This article examines how teacher collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), teacher salaries, and class sizes changed during the Great Recession. Using a district-level data set of California teacher CBAs that includes measures of subarea contract strength and salaries from 2005-2006 and 2011-2012 tied to district-level longitudinal data, we…

This paper examines the effects of declining student enrolment and population loss on one rural school district in the United States, as well as the district's strategies to mitigate these effects. In the state of Wisconsin, the relationship between student enrolment and school funding destabilises rural school districts experiencing population…

It all started when the author's daughter, also a Madison teacher, called her. "We need to call people to the rally at the Capitol." That Sunday rally in Capitol Square was just the first step in the massive protests against Governor Scott Walker's infamous "budget repair bill." The Madison teachers' union declared a "work…

At the request of the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) undertook this analysis of the teacher policies in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). A coalition of civil rights groups were also involved in this project, including Parent Organization Network, Families in Schools, Alliance for a…

Spells out some tough guidelines for keeping school boards in charge of public schools. Suggests including in contracts a strong management rights clause, a no-strike clause, cancellation of all bargaining rights during the term of the contract, and specific and detailed restrictions on grievance procedures. (Author/JM)

THE USES OF TEACHER POWER IN INFLUENCING THE WORK CONDITIONS, REWARDS, AND ACTIVITIES OF TEACHERS ARE DISCUSSED. THE STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, AND APPROPRIATE USES OF VARIOUS TACTICS FOR THE EXERCISE OF THIS POWER ARE DESCRIBED. PARTICULAR ATTENTION IS GIVEN TO SANCTIONS, STRIKES, INJUNCTIONS, AND MASS RESIGNATIONS. PICKETING, SCHOOL BOARD ELECTIONS,…

Describes the successful efforts of the school board in a small Tennessee community to reverse teachers' initial enthusiasm for forming a union. (Author/WD)

This report attempts to present a balanced discussion of several key issues in the charter school movement. Its goal is to help school board members, especially those in urban districts, assess the record of charter schools so far, and understand the complexity of the issues involved. The first chapter presents a brief legislative history of the…

This reference book on collective bargaining is specifically designed to meet the needs of Wisconsin school boards as they conduct collective bargaining with their employees. The first four chapters supply background information necessary to understand Wisconsin's Municipal Employment Relations Act. Chapter 4 explains the scope of bargaining and…

A school board member responds to an article by Albert Shanker that appeared in the previous issue. (IRT)

As teacher associations and unions have increased in number and strength, superintendents and education boards have had to devote more time to the process of negotiations. In the winter and spring of 1989, 400 questionnaires were mailed to a random national sample of school superintendents to examine the following areas dealing with negotiations…

A "pro-management" leadership stance means that board members and administrators run schools so that employees are comfortable bringing concerns to management directly rather than through a union. (Author/IRT)

A case study of effects of government-imposed fiscal restraint on a rural British Columbia school system outlines the restraint in its various phases, its effects on School District No. 4 (Windermere), ways the district dealt with resulting problems, and the consequences, with implications for how not to implement fiscal restraint at the school…

The purpose of this handbook is to give both new and veteran California school board members a guide to the process of collective bargaining. In general, the board's role in collective bargaining is defined as including developing goals, selecting the board's representative, developing parameters, maintaining communications with the public,…