Extending Teacher Tenure

Ari Kaufman and Aaron Hanscom

{A similar version of this piece was featured in the Orange County Register on November 3, 2005}

Would you continue flying if you knew the people entrusted with guiding your plane in safely had guaranteed job security after just two years? Luckily, air traffic controllers who can't perform effectively are fired immediately. Ever since Ronald Reagan dismissed striking controllers in 1981, following Calvin Coolidge's dictum that no one could strike against the public safety, workers who are vital to society have learned that job security is not perpetual; it must be earned. Unfortunately, many unions' actions haven't been so considerate of their “clients.” In particular, some teachers’ unions are still putting their own interests ahead of our kids.

Long-time American Federation of Teachers president, Albert Shanker, once opined, “When schoolchildren start paying Union dues, I’ll start representing the interests of schoolchildren.” Governor Schwarzenegger, like President Reagan before him, understands that self-preservation often comes before what's best for society. Proposition 74, which requires new teachers to work successfully for five years -- instead of two -- before they get tenure, would be a big step in improving the dismal educational system in California. Ensuring that teachers receive satisfactory reviews for five years before getting a job for life and empowering principals and school districts to get rid of poor teachers shouldn't be controversial.

As public school teachers in Los Angeles, we’ve seen the proverbial "best" and "worst" in our profession. Needless to say, a 25 year veteran teacher who displays a lackluster performance in the classroom cannot be held accountable for prior lapses in a system that enabled them to reach this juncture in their career. Nor can you force someone into retirement and deprive them of their source of income. But perhaps the leash can be shortened earlier on in the teaching career. While principals are currently only allotted one calendar year to evaluate and determine the next 30 years of an educator's life, we’d surmise that three more years isn’t too much to grant them. This would most assuredly benefit all those involved in the educational process.

In our experience as elementary school teachers for the LAUSD, we quickly learned that for every exceptional teacher who doesn't receive the recognition they deserve, there is an underperforming teacher who only comes to work for a paycheck. And too often these paychecks are significantly larger than those of many new teachers who work harder. Every school has its share of tenured teachers who spend much of their time in the classroom doing anything but teaching while their students do "busywork." With the passing of Proposition 74, we have a chance to weed out the next generation of languid and undedicated teachers.

The difference in the life of a non-tenured teacher and a job secure teacher is vast. For example, in the first two years an educator can essentially get fired ("non-reelected") for one bad lesson when the principal pops in the classroom for 12 minutes. But after School Day 1 of Year 3, a tenured teacher can be totally ineffective, absent often for "personal necessity," leave at the bell, miss training days, dress slovenly, be arrested with the school's video camera at the Republican National Convention in New York City (an appalling and true story), and never come close to being fired. As it stands now, powerless principals have very little reason to observe the teaching of tenured teachers. Any recommendations they might have are often met with resistance by the teachers who simply don't have to implement them. Naturally, that is just what the teachers unions ordered.

The unions want teachers to “mobilize” and fight for their lives to defeat this proposition. Too bad they don’t understand that Proposition 74 would better the lives of our kids.


A public school teacher in Los Angeles for three years, Ari Kaufman is now a freelance journalist, contributing to publications such as Front Page Magazine, the OC Register, LA Daily News, and Hackwriters.com travel magazine. Aaron Hanscom is a teacher and freelance writer in Los Angeles, whose work has been featured in the LA Times, Front Page Magazine, Ventura County Reporter and elsewhere.

Reach Ari at ajkauf7@yahoo.com