While the national union may seem distant from our activist local in New York City, we are, in fact, an integral part of the AFT. The AFT’s bird’s eye view keeps us involved in national issues and policies that affect the wider labor movement and...

Sometimes, informal assessments can be more meaningful and less anxiety-provoking than traditional tests for students. Three informal assessments I use in my high school chemistry classes are 10-Point Bingo, a whiteboard activity and “I Can”...

UFT Vice President for Elementary Schools Karen Alford writes that our schools are more than academic institutions. They are caring institutions and, as educators, we understand that caring for the communities we work in is part of teaching and...

As a teacher at a hospital clinic, Katie Garfield instructs K–12 students while they receive treatment for cancer and blood diseases including sickle-cell anemia.

As we enter the holiday season, remember to make yourself a priority as well. The end of the year is a good time to reflect on decisions made during the past year: what worked and what didn’t, and how to build better habits. 


I enjoyed Sarah Kuhner’s Teacher to Teacher column headlined “Make connections with hexagonal thinking” [Nov. 2].

When any test is made mandatory for graduation, it usually reaches for the lowest common denominator. If scores on such tests are “influenced by a student’s income, cultural differences or other obstacles,” the solution is not to eliminate such tests...

In response to a UFT tweet about the Your Well-Being column on healing from burnout [Sept. 7]: I’m so glad that the union put out this post. It’ll help people dealing with burnout know that they are not alone. I’m so grateful for the better working...

In response to Retired Teachers Chapter Leader Tom Murphy’s column about the Inflation Reduction Act giving Medicare the authority to bargain on prescription drug prices [Nov. 2]: This legislation encourages a continuation of financing Big Pharma and...

It’s interesting that we, in the United States, are always being asked to change our lifestyle to remedy so-called “climate change.” China and India are where the advocates should be looking for reform. They are far worse polluters than the United...