PROPS: Defining the status quo

 A lot has been said this election cycle implying that those against Propositions 1, 2 and 3 are merely defending the status quo, and that those defenders are primarily teachers. It is important to remember that the current status quo is called No Child Left Behind. It is also interesting that after more than a decade of this far reaching federal mandate, crafted and approved by Congress with virtually zero input from teachers, that teachers are now being blamed for the results.

Propositions 1, 2 and 3 double down on No Child Left Behind, even going so far as to forbid districts from allowing teachers to have meaningful input into the education process through collective bargaining, and put even more emphasis on standardized testing.

Sharing power can be a difficult thing to do. In this case it requires that Supt. Tom Luna, local school boards and administrators have enough humility to admit that they don’t have all the answers. That just maybe those teachers, who stand and deliver education to our children and grandchildren, should have something to say about what children need to succeed in the classroom. Giving teachers all the responsibility and none of the power is not only terrible policy, it is immoral.

I urge you to vote No on Propositions 1, 2 and 3.

MARTY MEYER

Coeur d’Alene