A STATEMENT FROM THE BATS LEADERSHIP TEAM 

Our hearts go out to the families and friends of the people murdered in the Emanuel African Methodist (AME) Church in Charleston, SC, and to their community. We share in their grief. America’s long history of racism is still with us, and it remains deadly to our communities of color. We must all commit to ending racism. Our thoughts are with Charleston during this tragic time."

WE HOLD THE POWER TO VETO!!!

By:  Jeanette Deutermann, Founder of Long Island Opt Out

Here's where we stand. Legislators voted against children by passing Cuomo's revenge policy with the bill. They tried to pass the buck to the regents to fix their mess, and 6 of the regents voted to break this new law and vote with their conscience. It was not the majority, but it was enough to make a HUGE statement that the board is now ALMOST equally divided. It also showed loud and clear that the current law is so screwed up that our own BOR came very close to voting historically to refuse to regulate a morally unjust law. Our disappointment must not overshadow that action. A large and growing group of superintendents have stepped in front of their state organizations, and come out swinging not for themselves, but for our children. Union groups like ST Caucus and MORE, are challenging the current UFT/NYSUT/AFT leadership and speaking for TRUE rank and file members and putting kids at the forefront. We must continue to add fuel to those flames and turn it into a bonfire. Coalitions and opposition are growing in the most important places, with parents leading the way and defining what is important. The 4 month extension on the new APPR regulations was important because it takes the enacting of the new APPR law into the next legislative session. Guess what? Next session is an election year. This means our legislators will be stumbling over each other to be the hero and save the day. APPR changes will not take place until September 2016. As it stands now, 50% will be based on state test scores. If a district choses a local assessment, it will be 25% and 25%. We will continue to get more information on the local component (kind of tests, who sets target scores etc...) Through all of these regulation changes, remember: WE HOLD THE POWER TO VETO!!! Through opting out, we will veto Cuomo's new APPR plan. We will veto CC test prep. We will veto high stakes testing. When we veto, the system will fall. We are the last line of defense between Cuomo, the reformers and privatizers, and our children. WE WILL HOLD THE LINE!!!

You can follow Jeanette on Twitter @JeanetteDeut

Join LIOO at https://www.facebook.com/groups/Longislandoptout/

Follow LIOO on twitter at @LIOptOut

An Applause As No Other!

by Larry Proffitt, Member of the BAT Leadership Team

Today I attended the high school graduation of my niece in Wilmington, NC. A large class sat through the routine of a ceremony always held precious by so many. When the time finally came for what the graduates had awaited, the room was greeted by thunderous ovations for the first to wheel, walk and stumble upon the stage. These were those with goals as any other student, but they had achieved to their best abilities against the exceptional circumstances which were a part of their everyday lives. These were the special needs students, and their triumphs were recognized wholeheartedly by not only the guests in attendance, but by those who knew them best, their graduating classmates.

It was AN APPLAUSE AS NO OTHER! 

Many children were celebrated on this day and were applauded by their families and friends, but there was no applause to measure against the applause of that first row of students. Their every move and expression sent electricity through the room and all contained within. The help and recognition this group of students received from their classmates moved me to tears. They were tears of happiness for those being appreciated so openly, but they also contained a hint of sadness as I realized sitting there, that our government no longer appreciates our students as individual nor exceptional. But for now, I will bask in their glory as I absorb the applause they received, an applause as no other!

The Only Teaching Evaluation That Matters

by Steven Singer, member of the BAT Leadership Team

originally posted on his blog: https://gadflyonthewallblog.wordpress.com/2015/06/13/the-only-teaching-evaluation-that-matters/

“Yes, my writing got a lot better than what I was, and I love writing now. And you pushed me to do better. Not a lot of teachers push their students, some teachers don’t care about their students.”



One of my 8th graders wrote that to me on the last day of school.

I had asked her class to fill out an anonymous survey about my teaching. I said that all year I get to grade THEM, but this was their chance to grade ME.

I made sure to explain that they didn’t need to put their names on it. This would not be graded. Spelling and grammar didn’t count. The only thing I wanted was honesty.

I told them I wouldn’t personally collect the surveys. They should NOT hand them to me; they should put them in a pile on the desk by the door when they leave. I promised I wouldn’t even look at what they’d written until class was over. That way they could feel free to write whatever they wanted. If I did something bad or there was some way I could improve, I wanted them to tell me. If I did something exceptionally well, they should tell me that, too.

“Please help me become a better teacher,” I said.

As an 8th grade public school educator, I get evaluated a lot. I’ve spent countless hours gathering evidence that I’m “proficient” at my job.

