The State of California should protect the tenure system for community colleges.

Russell Hong

SPCH 6

6/22/14

"Teachers are not the problem in

our schools, they are the

solution."

California Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom

Torlakson

The State of California should protect the tenure system for community colleges.

OBJECTIVES:

Define the current harms of banning tenure Explore the causes of the problem moving to a merit

based pay system Enforce a plan of action Examine how this plan will alleviate the harms Explore additional benefits to protecting tenure for

community colleges

The are 2 main reasons why banning tenure will

hurt the community college system. We would move to a

merit based pay system where profit would trump learning.

Blaming a flawed education system on the tenure system is a misguided and ineffective solution.

Harm 1: We would move to a merit based pay system where profit would trump learning.

”Yet another attempt by millionaires and corporate special

interests to undermine the teaching profession

and push their own ideological agenda on

public schools and students while working to

privatize public education."

— National Education Association President Dennis

Van Roekel.

Harm 2: Blaming a flawed education system on the tenure system is a misguided and ineffective solution

“When it came to criticizing teacher protections, [we]

did not spend one second discussing funding inequities,

school segregation, high poverty or any other out-

of-school or in-school factors that are proven to

affect student achievement and our

children." — American Federation of

Teachers President Randi Weingarten.

Causes

We are dealing attitudinal inherency since we are protecting the status quo.

Banning the tenure system at California community colleges will act as a deterrent, but will not solve our educational problems. Hiring and protecting good teachers will.

Plan of Action (condensed)

MandatesI. The California Community College system will maintain the

current practice of awarding tenure to full-time instructors who’ve gone through a 4-year rigorous probationary process.

Enforcement• 1. The tenure review committee will meet twice a year

during the 4-year probationary process.Funding

• 1. Funding will come from the budget given by the State of California, the District the community college is a part of, and the Division the department is in.

Timeline1. Currently in progress (reinforcing status quo).

Solvency 1

Harm 1: We keep education focused on students, teachers, and learning, rather than competition and profit.

“Taking out tenure is more likely to inspire professors at all levels to do more research and less teaching. They’ll do what

they can to make themselves marketable, to produce what actually sells in their competitive marketplace…Few of those incentives have much to do with real devotion to teaching.”

- The Chronicle of Higher Education

Solvency 2

Harm 2: We invest in good teachers through a rigorous tenure process that promotes effective

teaching and weeds out ineffective teachers.

“Tenure at our best universities is granted only after the most extensive and critical review.”

- The Huffington Post

Additional Advantages:

Protecting the tenure

system is a W.I.N.

Welcomes good teachers.

Invests in good classrooms.

Nurtures good students.

Good teachers are the solution.

Protect our good teachers by protecting our tenure system for California community colleges.