Dear 'Hot Wheels'... err, the "distinguished" governor of Texas, Greg Abbott...
You wanted to put a task force together to determine why there is teacher shortage in Texas, and why retention is such a problem.
If you'd just come knock on my door, I could enlighten you at NO cost to the state.
You see the greatest opponent that Texas teachers are facing right now is you. Throughout your residency at 1010 Colorado St., Austin TX. (Texas Govenor’s Mansion), you have made elaborate and violent strides to vilify educators and present us, to the public as an enemy. From your vascillation on mask mandates and CoVid protocol, to your general ambivalence and lack of support during remote learning, and now the unnecessary and exceedingly suspicion-inducing, parental bill of rights, as well as this absurd attempt to insist on mandatory reporters to commit acts which are an obvious conflict of interest to their professional responsibilities... I could go on, but, Mr. Abbott, I think you get the picture.
You, yourself, have made education and those who serve in that capacity a social pariah in this state. Why would anyone choose a career that is seen as the enemy for the limited funds we receive for our time and efforts? Even I might consider a change in career if I wasn’t already so invested in the retirement program. But, since the government decided that teachers could only take TRS or Social Security rather than both (even though many of us have invested in both), that just isn’t a viable option for a responsible adult.
Still not convinced that you’re at the heart of the problem? Let’s examine your latest efforts. First of all, let’s just focus on the task force itself. Initially, you found no fault and as it seems, were pleased when the initial task force chosen only contained 2 (1 technically, but I’ll be generous) full-time teachers on a panel of 24.
It was not until teachers all over the state began to voice their overwhelming frustration at this, that TEA, finally opened two dozen more positions on the panel. No doubt, a knee jerk reaction to the surprise you felt when you realized that you, once again made a poor judgement call.
You’re “parental bill of rights” sows unnecessary seeds of doubt in parents faith and support of our efforts in the classroom. It is entirely unnecessary, as anytime a parent would like to request access to curriculum, they have it. Perhaps you’ve forgotten the ‘C-Scope' affair of 2013. The repercussions made that information readily available to any parent who is interested enough to be involved.
The worst part of this is that the, so-called ‘bill of rights' essentially forces teachers to design a “build your own adventure"-style of education plan for each individual student, in order to serve the needs and desires of all parents for their child’s education. Imagine the hours of planning that might take. Bobby can learn about the civil-rights movement and evolution, but because Betsy’s parents want that information limited for her, but a greater focus on conservative values and analysis of media (ie. How to ignore the information that doesn’t align with your family’s values regardless of how true it is). We now have to censor information for some students, but not all. Quick question, how are we going to manage this in a classroom of 30 students? Are we building new buildings in order to send some students to other rooms when we are teaching ‘sensitive' topics that other students are required to learn (based on parental requirements)? Plus, how do you expect a high school teacher with over 150 students to personalize/ individualize instruction to that degree? It’s an absurd concept, not even considering the factors involved when it comes to standardized testing which is still required for federal funding.
Next, let’s address the clear and present attack on trans students. You may have personal beliefs and values that differ from others, however a position of power does not grant you authority to marginalize groups within your governance. Since when does an individual’s mental, and physical healthcare fall under the per view of your office, sir?
Attempting to require CPS to investigate things that involve physical and mental well-being under the advisement of physicians, is a gross over-reach of your powers and it puts mandatory reporters in education in a clear conflict of interest. Our goal in education is to ensure that each student (including the marginalized populations) develops the self-confidence in themselves to invest in their own learning. That requires a certain amount of trust, faith and mutual respect. Building those things within the educator-pupil relationship is impossible when the student feels threatened about being their true authenic selves. As a required mandatory reporter, you are asking me to violate that trust, respect and faith while still producing improved results in learning, or face termination, fines and/or possible prison time.
So, I ask again, why would any quality educator make the choice to put themselves in this position?
