red states rule
09-18-2011, 07:25 AM
Perhaps now the dead wood will get tossed out and new teachers who care about the kids will be employed
snip
Across Wisconsin this year, teachers have opted to retire at higher rates than usual, partly in response to the new law. Under the law, teachers have to contribute a considerable chunk of their salaries to health and retirement plans, and districts can decide to lengthen the school day or year without increasing salaries.
For supporters of the legislation, it grants more flexibility to districts to prevent costs from careening out of control. Some districts have already started saving money, according to Governor Walker's office.
Moreover, the instruction at some schools may benefit from a changing of the guard, education experts say.
"To the degree this is a shift in the composition of who's in the system ... it is going to align the system more with the direction of current education reform, which I would say is good," says Allan Odden (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Allan+Odden), a professor of educational leadership and policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
But for opponents of the law, it unfairly cuts take-home pay, batters morale, and deprives schools of droves of veteran teachers who are retiring early. "The loss of experience and the loss of qualified mentors [for new teachers] outweighs any financial gain to the districts," says Betsy Kippers (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Betsy+Kippers), a teacher in Racine (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Racine) and vice president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Wisconsin+Education+Association+Council), a 98,000-member union.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2011/0916/Wisconsin-teachers-retire-in-droves-after-union-loss-in-bargaining-fight
snip
Across Wisconsin this year, teachers have opted to retire at higher rates than usual, partly in response to the new law. Under the law, teachers have to contribute a considerable chunk of their salaries to health and retirement plans, and districts can decide to lengthen the school day or year without increasing salaries.
For supporters of the legislation, it grants more flexibility to districts to prevent costs from careening out of control. Some districts have already started saving money, according to Governor Walker's office.
Moreover, the instruction at some schools may benefit from a changing of the guard, education experts say.
"To the degree this is a shift in the composition of who's in the system ... it is going to align the system more with the direction of current education reform, which I would say is good," says Allan Odden (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Allan+Odden), a professor of educational leadership and policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
But for opponents of the law, it unfairly cuts take-home pay, batters morale, and deprives schools of droves of veteran teachers who are retiring early. "The loss of experience and the loss of qualified mentors [for new teachers] outweighs any financial gain to the districts," says Betsy Kippers (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Betsy+Kippers), a teacher in Racine (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Racine) and vice president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (http://www.debatepolicy.com/tags/topic/Wisconsin+Education+Association+Council), a 98,000-member union.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2011/0916/Wisconsin-teachers-retire-in-droves-after-union-loss-in-bargaining-fight