EEA 538
Perry
1
Fourfold Written By: Mike Perry
Author of article: Randall W. Eberts
Title: The Future of Children
Book Title/Date: Teachers Unions and Student Performance: Help or Hindrance? (2007)
Themes of the Article:
Beliefs Held by the Author:
The article is an evaluation of teacher unions in
When teacher unions operate collaboratively,
the United States and the effective or ineffective
engaging in more adversarial bargaining and in
role they play in improving student performance.
greater support of school reform they have a
Through an in depth analysis of empirical research greater opportunity to positively impact student
Ebert identifies the role unions play in improving
performance. If reforms remain too narrow and not
teacher working conditions, employment security
mindful of student learning needs unions hinder
and compensation while having a mixed effect on
learning and do not operate effectively.
improved learning conditions and student
performance.
Purpose of the Article:
To draw comparisons between the role teacher
unions play in improving working conditions while
simultaneously improving student performance.
Main Ideas
1. Collective Bargaining by Teachers
- “Web of Rules” – rules that keep public schools
from responding/adapting to the changing needs
of students.
- agreement on a set of regulations that will
govern teacher working conditions
- “collective bargaining through negotiated rules
and regulations, establish school policy and
govern how teachers, administrators, parents
and students interact in the delivery of
educational services”
- prior to giving power to collectively bargain
public employees could only influence the
political process by voting for those who would
govern and manage the workplace (an indirect
influence)
- teacher representation grew as collective
bargaining laws were passed
- NEA and AFT saw bargaining as an effective
way to promote the interests of teachers.
4 Reasons for Collective Bargaining:
i. passage of state law that permitted teachers to
bargain
ii. declining enrolment + increased inflation in the
1970s = diminished teacher influence over
decision-making
iii. change in work and social conditions
iv. decline in private sector = public sector
primed for union formation.
- teacher unions initially built upon adversarial
platforms not collaborative.
- impact on student performance dependent on
bargaining tactics and goals of teacher unions as
Examples/Personal Reflections
- Teachers/students often end up being used as
collateral in negotiations when union
representatives (BCTF) and government officials
(BCPSEA) work toward the resolution of contracts,
working conditions, employment security, and cost
of instruction – often the wants of the union are not
necessarily reflective of the needs of its members
– bargaining often drives the groups a part.
- The “Web of Rules” is a complicated network of
policies and procedures that both protect/benefit
teachers yet interfere with our abilities to obtain
positions and teach with greater autonomy –
beneficial to tenured teachers but make it difficult
for newer staff to obtain sustainable employment.
- What is the purpose of unions? If unions have
been created to protect the working rights of
teachers than they have been successful. If they
have been developed to improve student
performance we need greater reform (in B.C.
specifically).
- For collective bargaining to be more constructive
it needs to be more collaborative – school reform
can be achieved if both sides work effectively and
cooperatively – change in union/government
mindset must occur in order to find common
ground.
- Without unionization teachers in B.C. would be
regulated/governed in a top-down/authoritative
process with far less consultation and autonomy.
- Recent contract negotiations revealed a balanced
EEA 538
it relates to:
workplace conditions, class size and
composition, interaction levels and accountability
for own performance
2. Outcomes of Collective Bargaining
Negotiations
- “…bargaining power determines the strength with
which contract provisions influence administrative
decisions” (Johnson, 1995).
- collective bargaining = increase in wages (4 to
11% higher) = increase in resources
i. Contract Provisions
- agreements are hierarchical – the number of
contract provisions positively impacts teacher
bargaining.
- Teacher Pay and Benefits – 5 to 12% more pay
and fringe benefits
- Working Conditions: class sizes = 7-12% lower;
4% more prep time; standardized instruction =
42% less time with specialized teachers.
- Employment Security: smaller class sizes = more
jobs = greater job security.
- Cost of Instruction: higher operating costs for
unionized schools (Elem. Middle, Sec.)
- Administrative Flexibility: reduced discretion by
administration – effective administrators accept
collective bargaining as a way to obtain teacher
participation
- Student Achievement: unions have mixed impact
on student performance but influential in schoolwide effectiveness.
- Teacher Unions – attracting more “qualified
teachers through higher pay and fringe benefits,
better working conditions and greater influence on
decision-making and teacher transfers.”
- Sustaining Effects Survey, High School and
Beyond, the National Assessment of Economic
Education, and the National Educational
Longitudinal Survey – all find that teacher unions
influence student achievement/performance – 5%
higher achievement than nonunion schools.
- Average achieving students = more success in
unionized schools vs. low-achieving students/atrisk = more success in non-unionized schools.
