The constant drizzle of rain did not keep hundreds of educators and supporters from gathering at the Indianapolis Statehouse on Saturday.
Union leaders addressed a crowd filled with protest signs and umbrellas to support public education and voice opposition to many of the education bills that have been proposed in the Indiana General Assembly.
The bills the crowd gathered to protest are the same bills that drove many Democrats to leave the state recently, including a bill that would limit teachers’ collective bargaining abilities, a bill that would create scholarships for students to attend private schools and a bill that would change the way teachers are evaluated.
One of the speakers, National Education Association Secretary and Treasurer Becky Pringle, asked the educators in the crowd to prepare themselves to fight for the future of public education.
“Of all of the civil rights for which we are entitled to, the right to learn is the most fundamental,” Pringle said. “Public education is at risk, and this is the fight of
our lives.”
Pringle said the educators in Indiana and across the country could not be silenced by legislatures. The demonstrators agreed by clapping and cheering, making their voices heard from many blocks away.
Scott Bauserman, an IU graduate and a social studies teacher at Decatur Central High School, said he drove for more than two hours to show his opposition to Gov. Mitch Daniels’ education reform agenda.
“We need all the opportunities we can get to improve our practice,” Bauserman said. “But the way to help us reform is to work with us rather than against us.”
Bauserman said he feels disrespected by the bills proposed in the Indiana General Assembly.
He said he encourages everyone to call their legislature and recognize that there is a difference between national and state politics.
Another demonstrator, Jon Beck, wore a Superman costume to represent a recent education documentary, ‘Waiting for ‘Superman.’”
Beck said he agrees that schools are always in need of reform, but he does not think
legislatures are giving teachers enough say in how to go about it.
“These politicians have this misconception that unions are only interested in money and budget issues, but that’s just not the case,” Beck said. “Unions are there for the teachers and for the kids.”
Beck said the way teachers are evaluated is also a cause for concern.
Pete and Susan Holtz, both teachers and the parents of seven children, said they agreed with Beck and that teachers should not be evaluated based on standardized test scores.
“We can document two years of math growth in one year’s time,” Susan Holtz said. “But if the student doesn’t peak on the day of an exam, that’s all down the drain.”
The couple’s voices were drowned out as people driving by the Statehouse honked their horns in support.
“Teachers like to work collaboratively, and many of these bills will put teachers against teachers in a competitive way,” Susan Holtz said. “What kind of environment is that for these kids to be learning in?”