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Show Treat teachers as professionals At the Board of Education meeting held the Tuesday evening even-ing prior to the wide-spread job action undertaken by many teachers in Davis District, The Reverend Russell Durler of Westminister Presbyterian Church, offered the invocation. Then, as is customary at board meetings, Reverend Durler took a few minutes to address the board. He explained he had been a teacher on the college level and that his wife was currently teaching at-Hill Top Elementary School. He complimented the board on the quality education offered in Davis District arid said, "Please treat teachers as professional colleagues, not as hired employees or grown- up children. ' ' This is the message Davis teachers were trying to give to the general public, the state legislators and Governor Bangerter through their grass-roots walk-out. Teachers are responsible, caring professionals. Traditionally, their role in American society has been one of a second-class public employee. Teachers have been asked to sacrifice much with the promise that they would be rewarded when times got better. This has happened scores of times in the past one hundred years. It isn't something that was originated five or six years ago. Times have improved but teaching conditions have not kept up with modernization we have seen in industry and ether professions. After all, anyone can teach. Isn't it true, "Those who can, do and those who can't teach?" The spontaneous demonstration probably started in Davis District because of some unique problems facing our county. We have absorbed 27 of the state's school aged population this past year. Extended day teachers instruct large numbers of students daily. For example, in one extended day fourth grade art class, there are 42 students with one teacher and no aides. Often teachers are working with a limited number of text books and inadequate supplies. Secondary classes are very large. Many conversational foreign language classes are filled with over 40 students. Year- round schools have relieved some of the problems but still these elementaries service over 700 students at one time. The needs are there. Teachers have been trying to gently, persuasively give the message that our public education system is in trouble. We have failed to listen or to treat them as professionals; Among the first teachers to express opinions favoring a walk-out at Davis High were some of the most honored, nationally recognized members of the teaching profession. pro-fession. These teachers and their colleagues have produced top students in all areas. Corine Saylor, one of the three DEA faculty representatives at Davis, is a good example of a professional. profes-sional. A visit to her science classroom, filled with experimental experimen-tal apparatus, birds, animals, plants, pictures, and other stimulating teaching aids tells you that she is a person interested inter-ested in doing the best job she caa Corine is not a radical, rabble rouser who needs to go home and get a good night's sleep. Neither are her colleagues who want better salaries, smaller class sizes and a quality education system that, at the present time, under the present conditions, cannot exist. If good is to come from the teachers' job action, all elements of our culture must follow Reverend Durler's prophetic advice, 'PJeasectreat teachers as professionals, not as hired employees or grown up children. " Now is the right time to reform Utah schools. We must allow teachers to take control of their profession and initiate the programs needed to give our kids the best education possible. possi-ble. This won't happen if we don't listen to what teachers are saying. Major changes will have to be made in our system. Adequate funding from the state legislature is the key to reform. The editor invites and welcomes letters for pub- Iication in these columns. However, they must be signed and also bear the writer's address and telephone tele-phone number. There is a limit of two per month from any one contributor and letters will not be printed without including the writer's name. The length should not exceed 500 words. |