Letter: Educating children is going to get very, very expensive
Your Aug. 30 editorial hit the nail on the head. The teacher shortage is a result of the perfect storm: politicians trying to set policy for schools, a test and punish mentality, years of inadequate teacher pay and lack of recognition for performing a very difficult job.
Next to your editorial was Senator Mike Hewitt’s piece on the need for transparency in contract negotiations between teachers and districts. Really Mike? Do you really think that is going to solve the problem? It’s probably a good idea, but there is so much more that needs to be done to solve the strike issue.
I am no fan of teachers’ unions but teachers feel they have no other recourse than to strike to get the legislators’ attention. True, teachers are getting a raise this year. But what about last year Mike, and the year before that and the year before that and the year before that?
It’s not really the districts that teachers are fed up with. My school district, Kennewick, is wonderful. It’s the Legislature that teachers are really striking against. Get ready, with the changes in our society’s demographics, educating the children is going to get very, very expensive.
Gordon Johnson
Kennewick
This story was originally published September 10, 2015 at 12:33 AM with the headline "Letter: Educating children is going to get very, very expensive."