700 NYC teachers paid to do nothing

Socialism at its' finest. -But it doesn't surprise me one bit. If you don't toot the party line expect a short existence. =We must blindly go forward and discourage the past.

Arguably, an educational institution dictated by a recalcitrant principal is a safe haven for the ordinary practices of academic witch-hunting.

Bad teacher #1: This is my seat. I've been sitting here for six months.

Bad teacher #2: But you got up.

Bad teacher #1: But I never left the room.

Bad teacher #2: But you left the chair area.

Bad teacher #1: That's it! Give me your underwear!

And? It's like school principals and the entire BOE in Japan. The only difference is that the 'situation' will be fixed in the US.

I lived near a high school in NYC for a while, I can't say I can debate the article too much, in fact, I've met NYC teachers who have had no degree in anything, one I can say even told me he was a drop out and only got a GED not too long ago...

This is not a school problem, its a union problem.

Gotta love them unions in the States...

Hardly needs mentioning that New York is Lib Central.

It's bad enough that "Liberals" oppose charter schools and a parent's right to choose how their child will be educated but here you see how they oppose even basic accountability or performance testing for teachers.

The unions demand payoff for the votes they deliver to the Democrat Party. One form it takes is job security.

"...in four-years only two of the city's 80,000 teachers were fired for incompetence..."

Incontrovertible proof that the Democrats are ruining the country.

http://www.schoolreport.com/schoolreport/articles/Rubber_Rooms_5_07.htm

Get paid to do nothing, with summers off. Man, are there any openings?

damn, I completely missed my career!

Probably there is millions of people who are paid to do nothing much.

Only 700 NYC teacher doing nothing to be paid,no big deal.

Only 700 NYC teacher doing nothing to be paid,no big deal.

Let's say they average about $40K a year. That's $28 million dollars a year. No big deal?

Teaching involves not only classroom interaction, but correcting papers, grading tests, developing lesson plans, developing curriculum, and so forth...so there is plenty of work for them to do that is a part of teaching.

Helter, NYC teachers make about 70k a year on average!

Helter, NYC teachers make about 70k a year on average!

I had no idea. Makes this whole story even more aggravating.

note that a small apartment in NYC costs a small fortune." Most teachers either live on Staten Island or in Jersey. You can find a cheap place. Still 70k is not a lot. What do ESL teachers in Japan make - 80-90k? And they have to live in expensive apartments..

I had no idea. Makes this whole story even more aggravating." No, what aggravating are those teachers who teach at base schools. Make a whopping salary and live for free.

USA is a very advanced civilization. I want to be a NYC teacher and spend my days reading books :)

skipthesong - "what do ESL teachers in Japan make - 80-90k?"

um, no. the majority of positions in japan are paid at less than 300,000yen a month, amounting to approx 3-4million a year or 30-40,000 dollars.

that the Democrats are ruining the country.

Yeah , and I bet the Republicans are what's keeping it afloat...NOT!

700 NYC teachers paid to do nothing

Thats terrible!

It's a good thing that there isn't an economic system that pays people for minimal effort withouth the chance of being fired for underperformance...whoops.

What is the breakdown of those 700? How many are there for relatively minor offences or because of a vindictive boss? While the usual suspect harangue about liberals and unions, they offer no solutions on how to reverse the situation or how to avoid it.

First step would be to review the cases and reinstate teachers with relatively minor offences or reassign them to productive non-teaching duties. Then prioritize serious offences so as to dispose of them ASAP to either stop tax-payer money from paying truly undeserving teachers or reinstate teachers wrongly accused since this affects their professional reputation.

It is probably impossible to eliminate paid disciplinary leave altogether, but surely it can be refined.

What is the breakdown of those 700? How many are there for relatively minor offences or because of a vindictive boss? While the usual suspect harangue about liberals and unions, they offer no solutions on how to reverse the situation or how to avoid it.

First step would be to review the cases and reinstate teachers with relatively minor offences or reassign them to productive non-teaching duties. Then prioritize serious offences so as to dispose of them ASAP to either stop tax-payer money from paying truly undeserving teachers or reinstate teachers wrongly accused since this affects their professional reputation.

It is probably impossible to eliminate paid disciplinary leave altogether, but surely it can be refined.

Helter_Skelter,

The article states that the city estimates it costs $65M per year, probably with benefit costs factored in.

I'm not sure why you find this so depressing. Sure it's wasteful, but it certainly is not clear who is to blame. People, not just teachers, need to be protected from wrongful firings.

Take the case of the teacher who accused the principal of tinkering with test scores and was then fired by the principal. With "No Child Left Behind", schools receive funds based on improvement in test scores. This gives principals (and teachers) a motive to tinker with standardized tests. So, it seems to me that it's rather important to get to the bottom of an issue like that.

Or, take the case of the teacher who was suspended for foul and abusive language after being cut by a student. Without knowing the student in question and the exact circumstances of the incident, its rather hard to make a judgment. I try to keep my language elevated, but let me stub my toe in the dark and you'd think I was a sailor's parrot.

It seems to me that what needs to happen is not suspension-without-pay, but faster resolution of disputes.

With the graduation rates of some of the schools in NY, perhaps more than just 700 are being paid to do nothing...