What do you hope to learn from your peer research about teacher unions today and why?

Post 1 (1 page)
Remoralizing or Demoralizing? Here’s what I want to know about the situation of Teacher Unions….
You’ll see in the readings for this learning module that joining a teacher union is no longer mandatory. Teachers today have decisions to make about whether to join their union and why. Teachers need to consider what will change about teachers’ work and teacher pay if teacher unions lose membership and power, and whether the demise of teacher unions would be good for the profession/ schooling in general.
This thread invites your initial thoughts on the question of whether teacher unions are a sign of a demoralized profession or a remoralizing one. This is also a good place to ask questions -no matter how basic or how probling) about the role of teacher unions, teacher support for and criticisms of teacher unions, and whether teacher unions public help or hinder the profession from garnering public support. What do you hope to learn from your peer research about teacher unions today and why?
Post 2 (1 page)
Here’s what I want to know about Teacher Activism and Teacher Strikes
2018 and 2019 saw an avalanche of wildcat strikes across the states. This thread invites your questions about the strikes – what prompted them, what did they accomplish, what if anything was different about them. You can also ask your peers to share their personal opinion on the value and shortcomings of teacher strikes as a bargaining strategy. And you can tell them whether you would join a strike and ask whether they would persuade you to think differently about the issue. This is a good thread for us to take the pulse of the class on the deeply contentious issue of teacher strikes.
Post 3 (1 page)
Here’s what I want to know about the experiences of Teachers of Color
Teachers of color feel demoralized within the profession, but they also hope to draw others to the field in the hopes of remoralizing their work, i.e. making a meaningful and appreciated contribution. This thread invites reflection on the sources of demoralization and hopes for remoralization via increased recruitment and retention of teachers of color, along with changes in the way teachers of color are viewed by colleagues.
This is a place to reflect on the experiences of teachers of color in general and African-American teachers in particular in U.S. schools. This thread also invites questions about what prompts teachers of color to join the profession, whether and why it matters for students to have a more representative teaching profession, and what would make the profession more inviting to younger teachers of color.
We can also use this thread to take the pulse of our class’s exposure to and experiences of racial diversity in the teaching profession. If you’ve been a teacher of color or if you’ve been taught by teachers of color, what do you want your peers to know about these experiences? If you’ve discouraged or encouraged a student of color to enter the profession – or if you’ve been encouraged or discouraged by others as a person of color – tell us what we need to know.
Post 4 (1 page)
Here’s what I want to know about the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on the teaching profession…..
Has the pandemic contributed to teacher demoralization or might it contain the seeds of remoralization? This thread invites reflection on the effects of the pandemic on the profession in the post-pandemic era. What would you like to know about the effects of the school shut downs on teachers, the job market for teachers (i.e. job security vs precarity for teachers), working conditions, teacher salaries, teacher attrition (turnover) and the future of the profession? What questions about the effects of the pandemic on teachers do you hope your peers will be able to help you answer based on their research?
Post 5 (1 page)
Here’s what I want to know about teacher demoralization …..
This thread invites your reflections on the phenomenon of teacher demoralization in general. Why might experienced teachers leave the profession early? Why might it be increasingly difficult to attract new teachers to the profession? Why are teachers of color particularly demoralized? What do you want to understand about these and other manifestations of teacher demoralization? What steps could be taken to counter the phenomenon of demoralization? For MAT students and other prospective teachers in the course: What worries you most about the prospect of entering a demoralized profession? For cultural foundations students in the course: how do we set about trying to understand and counteract demoralization in the work we do in our field?
Post 6 (1 page)
Here’s what I want to know about teacher remoralization….
This thread invites your reflections and questions on remoralization in general. What are some signs of remoralization on the cusp of the post-pandemic era? What would enable teachers to do good work in the moral sense? What steps need to be taken to remoralize teaching and teachers? What gives you hope for the future of the profession? What worries you about the future of the profession?
Final Post (2-3 pages)
Your final post to the course is an in depth analysis of how teacher demoralization and remoralization manifest in your chosen topic, and how you will navigate the tension between the two.
Your posts must demonstrate your understanding of issues raised by the readings below***
Your post should also indicate your position in relation to the issue(s) in question, i.e. what do you personally find remoralizing about your chosen focus? What do you find demoralizing?
For a shared context, we’ll all start with the following three shared readings/listenings/watchings:
1. Listen to the Edsurge podcast on Teacher Demoralization – or read the article here: https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-11-19-many-frustrated-teachers-say-it-s-not-burnout-it-s-demoralization (you can access the podcast within the article also)
2. Read “From ‘Rotten Apples to Martyrs: America has Changed it’s Tune on Teachers” by Madeline Will edweek.org Sept 28, 2018 https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/10/03/from-rotten-apples-to-martyrs-america-has.html
3. Watch this short video “Perspectives and Reflections of Teachers of Color” about the Education Trust Report Through Our Eyes AND/OR this open letter to school leaders Teaching While Black.
4. Read this article about a new teacher who started her first year during the pandemic
4. Pop onto the Demoralized or Remoralized? Here’s what I want to know Discussion Board and post your reflections and questions on each of the four threads on that board. We’re interested to learn what you know about the issues we’ll be exploring in this learning module and what you’d like to know about them. This discussion board is worth 50 points, and must be completed by Tuesday night.
5. Then, choose one of the four focal topics for this week and read as many of the articles in the content folder for that topic as you need to in order to respond adequately to your peers’ reflections on how it reflects teacher demoralization and may or may not contribute to the remoralization of the profession. Remember Santoro’s definition of demoralization is not simply that teachers feel bad, but that they are no longer able to do good work.
The four topics are:
Teacher’s Mobilize: Teacher Strikes and the New Teacher Activism
The effects of the Janus decision on teacher unions
Teachers of Color Speak Out About the Profession
The Coronavirus Recession and the Challenge for Teachers

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