'Tis the Season for Strike Talk
* Looming strikes are the usual topic during mid-August. No trends seem to be developing one way or the other. An agreement was reached in Naperville, Illinois and teachers will vote on a contract in Detroit, but things are still up in the air in Anchorage and West Virginia.
The fact that teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan and West Virginia seems to have no effect whatsoever on the actions of the parties involved, so why have no-strike laws?
* A report released yesterday claims standardized test scores "show no evidence that smaller classes are better, either for achievement or classroom atmosphere." This report didn't come from the usual places, but from the C.D. Howe Institute in Toronto, Canada.
Institute analyst Yvan Guillemette is the author of the to-the-point titled School Class Size: Smaller Isn’t Better. Even more to the point, the subhead reads, "Many provinces are spending millions of dollars on class-size reduction initiatives, with no solid evidence that they raise student achievement. The money could be better spent elsewhere."
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The fact that teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan and West Virginia seems to have no effect whatsoever on the actions of the parties involved, so why have no-strike laws?
* A report released yesterday claims standardized test scores "show no evidence that smaller classes are better, either for achievement or classroom atmosphere." This report didn't come from the usual places, but from the C.D. Howe Institute in Toronto, Canada.
Institute analyst Yvan Guillemette is the author of the to-the-point titled School Class Size: Smaller Isn’t Better. Even more to the point, the subhead reads, "Many provinces are spending millions of dollars on class-size reduction initiatives, with no solid evidence that they raise student achievement. The money could be better spent elsewhere."
* All of EIA's content is free and will continue to be. But if you wish to contribute to EIA's work, I've added a PayPal donation button to the sidebar on the right.
EIA is a private business, so your contribution is NOT tax-deductible, and the accumulated amount will be reported as business income on my tax return.
I considered garnishing $600 in dues from each and every reader's paycheck, and calling it a "fair share" or "agency" fee, but ultimately concluded that such a thing was tyrannical and an affront to the free enterprise system.
So thank you for your generosity and support. I will always endeavor to be worthy of it.
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