will be on the legislative agenda whether or not the three propositions are approved or rejected. Legislators will remember what happened in November. They will remember that the unions spent millions to distort the truth about the 3 propositions. They told voters that teachers would be replaced by laptops and that the unions were focused on class sizes and student safety when they decided the elements of master teacher contracts. Nothing could be further from the truth. But the unions spent the money to lie to the public in order to protect union interests over student achievement. read more…
Recently the head of Idaho’s Democratic Party, in a guest opinion in Idaho newspapers, urged Idahoans to vote no on the three education propositions on the November 6th ballot.
He could have saved a lot of “ink” and space if he had just stated what he and the labor union want. That is to go back to what we have been doing in our schools, and give them more money to do it. read more…
The Sunday’s edition of the Press Tribune featured a very prominent article about the success rate of keeping kids in school and their phenomenal graduation rates. The article stated that Nampa high school improved their graduation rate from 72% in 2005 to an outstanding 97% in only 5 years. Further, Vallivue improved their graduation rate from 72% to 98% in a similar period. It stated that Caldwell High school had a dropout rate of only 2.24% and not to be outdone Vallivue and Middleton had less than a 1% dropout rate. Those are truly outstanding statistics, which would rank those schools in the upper 1% of all high schools in the Nation. Apparently the article is addressing something other than the real dropout rate because the numbers provided in the article are not realistic or true. read more…
Jack Barraclough passed away July 24, at the Eastern Idaho Medical Center in Idaho Falls. Jack served as a director for Idahoans for Choice in Education for many years. He was a true advocate for education choice and as Chairman of the Idaho House Education Committee he advocated for charter schools as well as for private schooling. He firmly believed that all parents, not just the affluent, should be able to select the school of their choice for their children. read more…
By reading letters to the editor and guest opinions in our local newspapers it would appear that many people believe that Luna’s school reform legislation is anti-teacher and will not improve schools as Luna has purported. So far there has been very little, if any coverage given to the opinion of the many Idahoans who support changes in how our schools operate. Most Idahoans understand that public education is in need of reform and that Luna’s reforms will make a positive difference. read more…
The answer to that question depends upon who is responding. If the respondent is an IEA (teacher’s union member) you will get a different slant than if the same question is posed to a school board member or a parent or a student. In a recent Viewpoint program on Channel 7 clips were played, which were produced by the union where teachers were lamenting how bad the laws were. In these clips teachers stated that the reform laws were impacting the morale of teachers, causing teachers to look for work outside of the State and that these laws were being used to replace teachers with computers. In general a union member will always find fault with all three of the reform measures that will be on the November general election ballot. The union continues to advocate for keeping “things” the way they are. Further, any problem that schools have today is a result of not having enough money. read more…
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker survived the recent recall attempt, and that survival might bode well for Tom Luna and the “Students Come First” legislation passed by the 2011 Idaho Legislature.
That legislation which places limitations on collective bargaining for teachers, provides performance pay for teachers, increases the technology available for students and teachers and eliminates tenure for the most recently hired teachers, will be on the November 2012 ballot. Voters will support or reject those measurers by voting “yes” or “no” on three separate propositions. Proposition “1” deals with tenure and collective bargaining. Proposition “2” deals with performance pay for teachers and proposition “3” deals with technology. A “Yes” vote will support these school reform laws. read more…
Over the past quarter century we have seen the increase in power and influence of the teacher’s unions over our nation’s public schools. Not surprisingly, during that same quarter century we have seen the steady decrease in academic performance of our nation’s schools. read more…
Over the last decade nearly all major media industries have seen major disruption due to new technological capabilities. When applied strategically these new capabilities have simplified and reduced the cost of production and distribution, they have enhanced consumption and updatability making for better overall products. The result has been decentralized open platforms which allow more people to participate and freely compete and gives consumers much more freedom to choose and much better products. read more…
