The P Word

No phonics for them:

Dozens of studies since the 1950s have shown the benefits of teaching phonics as a vital aid in learning how to read, especially for the youngest students. However, when a bill came before the California legislature mandating the teaching of phonics, the teacher's union swatted it away. In a letter to Al Muratsuchi, the chair of the Assembly Education Committee, the teachers laid out their opposition to AB 2222 in typical academic gobbledygook. "The proposed legislation would duplicate and potentially undermine current literacy initiatives, would not meet the needs of English learner students and cuts teachers out of the decision-making process, especially when it comes to curriculum," read the letter. “Educators are best equipped to make school and classroom decisions to ensure student success,” the letter said. “Limiting instructional approaches undermines teachers’ professional autonomy and may impede their effectiveness in the classroom.” In other words, the CTU opposes the "top down" approach to teaching kids phonics to augment their reading instruction. They've got to try something different. According to the most recent testing, just 43% of California students in grades 1-3 read at grade level. It's worse for blacks and Hispanics. “This is also a matter of civil rights,” said Kareem Weaver, an NAACP activist and co-founder of the literacy advocacy group FULCRUM. “Kids need access to prepared teachers, and communities like ours, I feel like we’re bearing the brunt.” The NAACP is one of the primary supporters of the phonics legislation.

Well, if the kids could read, they wouldn't need the teachers' unions anymore...