December 2006
MSTA priorities: The resources and support to provide a great public school for every child!
Annapolis Report is a regular column in MSTA's ActionLine. It focuses on the legislative and policy activity at the State House as it affects students, public education and public education employees.  January/February 2007 December |
Maryland’s election returns showed many pro-public education candidates winning national, state and local offices, with a major helping hand from MSTA members. Now, the Association is focusing on our education priorities over the next several years with the General Assembly, the State Department and State Board of Education, and local school boards and districts across the state.
To support our lobbying and collective bargaining efforts, MSTA and Local Associations adopted a new message for elected officials and the public: Great Public Schools Are a Basic Right for Every Child. We must keep the focus on reforms we know will help educators boost student achievement and close the achievement gap.
A key part of this message is that everyone shares the responsibility of ensuring every child can attend a great public school. Educators know that every day we must have high expectations for all our students and give them the attention they need to succeed, but parents, communities and public officials also must do their part.
For national, state and local policymakers, that means providing educators with the tools and resources needed to meet high standards and put every student in Maryland on the road to success. Among the additional tools and resources MSTA will advocate for in 2007 and beyond are:
High quality instruction in every classroom Research clearly shows that to raise student achievement across the board, there must be a highly qualified teacher in every classroom. Yet too many schools in high-poverty areas struggle to attract and retain the high quality teachers that students need to succeed. Increasing support for candidates for National Board Certification and providing professional development aligned with the new Maryland standards will help.
Increased school funding The Thornton funding increases will be phased in by 2008. MSTA and other education groups will work with the governor and legislature to fully fund Thornton by including the Geographic Cost of Education Index (GCEI) in the approved budget. Pre-K and all-day kindergarten in Title I schools remain MSTA priorities.
Greater funding for school construction and renovation The Kopp Commission recommended spending at least $250 million every year for 10 years to meet the backlog of construction needs. Maryland has already fallen behind this schedule by $322 million, leaving 70,000 Maryland school children in classroom trailers, so MSTA will push to eliminate this backlog.
Reduced class size and workload Research also shows that students need individualized attention from teachers and instructional assistants to meet high standards, which means lowering class sizes. At the same time, No Child Left Behind and state requirements have saddled educators with more bureaucracy and paperwork that take time away from teaching, planning and analyzing data that should drive individual school improvement plans. MSTA will advocate for addressing these issues through legislation, regulation and collective bargaining.
Of course, MSTA and Local Associations will continue to fight at the bargaining table and in Annapolis for the professional pay and benefits needed to recruit and retain the high quality educators needed to get the job done. That includes a starting teacher salary of at least $40,000, a living wage for all ESP, decent health care benefits and further pension improvements.
