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Another View: Teachers union should not block school reform legislation

Union leaders say they want to help, but that has not been the organization's history.

Ron Bancroft is a resident of Cumberland.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ron Bancroft is a resident of Cumberland.

In his Feb. 14 Another View editorial, Rob Walker, the new executive director of the Maine Education Association, showed what appears to be a new, more reasonable side to the teachers union.

Unfortunately, the union has a way of conveying its message that is less encouraging, sandwiching sane commentary with barbed asides, such as noting that "criticizing the Maine Education Association as a roadblock to progress demonstrates a profound lack of knowledge about public education and our children's future."

Puh-lease. Such a comment from the group that has opposed virtually every education reform proposed over the past 20 years in Maine begs credulity. In spite of this history, I am hopeful that the MEA has indeed reassessed its position and will support a focus on what helps students most. Maine's students need such support if they are to be successful in the 21st century.

A recent study from Georgetown University suggests that by the year 2018, almost two thirds of all jobs in the United States will demand some post-secondary credential. Yet Maine is well below the New England average in producing both college and associate degrees. There are many reasons for our below-average performance, but one big one is the lack of adequate preparation in our K-12 system.

It is time for all of us, including the MEA, to wake up to these uncomfortable facts and start doing something about them. Seen from the perspective of Maine's students, the governor's four education proposals do indeed warrant serious consideration.

Much of what has been done in the past in education is inadequate to present realities. We need to consider any alternative that promises to improve teacher quality and an ability to deliver that quality consistently to all Maine students.