3. Reform Initiatives
- reform collective bargaining to increase
collaboration
- calls for change threatened existence of public
schools and teacher unions.
- NEA and AFT leading charge for reform
- reform difficult to implement when many union
members do not seek it
- Teacher Unions Reform Network (TURN) created
to redefine/re-shape teacher influence in policy
Perry
BCTF approach toward satisfying teacher and
student needs – BCTF not willing to move on Bill
33 – class size and composition.
- Without proper representation teacher pay and
fringe benefits would not be as strong for B.C.
teachers – recent negotiations revealed the
strength of BCTF to achieve on our behalf (Fertility
Drugs, Hearing Aids, Vision, Chiropractic,
Massage, Physiotherapy) – Provincial
Standardized EHB Plan Improvements
- More union members want a greater say during
times of negotiation/collective bargaining within
their own union – many during the 2014 strike
shared a feeling of helplessness.
- Union and government negotiations must be
mindful of student learning needs if collective
bargaining is to improve student performance.
- Unions must be more adaptable and considerate
of school reform if public education is going to
compete with charter schools.
- The BCTF and Provincial government have had a
turbulent past. Recent negotiations showed
BCPSEA representatives were still not cooperative
in efforts to resolve issues and work toward the
proper development and installation of educational
reforms.
– As a result of recent difficulties in communication
induction of the BC Education Plan may be
challenging.
- This may limit the effectiveness of curriculum
revision, student assessment, graduation
programs, skills and technical training, flexible
calendars/programs, the ERASE Bullying initiative
and parent engagement. BC Education Plan
- The BC Teachers Collective agreement and the
BCTF do a sound job of holding teachers
accountable through various evaluative processes.
However, I still think more could be done to ensure
teachers are completing their necessary teaching
requirements.
- The transparency of a performance-based
compensation system appears to be an effective
model but I question its validity, effectiveness and
accuracy in holding teacher accountable. Based on
my experiences of teaching in a lower-income
2
EEA 538
making (new unionism).
i. Accountability: internship for new teachers,
mentorship for tenured underperforming teachers.
ii. Incentive Pay: teachers based on professional
development instead of seniority – student
performance = quality standard for teacher pay.
Pay-for-performance (Seattle and Denver).
- accountability viewed as subjective assessment =
at the decision of the admin. as it is based on
ambiguous criteria.
4. The Future of the New Unionism and School
Reform
- impact of unions on student performance remains
unclear.
- do unions help or hinder school reform?
“...only by bringing teachers fully into the process
can reform succeed; opponents claim that once
shared decision-making makes its way into
collective bargaining contracts, flexibility is lost,
reform initiatives are stifled, and attention
soon shifts from what is right for the students to
whether school administrators have adhered to the
contract.”
- teachers not performing to potential
- teachers hiding behind their union
- unions putting needs of teachers ahead of
students.
- attempts at school reform have come and gone
with little progress made.
Goals for improvements:
i. school districts require organizational role
models
ii. it is necessary for union leadership to refocus
and readjust attitudes to be more considerate of
student needs
iii. administrators and school boards must see
teachers as stakeholders – teamwork
iv. teachers and administrators =
collaborative/cooperative
v. accountability in management teams
* A need to embrace new-unionism (collaborative
rather than authoritative).
Perry
school I question fairness when it comes to
working with kids who have limited home-based
resources.
- A model based on professional-development and
accountability which rewards teachers for
continuously upgrading their skills and teaching
techniques through their attendance and
involvement in professional development
workshops and seminars is favourable. Although
this should not be the sole method for
advancement and assessment of accountability it
serves as a valuable way for teachers to improve
and stay current in their delivery of instruction.
- Based on my experiences I feel a more
comprehensive, collaborative approach to school
reform needs to take place between the BCTF and
the educational branch of the government
-Unionized teachers need to focus on the learning
needs of students as much as on their benefits
package in the collective agreement.
- Throughout collective bargaining, students must
remain a top priority with every decision that is
made in order to ensure students receive adequate
support and the opportunity to remain successful in
their learning.
3
EEA 538
Perry
4
References
Eberts, R. W. (2012). Teacher Unions and Student Performance: Help or Hindrance? The
Children, 17, 175–200. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ795878.pdf
Future of
Gilbert, Sewell (1983). Teachers’ Unions and the Issue of Academic Standards. Wall Street
January 6,1983.
Journal,
Johnson, S. and Kardos, S. “Reform Bargaining and Its Promise for School
Improvement,” in
Conflicting Missions? Teachers Unions and Educational Reform, edited by Tom Loveless
(Brookings, 2000), pp. 7–46.