Ron DeSantis’s genius plan to solve the teacher shortage crisis
While much of cable news is still fixated on the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago, there are two joint crises happening that most journalists are ignoring: the shortages of police officers and teachers, which threaten America’s public safety and education system.
In New York City, for example, more than 1,500 police officers have handed in their resignations or retired, with some leaving the force before being eligible for their full pensions. It’s an unprecedented pace, marking the largest exodus on record, according to the New York Post. Similar percentages are seen in other major U.S. cities.
“A survey of about 200 police departments indicates that retirements were up by 45 percent and resignations by 18 percent in the period between April 2020 and April 2021,” reported the New York Times last summer.
On the teacher front, matters are even more dire. Some Texas school districts have had to shorten their school week to four days a week. The reason? Not enough teachers. In Arizona, college students are now being hired to instruct children.
“I have never seen it this bad. Right now [the teacher shortage] is number one on the list of issues that are concerning school districts,” observed Dan Domenech, executive director of the School Superintendents Association, in an August interview with the Washington Post.
The reflex under the Biden administration and the Democratic-controlled Congress is to throw lots of money at problems to make it appear they’re doing something to address them. Want to lower inflation? Sign a $740 billion spending bill and call it the Inflation Reduction Act.
But one elected official is taking a proactive approach that won’t break the bank.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) Recently announced a proposal to extend hiring bonuses to retired police officers, firefighters, military veterans, first responders and paramedics to address the teacher shortage crisis in the Sunshine State. The governor also announced an initiative to allow these candidates easier access to teaching certificates. The candidates would be required to hold a bachelor’s degree and must commit to teaching for at least two years. The bonuses can be up to $5,000 per candidate.
“Our veterans have a wealth of knowledge and experience they can bring to bear in the classroom and with this innovative approach they will be able to do so for five years with a temporary certification as they work towards their degree,” DeSantis explained in announcing the program.
“We have people who have served 20 years in law enforcement, who have retired, and some of them are looking for the next chapter in their life,” he also said.
The state of America’s education system is increasingly a concern for voters. Exit polls showed education was a top voter priority in Glenn Youngkin’s victory last year in the Virginia gubernatorial race.
And why not? Teacher unions are focusing on critical race theory in our schools that teach children as young as five years old to see others through a racial prism and to judge others by the color of one’s skin rather than the content of their character. We’re also teaching kids in elementary school about gender identification and sexual orientation. Most children are not mature enough for these conversations, and parents, not teachers, should be the ones having them anyway.
The consequences of this focus are clear. Per the Associated Press, citing a study by the National Center for Education Statistics, a branch of the Education Department: “Reading scores saw their largest decrease in 30 years, while math scores had their first decrease in the history of the testing regimen behind the study.”
COVID-19 lockdowns and Zoom learning helped drive this number, for sure. But given that the U.S. was already ranked 25th in the world in math, reading and science, this most recent setback is devastating to an already-struggling education system.
In Florida, the vacancies for teachers in the 2021-22 school year resulted in a shortage of more than 9,000 teachers — that means bigger class sizes and less one-on-one instruction.
“These three initiatives will build on our efforts to increase recruitment and retention of high-quality teachers,” DeSantis also said in announcing his plan. “Great teachers don’t become great teachers because they are sitting in a university lecture hall. What makes a teacher great is being in the classroom, watching other teachers, and seeing what works,”
As for the Biden administration, it announced on Wednesday a partnership with job search firms to make it easier to fill openings in education. The administration will also work with teacher unions to explore ways to expand teacher apprenticeship programs.
This is limp window-dressing from Team Biden. More jobs showcased on job portals won’t incentivize those who otherwise aren’t seeking to become teachers to do so.
Check back in a year to see who had the better solution: DeSantis or Biden.
Bet your kids’ college education on the former.
Joe Concha is a media and politics columnist.
Source: TEST FEED1
