11–20 of 27 posts
Maybe instead of comparing military and education in terms of why unions are allowed in one and not in the other, he should just make a comparison between education and any private sector with functioning competition. I'd say the benchmark for education should not be the military but rather retail. Imagine schools as efficient as Walmart or Starbucks.
if school was a Walmart, would teachers be shipped from China in Panamax container ships?
Here is an example of how "easy" it is to fire a low-performing teacher: http://www.laweekly.com/2010-02-11/news/lausd-s-dance-of-the...
While unions make it easier for workers to defend their rights, they make it _much harder_ to create a meritocracy in the organization, and so much harder to reward people based on their performance - just ask anybody who have ever tried to transform an organization with a strong union. (Notoriously ineffective PG&E comes to mind first). Here is an example of how "easy" it is to fire a low-performing teacher: http://…
Blaming America's dismal education system on teachers unions is a tired and hollow argument. Mr. Adams would do well to consider the chronic underfunding, push toward standardization at all costs, and political interference that directly challenges science education. Are unions good for a small, agile company? No. Are they necessary for monolithic employers? Probably. The U.S. government employs 2 million civilians.…
I'm not trying to score some cheap political points off you - I'd love a response that makes me think a bit, because when I hear someone say 'teachers unions are bad for education', my gut reaction is 'well, that's obvious', since any system where pay is based on seniority and poor-performers are difficult to fire has got to create perverse incentives. What am I missing?
Blaming America's dismal education system on teachers unions is a tired and hollow argument. Mr. Adams would do well to consider the chronic underfunding, push toward standardization at all costs, and political interference that directly challenges science education. Are unions good for a small, agile company? No. Are they necessary for monolithic employers? Probably. The U.S. government employs 2 million civilians.…
Also, would it be possible to provide some evidence for your claims about education? It might help us have a better discussion.