I’ve had to endure formal observations, informal observations, H.E.A.T. observations, Student Learning Objectives (SLOs), written explanations of specific lessons with appeals to which Common Core standards I would be teaching – and there always seems to be a new one added to this list next year.

But I’ve been giving a version of this simple student survey to my classes on the last day of school for over a decade.

It’s not something I’m required to do. I don’t share the results with administration. The responses don’t go on file, increase my pay or get recorded in the newspaper. They don’t become part of the district’s ranking in the Business Times. No one is going to withhold funding from my district or close my building and convert it into a charter school based on these results. No one ever will be on television decrying the state of public education referencing these surveys. They are low stakes, class-based, teacher-centered and personal.
But I do this because I think it actually gives me useful information. I really want to know what my students think. That’s one of the things that truly drives my instruction. Not politically motivated standards monetarily incentivized and adopted before they were even completely written. Not standardized tests that measure little more than parental income. Not the latest fad handed down by the superintendent. Not a threat shouted at us through an email or at a faculty meeting.

No. I’m motivated by my kids in the classroom and the answer to the question, “Have I helped you learn?”

The survey is quite simple really. It’s two-sided.

On the front page are 5 multiple choice questions:

1) The amount of written homework I had in this class was                             in my other classes.

A) much more than
B) Somewhat more than
C) The same as
D) Somewhat less than
E) Much less than

2) The amount of reading I had in this class was                                in my other classes.

A) much more than
B) Somewhat more than
C) The same as
D) Somewhat less than
E) Much less than

3) The amount of studying I did for this class was                                 in my other classes.

A) much more than
B) Somewhat more than
C) The same as
D) Somewhat less than
E) Much less than

4) I received                                    instruction and comments on my written work.

A) much more than enough
B) Somewhat more than enough
C) Just enough
D) Somewhat less than enough
E) Much less than enough

5) In this class, I learned                                         in my other classes.

A) much more than
B) Somewhat more than
C) The same as
D) Somewhat less than
E) Much less than

When it comes to homework, students almost always say I give too much. The majority (68%) gave me an A or B.

I only require about an hour of extra-class work a week. I don’t think that’s too bad. However, many teachers give less or none. I go back and forth on the value of homework, myself, but I know that once my students get to 9th grade, they’ll have a tremendous load of it. I figure if I don’t prepare them for that, I’m doing them a disservice. So an avalanche of (one hour a week) homework it remains.

Likewise, kids often say I give a lot of reading. A language arts class should give a substantial amount of reading. So I’m glad most kids (69%) give me an A or B. I require my students to read one self-selected book a month. I don’t think that’s too burdensome. If the book is too tough or boring – hey! You picked it! Pick another one. I also provide them with 15 minutes per day to read in class.

Studying is not something I emphasize. But students are almost evenly divided whether I require too much, just enough or too little. I’m not big on having kids memorize something and then regurgitate that on a test. I’d rather spend time getting them to take good notes that they can use on the test. I’m a big fan of open notes or open book tests. But I hardly ever use the word “Test.” I give frequent short quizzes. I think tests (and even quizzes) are limited evaluation tools. I’d much rather assign a multi-day project. That tells me much more than a brief snapshot of what students were thinking at any one given point in time.

I do assign a lot of essays so I’m always anxious to know if I’ve given enough written feedback. The research seems to show that if you mark every error on an essay, you get diminishing returns. You discourage students. So instead I try to focus on a few trouble areas we’ve already discussed per essay. And students seem to appreciate it. Most of my kids (85%) gave me an A or B or C in this area.

Then comes the cumulative question. How much did you learn? I used to have my classes assign me a letter grade A-E. However, answers were all over the place. When I compared the results with surveys from students who had revealed their identities, I found that kids usually gave me the same grade they received in my class. A-students gave me As. C-students gave me Cs, and so on.

When I changed the question to “how much have you learned?” the results changed drastically. Most students (84%) gave me an A or B. Yes, that’s the result I’m aiming for, but I think it’s a more honest answer, too. It doesn’t focus on grades. It focuses on each child’s assessment of his or her own progress. That’s really what I want to know.

But this side of the survey still provides very limited answers. It is multiple choice, after all. It’s useful for a brief overview but not very deep.

The second side of my questionnaire only has two open-ended queries. Students can write as much or as little as they want to the following questions:

6) What did your teacher do especially well this year to help you succeed?

7) In what areas can your teacher improve his/her instruction?

To be honest, when looking at the surveys, I usually skip right to these questions. This is what I want to see – not a bunch of alphabet soup. I want to know what they really think.

