Concerned wrote on Aug 15, 2008 8:14 AM:Eric is wrong. No one has ever accused the classroom teacher of not caring or working hard. In fact we are grateful for all our teachers do. What Eric misses is the fact that the crazy Union leadership that has had control of the district for all these years has actually hurt not only the children but also the teachers in Vista. The only advice I have for Vista teachers is take back your Union and get rid of the hyper-political leadership that is there now and support true reform

Eric is right-on wrote on Aug 15, 2008 9:07 AM:Eric's comments are right on target. I actually taught Eric's son for 2 years and there have been few students in my 10 years of teacing who have demonstrated a greater capacity for understanding, as well as a true appreciation for learning - which means that not only is Andy academically gifted, but he has been blessed with parents devoted to his academic excellense. And I might add, devoted to instilling genuine humanitarian excellence.

Great editorial, Eric. Thank you.

Art wrote on Aug 15, 2008 9:51 AM:Having encountered a great number of dysfunctional public school teachers who are just "covering the material" instead of teaching, it is not a big step to conclude their motivation is primarily money. Many of them are still campaigning for the defeat of Prop 13, the 1976 initiative to limit taxes that has been the law of the land for over three decades now. And instead of eliminating unions, it would be better to eliminate the "closed shop" that makes union membership a requirement of employment. (Oh, you think closed shops are already illegal? Then go ahead and apply for a government job and refuse to join the union -- you won't be hired.)

Sickofit wrote on Aug 15, 2008 10:44 AM:Teachers unions are the reason our schools are broke. 85% of a school's budget is for salaries. This is ludicrous. That is a lot of money for part-time work.

To Eric Parish wrote on Aug 15, 2008 10:46 AM:For the community who may no know who Eric Parish is, he is a man who often gets his facts wrong and is blinded by his ideology. Eric is infamous in the Letters to the Editor section. He is part of the recall from 1993 when Vista had one of the finest school districts in San Diego County. Since the recall, the school district has dropped to embarrassing low levels to be one of the worst in the state of CA all due to the Teachers Union control of the district. Now, with scores rising, due to hard working teachers, leadership of the board by Jim Gibson (who Eric would like to see go), and a forward looking Superintendent, it seems strange that Eric Parish would crawl out from his hiding place to criticize true success. Let's not return to the dark days of the radical Teacer's Union control when our children were not learning and Vista was the laughing stock of the state.

Earth Lover wrote on Aug 15, 2008 11:07 AM:I agree with Eric. We need unions to represent us, they have our best interest in mind and they really do know better than the administrators or the school board because they are the front line people. A lot of people call the VTA a radical Teachers Union but one person's definition of radical is another person's definition of saneness. I do not believe that Christians should be allowed in public office and the only protection we have are unions like the VTA who are willing to stand up against Christian ideas. Thank you Eric for being part of the recall!

Right on wrote on Aug 15, 2008 11:37 AM:Eric sure got it right. Trageser is way off base by trying to stir things up in Vista. "Concerned" has no clue. The Vista teachers union has been hammered by the heavy handed tactics of Guffanti, Gibson and Bales for some time while having to deal with a school board that has mismanaged their funding for decades. What really needs to happen is to change the entire school board.

Right On and On wrote on Aug 15, 2008 11:59 AM:What was once a board minority has not been so for quite some time now. It appears only one board member questions the accuracy of the reading program data while the others who are now in the majority just smile and believe all that the superintendent reports. Guffanti, Gibson and Bales are indeed heavy handed and Hubbard has joined them a while back to make a new majority. I am not in the teachers union but I have seen the district go down hill due to the current superintendents so called leadership. There is no leadership at VUSD let alone "forward looking". That is indeed a joke.

No doubt wrote on Aug 15, 2008 12:00 PM:There is no doubt in my mind that many, if not most teachers are dedicated to doing a good job. There is also no doubt in my mind that there are mediocre teachers doing a poor job. And, there is no doubt in my mind that their union has created a situation where the mediocre are allowed to continue to teach. There is no wonder California schools rate near the bottom.

