Podcast: COVID-19 and America’s teacher crisis
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune
Teacher Andrew Van Herik protests outside Chicago Public Schools headquarters July 22.
The vast majority of Americans believe teachers don’t receive the respect—or pay—they deserve, but that won’t stop the U.S. from forcing educators to work in potential COVID-19 hotspots with barebones safety protocols. Labor exploitation is anything but a new concept, and on this episode of the “Bigger Picture,” I discuss how our treatment of teachers exemplifies systemic flaws in the economy.
Show notes:
- Israel Ministry of Health COVID-19 Data Dashboard
- Israeli Data Show School Openings Were a Disaster That Wiped Out Lockdown Gains
- Amid New Surge In Virus Cases, Israel’s Top Public Health Official Resigns
- Trump urges states to reopen schools this fall amid pandemic
- Donald Trump Speech Transcript: Safely Reopening Schools Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
- How Many Teachers Are at Risk of Serious Illness If Infected with Coronavirus?
- The Changing Age Structure of U.S. Teachers
- The Teacher Burnout Epidemic
- The Largest Labor Unions in the US
- The rise of teacher unions: A look at union impact over the years
- Answering the Call: The History of NEA
- CPI Inflation Calculator
- A Brief History of Teacher Strikes in the United States
- Teacher Strikes: 4 Common Questions
- LAUSD teachers’ strike ends. Teachers to return to classrooms Wednesday
- Strikes get “silent treatment” at NEA convention, as candidates take center stage
- Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31
- Will Unions Let Schools Reopen?
- Texas Teachers Union May Strike Over COVID-19 Precautions
- Florida Teachers Sue To Block School Coronavirus Reopening Mandate
- The Rise of Neoliberalism: The Cause of Extreme Inequality?
- A Report Card on Our Nation’s Commitment to Public Schools
- Inside the Pricey, Totally Legal World of College Consultants
- Oklahoma Governor Compares Striking Teachers To ‘A Teenage Kid That Wants A Better Car’
- About one-in-six U.S. teachers work second jobs – and not just in the summer
- Billionaires are getting even richer from the pandemic. Enough is enough
- Bernie Sanders on target saying 3 richest have as much wealth as bottom half of all Americans
- Average Teacher Salary Down 4.5 percent, NEA Report Finds
- Low Teacher Salaries 101
- Exactly How Teachers Came to Be So Underpaid in America
- Sexism is at the heart of why teachers are striking
- Teachers With Student Debt: The Struggle, The Causes And What Comes Next
- The teacher pay penalty has hit a new high
- US life expectancy has been declining. Here’s why
- Coronavirus Is the Perfect Disaster for ‘Disaster Capitalism’
- Turns Out That Trillion-Dollar Bailout Was, in Fact, Real
- We’re Dying From Coronavirus. Corporations Are Getting Rich Off It.
- Billionaires’ Pandemic Wealth Gains Burst Through $700B
- Phoenix-area teachers, districts grapple with buying PPE for the classroom
- As the World Economy Grinds to a Halt, the U.S. War Machine Churns On
- Missouri Budget Slashed By $448 Million Due To Coronavirus, Education Hardest Hit
- Governor Parson Fails to Protect Communities, Taxpayers with Mandatory Minimum Bill Signing
- Wealth, Inheritance and Social Mobility
- Various articles about Zoom meetings to discuss reopening schools
- Beloved Arizona teacher dies of coronavirus, two others sharing classroom also infected
About the Writer
Tyler Kinzy, Managing Editor-in-Chief Intern
Grade: 11
Years on Staff: 3
What's your coffee order? Caffeine is for the weak–as is sleep–next question.
What song describes you best? Me...
![Senior and theatre department officer Dennis McMorrow acts in last fall’s production of “Boeing Boeing.” This spring’s one-act plays were canceled due to school closures. “I think most of the people involved in the show, including the directors, were pretty sure that the show wasn’t going to be put on once they called off classes. They had been planning their one-acts for months now, and now they don’t have the chance to see their hard work pay off,” McMorrow said. “[The school cancellation] has harmed my senior year, but I would rather everyone close to me stay safe during this time, so while I don’t like that things are being canceled, I understand that it is necessary.”](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/IMG_7599-240x150.jpg)
![Senior and theatre department officer Dennis McMorrow acts in last fall’s production of “Boeing Boeing.” This spring’s one-act plays were canceled due to school closures. “I think most of the people involved in the show, including the directors, were pretty sure that the show wasn’t going to be put on once they called off classes. They had been planning their one-acts for months now, and now they don’t have the chance to see their hard work pay off,” McMorrow said. “[The school cancellation] has harmed my senior year, but I would rather everyone close to me stay safe during this time, so while I don’t like that things are being canceled, I understand that it is necessary.”](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/IMG_7599-475x317.jpg)
![Adjusting the different pieces of her outfit, sophomore Emily O’Connor displays her style. O’Connor often finds her clothes at thrift stores, such as Avalon Exchange. “[When I find something while thrifting] I get so excited. It’s really fun and I always try to think of what would look good with other pieces when I’m [thrifting],” O’Connor said. “[Thrifting] definitely expands your life and your wardrobe.”](https://PWestPathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/DSC_0013-1-475x317.jpg)
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