What have I done well? Here are some answers from this year’s kids:

-He understood the learning abilities of certain students and helped them to the best of his ability.



-You made it hard so that we would have to work for the grade.



-Before we could ask him for help, he asked us if we needed help. He’d help everyone, even the person who didn’t ask for it.



-He was really good at explaining and pushed me to never give up. Therefore, Mr. Singer is one of my favorite teachers.



-Well, I didn’t like as much work as he was giving us, but then I understood he was trying to help us with our grades and trying to make our grades higher.



-Always explained stuff good in class. He was always giving good instructions.



-He helped me as much as I needed and made things easier to prepare for high school.



-He helped me understand the concept of simile and metaphor (which I understand now)


 
-What my teacher especially helped me do to succeed is writing essays.



I was just floored by these responses. Talk about data I can use! But there was one answer that stood out above even these:

-He helped me learn what I needed to do and he helped me by being a mockingbird because I think he tried his best to teach me what I needed to be taught.



No, she wasn’t literally calling me a bird. She was relating me to our last novel – To Kill a Mockingbird. In the text, some characters are innocent victims. They try to help others but come under fire because of it. The author, Harper Lee, symbolizes them as “mockingbirds.” These include: Tom Robinson, the black man wrongly accused of rape; Atticus Finch, the lawyer standing up for a fair trial despite social criticism; Arthur “Boo” Radely, the recluse who saved lives at the expense of his privacy.

And here my sweet little student was including ME in this venerable list!

That choked me up a bit I can tell you.

When it comes to areas for improvement, my students aren’t the most forthcoming. Answers include:

-I don’t think he needs to because he already does his best to teach us kids what we need to be taught and his instruction is easy to understand.


 
-None. He was the best teacher! :)



I appreciate the approbation but I wouldn’t mind constructive criticism. I do get complaints about the amount of homework and writing I assign. I also get requests for more free time.

I think if I wasn’t in the room when students took the survey, I might get more criticism. Ideally, I would leave the room for the last 15 minutes of the class, and kids could fill out their surveys. However, this is impractical. I don’t see how I could arrange it given the current climate, lack of subs and skeleton crew staff.
These surveys have given me much to think about over the summer. Maybe I should try to include more group work in next year’s class. Maybe I should revisit the homework situation.

But as June turns to July and then August, I know I’ll be thinking about all that happened this school year.
Some kids came in and out of shelters and juvenile detention. Some were present at a shooting at the local mall. Parents and I had to fight administration over valuing standardized test scores over classroom grades for student placement. The School board enacted a pointless student uniform policy. Students were demoralized and angry over national racial tensions involving Michael Brown, Eric Garner and the Baltimore uprising. Teachers had an active shooter drill for the first time as part of our professional development.

But most of all I’ll think about my students – well, no longer mine – off to the high school and bigger, better things.

For a brief moment I was an important part of their lives and they were an important part of mine. I’ll forget their names. (It’s like my mind is making space for the new ones I’ll have to learn.) But I’ll never forget their struggles and triumphs.

It’s easy to lose sight with all the privatizers and standardizers trying to dismantle our public schools. But even with all the political nonsense, selfishness and small-mindedness, teaching is the best job in the world.

Yes, it really is!

Every day I get a chance to positively impact dozens of lives!

I am truly blessed.

That’s what these surveys tell me.

And that’s why they’re the only evaluation that really matters.

---

NOTE: Here is a copy of the survey I use in class.
Student Survey

The One About Data, Numbers and Truth

By:  Dr. Mitchell Robinson

Originally posted on his blog  http://www.mitchellrobinson.net/2015/06/13/the-one-about-data-numbers-and-truth/


                   

Much has been made by the corporate reform community about how poorly American students do on the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) tests. According to the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development, which administers the exams, "the United States performed below average in mathematics in 2012 and is ranked 27th. Performance in reading and science are both close to the OECD average. The United States ranks 17 in reading...and 20 in science." Now, if these were "apples to apples" comparisons, we would be well advised to be concerned. But they aren't; and the reformers know it, don't care, and are more than willing to use this misleading data to advance their agenda.


What the reformers don't share--because it would not support their agenda of failing schools, bad teachers, disengaged students, uninvested parents, and greedy unions--is that more American students take these exams than do students in other countries, and that US students from schools with low rates of poverty do extremely well--better than students in most other countries.


