To many conservatives, the root of the problem in education is the teachers union. Many want to remove the union from operating in schools and across the country, so what would happen if that actually occurred? Would it lead to sweeping educational reform? Would it mean that the youth of America are no longer being taught a revisionist history that causes them to hate their nation, families, and even sometimes themselves? The short answer to this is: no.
Anyone who is blaming the teachers union for all of the pressing issues in education, is seriously misinformed. Many people from all over the political spectrum have issues with the teachers union and their leadership. While many of these issues are valid, the assertion that abolishing, dissolving, or breaking up the teachers unions would end teachers forcing their own political agenda on students is completely false. For individual teachers, the most common use of the union is for information on the health benefits that were negotiated or seeking their help in cases that involve teachers’ rights. Some teacher unions offer lesson plans, but every other option out there is significantly better, and effective teachers do not use them. In the mix of daily emails a teacher receives, the union’s update on the shrine they are building for the Democratic candidate is not usually top on the reading list, if a teacher reads it at all; in other words, it’s junk mail that goes unnoticed by most.
For argument’s sake, assume you are successful in abolishing, dissolving, or breaking up the teachers union; the administrators, and the teachers who currently run the school, would likely stay in place. While the teachers union does take money away from members and gives it to radical politicians and supports radical leftist agendas, the fact is that the union really does not control what is taught in individual classrooms. A union can support a school district in adopting a social justice BLM curriculum, but even if a school is pressured to adopt it, a teacher may choose not to teach from that curriculum, or be creative if needed. For example, the teacher may teach from the curriculum, but also offer opposing viewpoints and documents to allow students to come to the conclusion that a topic such as Critical Race Theory is merely modern racism in disguise. In step with the current standard of student-centered learning, the teacher has many opportunities to manipulate a curriculum should a “social justice” one be mandatory.
The largest issue facing the educational system is that teachers are left-leaning to far-left-leaning. This is why when Sen. Bernie Sanders was running for president, most of his donors were teachers. Unless moderates, conservatives, and Republicans unite to start encouraging their own members to become teachers in public education, eliminating the teachers union would only be a small setback for the radical left; it would merely prevent them from protecting some very bad teachers, and cut into the taxpayer-to-union-to-politician money pipeline.
This is one of the main reasons why The Locke Society was founded. We not only aim to create usable educational materials that are up to current standards, but also aim to encourage freedom loving Americans to enter the educational field. In this case, some may say that the union impacts hiring decisions (they really don’t), but even if they did, if they don’t know you’re conservative, then they cannot use that against you. If we do not succeed in this endeavor to get into public education on all levels, all other attempts to save this nation from the radical left will be made in vain.
