“The union representing teachers announced the results of the vote Friday. The district chose to add these ‘Accelerated Days’ at a cost of about $122 million without consulting parents, teachers or other school workers,” United Teachers Los Angeles — which is involved in ongoing contract negotiations with the district — he announced. “In response to this decision, 93% of UTLA members voted to boycott LAUSD’s first ‘optional’ day. Instead of participating in this waste of taxpayer dollars, an overwhelming percentage of UTLA members voted to participate in a boycott and rally next to community members on Wednesday, October 19, 2022, the first optional date listed.” The union also called the addition of optional days a “$122 million gimmick” that “prioritises visibility over student needs.” In response, an LAUSD spokesperson said Friday: “Los Angeles Unified seeks to provide additional instruction to students identified as needing intensive intervention. This is intended to accelerate student progress toward grade-level proficiency, social emotional learning and high school graduation. while providing teachers and other employees with the opportunity to earn additional pay.” The spokesman also added a “point of clarification” about the union’s $122 million figure, saying “the $122 million budgeted includes $52 million to pay employees to attend the three optional professional development days held on August 9, 10 and 11. The majority of teachers participated in these optional, paid adult learning days.” The following optional days are scheduled to take place on October 19, December 7, March 15 and April 19. Earlier this month, UTLA filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the district over the optional days issue. At the time, UTLA called the move an overreach of the district’s authority and a failure to include educators in discussions about how to recover learning time lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the district, contract negotiators met Thursday and will meet again shortly after Labor Day to continue discussions. “We look forward to reaching a fair and timely agreement that will ultimately benefit both students and educators across Los Angeles Unified as we continue to work toward our goal of making Los Angeles Unified the top urban school district in the nation.” , said the district representative. . The extra school days were announced in April. At the time, Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the additional days “will be designed to provide a deep level of supplemental academic support to our students who need it most — students who have lost most of their ground, students in foster care, students with English language limitations or one or more disabilities. We must have the courage and compassion to provide extended quality instructional time for these students and professional development for our teachers.” On Friday, the union said the optional days “are to distract attention from the district’s refusal to support an equitable education for all students, depriving our children of the supports and services proven to ensure student success “. “By scattering these days arbitrarily throughout the school calendar, actual teaching and learning will be disrupted and dollars intended to be used for education will be wasted,” the association said. In Friday’s statement, the union also said the district should spend the funds allocated for optional days in other ways. “The LAUD must reallocate the funds used in ‘Accelerated Days’ to programs, services and staff roles that have been shown to have a long-term positive impact on student learning and career outcomes,” the association said. “This means making sure every school site has a nurse every day. Currently, 80% of LAUSD schools do not have a full-time nurse, and 15% of schools in South Los Angeles have no time for a nurse at all.” The union also cited the need for “smaller class sizes and increased salaries for teachers to ensure the long-term retention of quality teachers,” along with additional support for special education programs such as the arts, music, ethnic studies, bilingual programs, tutorials, outdoor training and excursions. Additionally, the union said, “The mental health needs of our students cannot be overlooked, and more counselors, psychologists and school social workers must be available at all school sites. Finally, the school district must seriously advocate for housing, environment, immigration, and the COVID recovery needs of our communities.” Copyright 2022, City News Service, Inc. Copyright © 2022 by City News Service, Inc. All rights reserved.
