OPINION | In recent decades, it’s hard to think of any group of policy influencers that have caused greater damage to children’s education and well-being than Randi Weingarten and Becky Pringle—and their reputations should suffer for it.
, to cite just one example. This, naturally, was physically impossible for schools to adapt, and so many schools stayed closed indefinitely.In recent decades, it’s hard to think of any group of policy influencers that have caused greater damage to children’s education and well-being than Weingarten and Pringle—and their reputations should suffer for it.
Let’s never forget, the United States was an outlier when it came to school closures within the Western world. We knew early in the pandemic that children were statistically very unlikely to get seriously ill or die. We knew from side-by-side comparisons between open red states and closed blue states that schools were not contributing to community spread. You could even compare block by block between public schools and affluent private schools that remained open and safe.
I’m not inclined to want House Republicans to wrap themselves entirely around oversight hearings in the next Congress. It’s unlikely to be used judiciously or wisely. But I will make an exception when it comes to Weingarten and Pringle. House Republicans should make them live on Capitol Hill for a while, answering for what they did.
Despite billions of dollars successfully lobbied for, teachers aren’t paid more. The AFT and NEA have been in business for nearly a century, and if their one mission is to get teachers more respect and higher wages, they’ve failed miserably on both fronts—all while making teachers pay for the privilege out of their modest paychecks.