My Teaching Conditions Are My Students’ Learning Conditions

As a science teacher, I need my union to ensure I can do my job properly and give my students the best possible learning experiences.

My union ensures I am evaluated fairly.

I use inquiry methods with my students whenever possible. They devise their own experiments, collect and analyze their data, and share their results with the rest of the class. We problem solve on whiteboards. Students must construct their own knowledge. My students are frequently talking and moving around.

However, these methods are sometimes met with resistance from parents, students, and even some administrators. By having a fair and standard evaluation system which was negotiated by my union, I know that I am an effective teacher.

My union ensures my students are safe.

Class sizes in science are capped at 24 students. I can effectively manage the transitions from whole class discussion to small group discussion to laboratory work. Students are not overcrowded in lab. I can easily and efficiently monitor the progress of all the lab groups.

My union ensures my students are assessed in a variety of meaningful ways.

With 24 students maximum per science class, and a maximum of 5 sections, I can assess my students’ understanding in more meaningful and authentic ways. I can give my students timely feedback. I can implement standards-based grading without it becoming a bear.

My union ensures I grow professionally — and I help my colleagues grow, too.

We have options for professional development — time for self-directed PD during staff days, the ability to offer after school courses to my colleagues, the option to take graduate courses on campus or online. It is only through continuous reflection and growth that I become a better teacher.

I support my union because without it, there would be 50 students in each of my classes sitting quietly in rows, reading their textbooks (instead of doing labs) in preparation for their next multiple choice exam which will be graded by the Scantron machine.

This post was written for EDUSolidarity Day. Visit the EDUSolidarity website for the complete list of blog posts and follow #EDUSolidarity on Twitter.