What wrote on Aug 15, 2008 12:26 PM:Would Eric like to bring back the dark days of union control of the board and dropping scores? of protest? union pupils?
Kids are now learning to read in ENGLISH!

Union not Teachers wrote on Aug 15, 2008 3:08 PM:I don't think anyone things TEACHERS don't care about kids, but for sure their UNION doesn't care about the kids. See the recent opposition to new law that would get rid of teachers who are criminals and child molesters. No way this supports kids, and only supports folks who are, but shouldn't be, teachers.

I dont get it wrote on Aug 15, 2008 5:51 PM:Parish says, "And why does Trageser have to drag up all those bad feelings about the VUSD recall of 1993?" Then he proceeds to write a column elaborating in great detail on all the bad feelings. If he wanted them forgotten, why didn't he just stay out of it?
I have had a serious problem with the union at various times in the past, thinking they were the worst thing that ever happened to kids. But not now. The current union president is doing a fine job, simply trying to protect the teachers from the vindictive administration.

To Art wrote on Aug 15, 2008 6:07 PM:Prop 13 passed in 1978, not 1976.

To Sick of it wrote on Aug 15, 2008 6:15 PM:Hey - if you think teaching is part time work then why in the world don't you do it? It only means 5 years of full time education. Full time pay for part time work? Why don't all of you out there who think this is a piece of cake do it?!!! Why don't you at least shadow your kids to see what actually goes on in the classroom?

Just as there are bad apples in every single profession, there are bad teachers as well. However, in 10 years I have yet to meet a teacher who teaches "for the money" or the time off. If you were doing it for the time off, that's a long 9 months (of regular OT) to deal with in a profession you don't like. Starting pay in the mid-30,000s for a minimum of 5 years college is not that great. My husband has never spent 1 hour in college but has always made at least $15,000 more a year than I do, and I have 3 college degrees.

Art wrote on Aug 15, 2008 7:07 PM:I'm so ashamed. At least I got the decade right.

bobxxxx wrote on Aug 15, 2008 8:15 PM:"In case some of you newcomers don't remember, back in 1993 three conservative Christians were trustees in the Vista Unified School District ---- John Tyndall, Deidre Holliday and Joyce Lee. They formed a majority. From Day One, they immediately started pushing a no-sex-education, anti-school breakfast, pro-prayer and very pro-creationism agenda in my school district."

It sounds like they wanted to make America a Christian theocracy...

Mike wrote on Aug 15, 2008 10:50 PM:Teachers unions are made up of teachers. At the local level every member is usually in the classroom with the exception of the president. Therefore, to say that teachers care but their unions don't makes no sense. Besides you thank unions for the 40 hour work week, disability ins, workers comp, and many other benefits non-union workers benefit from. If teaching was so great eveyone would do it!!!

long time.. wrote on Aug 16, 2008 7:22 AM:all this Vusd union cares about is power!!!!

To Mike wrote on Aug 16, 2008 7:42 AM:Well stated!! I wish people who have a knee-jerk oppositional reaction to unions would do their homework and research the origins and evolution of unions. Many people who are opposed to unions have actually benefited in some way at some point during their lifetime.

Gimmeabreak wrote on Aug 16, 2008 7:46 AM:"To Sick of It" said it best. walk a mile in a teacher's shoes, critics. Dare to stare yourselves in the mirror of poorly informed criticism. Balance - which derives from sometimes spirited debate on a board rather than a ideological voting-block majority favoring one side or other, leads to the best policy for the students, the families, and the staff.

Pro Democracy wrote on Aug 16, 2008 7:50 AM:Preserving our democracy requires the teachers of America to teach the children of America how to question authority in a civic-minded way. This keeps us free from dictatorship of any kind. The teachers' union allows the teachers to set a good example, even when a school district is under the thumb of a short-sighted majority who thinks the country would be better off with their total control. Hurray for the teachers' union!

Reardon wrote on Aug 16, 2008 9:13 AM:California teachers rank number ONE in average teacher pay.

California students rank number 48 in academics.

