For me, the labor movement and public education are linked as the essential building blocks to a strong middle class and a path to the American dream. It’s why I went to Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations as an undergrad and then to law school. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
Beginning with the No Child Left Behind law and continuing today with Race to the Top, the federal emphasis on standardized assessments has become so excessive that it has modified state and district behavior in troubling ways. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
Appropriate assessments are a crucial part of effectively educating students. But they only measure a narrow segment of what kids need to learn. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
Public schooling fosters our common identity as Americans sharing a land of diversity. It promotes the American ideal of opportunity for all, not just some. It cultivates the civic values of respecting individuals as well as collective responsibility. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
When I taught, the way in which we got evaluated is what I used to call the drive-by evaluation. Somebody would come in for 20 minutes with a checklist, and that would be your evaluation. So it was clearly a snapshot. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
Giving children a fair chance to achieve their dreams and reach their potential is everyone’s responsibility. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
When student performance shows increases on test scores, that improvement is not associated with an increase in ‘fluid intelligence’ – that is, using logical thinking and problem solving in novel situations, rather than recalling previously learned facts and skills. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
As we embark on something as ambitious as the Common Core, educators must be able to teach to the standards with the necessary support and collaboration and without the sense that there will be dire consequences if students, schools and their tests don’t make the grade. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
Due process gives teachers the latitude to use their professional judgment in their classrooms, to advocate for their students, and to not fear retribution for speaking the truth or teaching controversial subjects like evolution. As political winds shift in school districts, due process also wards off patronage or nepotism. Randi Weingarten Read Quote
The last thing we need is efforts by some politicians and the NRA to arm educators and allow more guns in our schools. Randi Weingarten Read Quote