(An important caveat here: I don’t think that test scores are a terribly meaningful way to assess what students know and can do, but it’s the data we are used to seeing. The idea that we need standardized test results to tell us what our children know is one of the biggest lies told by the reformers. Teachers know a LOT about our students: we know their strengths and weaknesses, we know about their siblings and families, we know when they are in trouble, and we know what they are thinking and feeling. Only persons who have never taught would believe that we need standardized test scores to let us know how our students are doing. The truth is that these test scores are among the LEAST meaningful things we know about our students, and no amount of hype and reformer drama is going to change that.)



The issue here is that the PISA test scores are usually not disaggregated--that is, the scores are not parsed out by poverty rates, but instead are all lumped together. Many in the corporate reform community are fond of reporting these international scores without sharing the fact that US poverty rates are nearly 30%, while countries like Finland are at 5% or less.


There is a strong correlation (not causation) between SES and test scores (and zip code and test scores, for that matter)--which is not to say that wealthy kids are smarter than poor kids. They aren't. Its just that kids with more financial resources have more opportunities and advantages than their less -advantaged peers. 


It's important to be clear when reporting these stats: US schools are not "failing," and in fact, when we provide our kids and schools with adequate resources they "compete globally" just fine (although that is not our goal as teachers). It's also important to remember that less than 7% of the differences in student learning are attributable to in-school factors, such as teacher quality--with more than 90% of the difference being a function of out-of-school factors, like test prep tutors, private music lessons and the resources to purchase instruments, after school sports, and access to travel, concerts, books, and movies. The reformers like to say that these things don't matter, but teachers know that they do--and we want nothing more than for all of our students to have access to schools with rich and vibrant music and art programs, athletics,  school nurses, librarians, psychologists and counselors, and all of the other advantages their peers in the suburbs enjoy and from which they benefit.



Here's the Truth...


So, the next time that someone tells you that American students are not "competing globally," and that our "failing schools" are a threat to our national defense, our economy, and our very future as a nation, please share these disaggregated stats from the most recent PISA tests. Because when we look at US students from schools with free or reduced lunch rates lower than 10%, here’s how American kids do—for comparison’s sake, Finland’s rankings are also included:


Science literacy

U.S. schools with less than 10% free/reduced – score=556 [1st in the world]

Finland – ranked 4th in the world

Reading literacy

U.S. schools with less than 10% free/reduced – score=559 [1st in the world]

Finland – ranked 5th in the world

Mathematics literacy

U.S. schools with less than 10% free/reduced – score=540 [5th in the world]

FInland – ranked 11th in the world

Then, do what my students would do, and…<drops the mic>

Happy 2nd Birthday BATs!

BATs is 2 TODAY!! For 2 years we have been fighting the good fight for children and public education. We have become a clearinghouse for teachers and parents on how teachers, public education, and public education children are being assaulted around the country. Here is our year in review. Please add anything you feel that BATs had a direct impact on and we look forward to year 3 where we will win the fight to win back our schools!

BATs held a successful rally outside the USDOE in the summer of 2014. It was a full day of song, dance, and truth telling. BATs ended the rally with a meeting that Secretary Arne Duncan attended and, in which, we got to speak our truth to him. BATs clearly told him his policies were hurting kids, communities, and teachers.

BATS ran for office in 2014. Ohio BAT Janet Garrett ran for Congress. TN BAT Gloria Johnson ran for Tennessee House of Representatives and NJ BAT Allan Cannon also ran for Congress. In Florida we have Shannon Russell and Darcy Addo throwing their hat in the political ring. TN Bats won the leadership of the Knox County Education Association. 3 BATs also won top leadership of The Hawaii State Teachers Association. Gus Morales, a member of the BATs Leadership Team, won the presidency of Holyoke Teachers Association in Massachusetts. Mitchell Robinson ran for state superintendent of education in Michigan.

BATs proudly formed a formal caucus in NEA who will be showing their power this July at the NEA RA in Orlando. AFT President Randi Weingarten and AFT honored the work of BATs in the summer of 2014. Weingarten included "Be a little badass" in her AFT speech. Working with AFT, BATs also spearheaded a successful survey on teacher workplace stress and strongly called on the federal government to conduct a formal scientific research project on the topic.

As an organization, BATs had a powerful year. Based on the idea and drive of Aixa Rodriguez, BATs created DREAM. The mission of DREAM is to “Contribute to a conversation about how to address the many issues that impact education through social justice actions, and teaching methods. Under the umbrella of DREAM, come together to unpack attitudes about race, class, privilege, homophobia, disabilities, ageism, sexism, and immigration. Inform other members about events and issues in your region so we can understand how these topics on a national level.”

BATs grieved the loss of children and teachers nationwide. BATs stepped up to donate to Francis Scott Key elementary school in Philly after a teacher there sadly committed suicide. BAT leadership team member Dr. Denisha Jones led discussions on our page regarding white privilege and racism. BATs made strong public statements denouncing the shooting of unarmed people of color and will continue to support the Black Lives Matter movement across the nation.

