New York TeacherSeptember 8, 2016
Volume LVIII, Number 1
Cover Stories
UFT raps DOE suspension ban for grades K–2
The UFT sharply criticized the Department of Education for announcing a ban on suspensions of students in kindergarten through 2nd grade without having a clear citywide plan to address the needs of young students with behavioral problems.
“It is easy to ban suspensions,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew wrote in a July 21 letter to Chancellor Carmen Fariña. “It is much harder to do the real work so suspensions are no longer necessary.”
Mulgrew warned the plan would backfire if the DOE did not put the necessary supports and interventions in place.
“In a perfect world, no child under the age of 8 would ever be suspended,” he said. “But children who are in crisis and who are disrupting classrooms are not going to be helped by this plan to ban suspensions in grades K–2, and neither will the thousands of other children who will lose instruction as a resul…
At the heart of learning
In Angela Fremont's art class at PS 69 in Borough Park, Brooklyn, art, social studies, literacy and science are knitted together.
How I spent my summer vacation
I went to Krakow, Poland, for World Youth Day, which is a Catholic event that’s held every two to three years where youth from all over the world congregate with the Pope. It’s inspiring to see so many nationalities that share the same faith.
Latest News
UFT blasts re-staffing of out-of-time schools
The UFT sharply criticized state regulations that left the Department of Education little choice but to re-staff six schools that have been deemed “out of time” by the state because they failed to substantively improve after three or more years of intensive support.
City ELA test scores soar to surpass state
Students in grades 3-8 in every school district in New York City improved on the state’s Common Core English Language Arts test in 2016, matching the performance of their peers in the rest of the state for the first time.
Only 4 NYC schools make ‘dangerous’ list
The DOE announced on Aug. 2 that only four New York City public schools appeared on the state’s 2016 list of Persistently Dangerous Schools.
Christie funding plan would hurt neediest kids
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, announced in June a proposal to rip up the state’s formula for distributing $9 billion in state school aid and replace it with one-size-fits-all funding: $6,599 for each student, whether the student is struggling in an impoverished block of Newark or thriving in the suburbs of Summit.
Grad students at private colleges can unionize now
The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that graduate students who work as teaching and research assistants at private universities are school employees who can join or form unions.
Feature Stories
And the children shall lead
In the block corner, a trio of 4-year-olds is winding a string of LED lights through a complex wooden structure topped with flowers, magnetic tiles and toy dinosaurs. Tucked behind a curtain in a darkened area of the room, another trio is playing house, addressing each other as “Mommy” and “Daddy.” In the art studio, one girl is wrapping a pipe cleaner around a stick she collected in the yard the day before, while another carefully affixes colored tape to a drawing.
It’s a typical morning in Sandy Fajgier’s prekindergarten classroom at K-280 in Windsor Terrace. At K-280 — a pre-K center affiliated with PS 10 that is also known as the School of Inquiry and Journeys — teachers like Fajgier eschew traditional curriculum in favor of the Reggio Emilia approach to education.
The Reggio philosophy encourages teachers to let children investigate their own interests through exploration and play.
“This is what kids should be doing, exploring the…
Noteworthy graduates: Reno Wilson, actor and screenwriter
Reno Wilson is a renowned television actor, but he hasn’t forgotten the New York City public schools that nurtured his talent.
Stepping up to serve littlest learners
There was a red carpet, a barbecue and a DJ. Most of all, there was love as four youngsters “stepped up” on Aug. 5 from UFT member and family child care provider Regina Carlton’s Little Lions Early Learn Academy in East New York, Brooklyn.
More in Feature Stories
You Should Know
You Should Know
New breast-pumping benefit for mothers
A New York City Health Benefits Program improvement now available to city workers covered by GHI CBP makes breastfeeding support, supplies and counseling available with no co-pay or deductible.
You Should Know
Phone lines set to open for Dial-A-Teacher
The phones at Dial-A-Teacher, the UFT’s long-running homework help line, will start ringing again this school year on Monday, Sept. 19.
Secure Your Future
Union keeps working to protect your pension
The UFT and its allies — the American Federation of Teachers, the AFL-CIO, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems and the National Education Association — are leading the fight to protect public pensions.
Opinions
President's Perspective
Facing a year of opportunities
Fair funding tops the UFT list of priorities this year; it will be the centerpiece of our lobbying effort in Albany.
VPerspective
Learning from current events
We can’t ignore the passions inflamed or the anxiety triggered by this summer’s world and national events for our students. As high school educators, we can provide a safe space for our students to explore these incidents.
Opinion
New teachers, new wings
Every September thousands of new teachers enter our classrooms — this year it is estimated that some 5,200 educators will be teaching in New York City public schools for the first time. And to them, we extend a hearty welcome.
Opinion
Civil rights and public schools
Public education is at the heart of the civil rights struggle in the United States. That’s why it’s heartening that two civil rights organizations acting independently of each other — the venerable NAACP and the newly minted Movement for Black Lives — have proposed a freeze on charter schools.
Teaching Resources
Linking to Learning
A vote for understanding elections
This year’s race for president has been a source of keen interest for many of our students, including elementary-school students, so it presents a wonderful teachable moment.
Research shows
Building conditions affect test scores
New research shows a strong linkage between decrepit school buildings, high absenteeism and low test scores.
Teacher to Teacher
How to thrive as a co-teacher
Here’s what I learned in my first year of co-teaching about building and sustaining a productive and positive relationship.
Building Your Career
Building Your Career
Making students feel at home
I love making my students feel that they are right at home in our kindergarten classroom.
New Teacher Profiles
Finally, a rewarding role
After seven years of catering to adults who often acted like children, Alison Fox fled the entertainment industry for the classroom, where she teaches actual children. “Real kindergartners are so much nicer and more rewarding to spend time with,” she says.
Retired Teachers News
Automatic COLA Increase — September 2016
In 2000, after years of frustration, the UFT, NYSUT and the rest of the state’s labor movement convinced New York State to provide an annual, permanent cost-of-living adjustment to our pensions.
Hillary an ally worthy of your vote
Ballots and bargaining are the foundations of power for working men and women.