I don't care if the teachers "care" -- but it would sure be nice if the teachers TAUGHT!

I don't care if the students get brought up to number one in academics, or we reduce our average teacher pay to 48th, but the delta between pay and performance is striking!


I don't care if the students get brought up to number one in academics, or we reduce our average teacher pay to 48th, but the delta between pay and performance is striking!

To Reardon wrote on Aug 16, 2008 11:29 AM:Teachers' salaries vary depending on the site from which you are gathering your data. Some have CA at the top, while others have Michigan or CT - but all 3 are within $1,500 per year for an avg. salary of around $55,000. Salaries can be as high as $71,000 if the site includes benefits, which is misleading in terms of actual take home pay.

One site listed the top average salary for teachers in CT at 57,337, followed by the District of Columbia at $57,009. CA was #3 at $56,444. The lowest was in South Dakota at $33,236 and the US medium salary was $42,254.

Considering this data, also consider the cost of living. It is well known that CA has a costly standard of living. Avg. home prices in CA are $509,000 while in South Dakota they are $218,000. ...

"Academics" is tough finding a "one size fits all" answer as well. Are you looking at SAT scores? If so, CA is #35 with 1,513. Iowa is #1 with 1,807 and Maine is the lowest with 1,388. ...

Are you looking at NCLB results? For what year? Are you looking at Elementary, Middle or High School? Please, be more specific and give us the site from where your are gleaning your info.

A classic mistake wrote on Aug 17, 2008 7:56 AM:Parish makes a classic mistake he confuses the teachers with the people who are supposed to representing them. Right now the union is negotiating a raise. So what you say. Well, the district is running a deficit so to pay for that raise the district would have to fire the newer teachers. So in essence, our newest, most eager teachers are paying their union to get them fired so that the rest can divide up their salaries. Don't think it happens that way? In 2000 the union got a 10% raise and over the next 2 years 10% of the teachers were fired. - a coincidence? - doubt it.

Timray wrote on Aug 17, 2008 8:29 AM:The problem is the teacher's union. Look at their current piece of propaganda wanting what??? why tax increases of course!! the problem in this state is not the budget but spending.....

Samuel wrote on Aug 17, 2008 4:30 PM:If teachers truly care about their students why do they promote them to the next grade even though they can’t even do the work for the current level? By so doing the teacher not only places a burden on their fellow teachers but also puts pressure on the students. As noted in various blogs the bottom line is the State’s poor national academic ranking. If I were a teacher I would demand an answer why this continues and ask that the CTA survey the other states to learn what they are doing differently and make the necessary changes to return our academic status to number one in the nation. Let’s stop the game playing and rhetoric and get with the program. Perhaps the CTA should develop an oath such as the Hippocratic Oath used by medical professionals. In my opinion the teaching profession is just as important; one treats the body and the other treats the intellect. Whatever it takes let’s get this turned around. Enough is enough!

Loving Teacher wrote on Aug 17, 2008 5:56 PM:I agree with Eric! I feel unappreciated by the media and the paper. I put in a hard 6 hour a day work and most people do not realize how exhausting it is to work with children all day long. most of the time we dont even get support from the parents! Some of the children we have to deal with have serious problems and I often feel like the only thing the media is concerned about are test scores. DO NOT JUDGE ME BY TEST SCORE RESULTS!! I am MORE than a test score. Yes I do work only 7 months a year but because of the difficulty of the job I feel that I have earned that time off! I do agree with Eric it does take something special to live with our children everyday! And yes my union did run the recall in 1993 and I am glad they did! They are right you cannot have Christian ideas in public education. I feel as if most of the time only my union understands my plight. They understand the difficulties that a teacher faces. Parents demand we teach certain subjects. Join me in voting for only the union endorsed candidates because we NEED a union controlled board!

to Loving teacher wrote on Aug 18, 2008 11:19 PM:You are a fraud. You are not a teacher. The work day is not 6 hours. The school year is not 7 months. You are purposely trying to fuel the fire of division. Isn't there enough? Shame on you.