I would like to respond to the Jan. 26 column by Win Gruening, titled “Isn’t it time for Alaska to be a leader?” I agree it is imperative to hold government, school districts, parents and students accountable for the poor performance of Alaska’s public school students in standardized tests. If we want to truly effect change we need to address the 800-pound gorilla no one wants to touch: tenure. Not a single legislator I ever talked to would take on the National Education Association. They all agreed they needed to get rid of tenure but it was political suicide.
I fully support all teachers who put their heart into teaching, but tenure costs our children dearly. One example is if you have a teacher who is burned out or just doesn’t care as much anymore and they are teaching 3rd and 4th grade math, their students are impacted their whole life because they did not get a good basis in multiplication and division.
School districts are hindered in hiring when demographics change and they need teachers who have different fields of expertise that meet the students’ needs. Budgets are impacted when you pay a teacher to sit in an office because they are not effective teachers anymore and they are tenured. What is worse, is paying a teacher to go away.
I am not suggesting taking tenure away from teachers who have tenure, but not offering tenure anymore. Eventually attrition will end tenure. Teachers deserve our respect and good pay. We entrust our children to their care. Teachers who do a good job will always have a job. Someone should not be paid for doing a mediocre job or just showing up.
Perhaps it is time the Alaska Legislature took a stand for our children and took on the NEA.
Elaine Bell,
Haines
• Elaine Bell has been a school board member in Southeast Alaska for 14 years.