BATs are proud to have over 250 people volunteer to run the infrastructure of BATs. This includes our state pages, our specialty pages, Pinterest, Twitter, website, blog, and our amazing Meme Team. Our Pinterest receives over 20,000 visitors a month and our blog has over ½ million hits. The BAT twitter feed went over 20,000 followers and there are now BAT twitter feeds in every state. Many of our state pages also have smaller regional pages. Florida has 2 subgroups (Miami-Dade and Orange), New York has 2 subgroups (Buffalo and NYC BATs), Tennessee BATs has 2 subgroups (Memphis and Nashville), and California also has 1 subgroup (BAY BATs). Our International BATs fight GERM worldwide and BATs have been involved in a few actions to stop Global Education Reform. Our BAT Haven continues to support those BATs that are struggling and provides a sanctuary for support.

When it comes to activism and art NO ONE beats BATs. Led by our amazing Meme team, BATs produces some of the most memorable statements on social media. Several of our memes have been shared by the millions. One Meme by Sue Goncarovs posted on our fan page of Diane Ravitch's words had a worldwide reach of over 2.3 million people. Blogger, artist, and filmmaker Steven Singer spearheaded Badass Films https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_TXD1uksoI&index=11...  Badass Films is a compilation of what BATs fight on a daily basis. BAT art work and activism are all over social media due to our amazing Meme Team and artistic talent of many BATs!

On the state level, and to quote amazing Chicago activist Brotha Jitu, “BATs are Everywhere.” BATs stood in solidarity as BATs around the nation went out on strike in Reynoldsburg, Ohio and Washington State (to name a few). We also stood in strong solidarity with teachers who were murdered and jailed across the globe.

Our Tennessee BATs were powerhouses in 2014. Tennessee Bats held legislative planning meetings and partnered with other advocacy groups for some legislative victories. Tennessee Bats met with Senator Alexander through TEA. Tennessee Bats organized against rural charters that were voted down. All Tennessee Bats' work is collaborative with Momma Bears and TREE. Tennessee Bats joined with 12 other groups to bring a petition against testing and transparency. TN BATs along with TREE and MommaBears met with Diane Ravitch in Nashville and she spoke to a large audience about the detriment of corporate education reform. Gloria Johnson was a state representative in TN who promoted community schools. She spoke out loud and proud against Ed Reforms and is a proud BAT. The TN governor backed her opponent on the last vote and she was, sadly, not reelected.
Florida BATs conducted a successful protest against Jeb Bush and led, in Lee County, a powerful parent movement against High Stakes Testing.

On the west coast we have the amazing Oregon, Washington, and California BATs. Oregon BATs helped get a strong opt out bill through the Oregon House and Senate. Washington State (WA) BATs conducted a protest outside the Gates Foundation that was massive and covered by national media. WA BATs and WEA held rolling walkouts against legislators who refuse to fund public education and reduce class size. California BAT Debbie Silverman Resnick’s speech, written by fellow CA BAT Juan Caballero, got a thunderous standing ovation at the California Teachers Association state council! BATs mobilized with ONE DAY's notice, and with the amazing help of Julian Vasquez-Heilig, to stop a TFA takeover in Santa Ana Unified. The board decided TFA was too controversial and denied their contract.

In the middle of our nation, BATs were part of the pushback against the state education commissioner in Missouri who wanted to privatize the Kansas City MO School District. We pushed that both on BATs and in MO BATs, and we won! BATs went on a massive email campaign to the Utah's state school board to complain about non-educators being considered for state superintendent and were successful in keeping out non-educators for this position. BATs mobilized on social media and on the ground to get Chuy Garcia elected in Chicago. Although he lost, his 46% of the vote has sent ripples across the political landscape. In Ohio, BAT Stacie Starr won a car as Teacher of the Year but announced earlier this year she was quitting teaching due to the abusive testing and environment to which her special education students were subjected.  Dawn Randall’s emotional video about abusive testing went viral, and the Ohio BATs continue to mobilize via  a strong administration team.

On the east coast members of NY BATs worked in the Opt Out movement which saw over 300,000 parents refuse testing. Leadership Team Member Aixa Rodriguez worked closely with the NYC Let 'em Play which fights to get equitable sports programs for children of color. In Pennsylvannia, our PA BATs worked hard to get Wolfe elected Governor and to stop the privatization of York City!

A huge BAT salute to our teachers who stood up to abusive test in 2014 - Their names are Julianna Krueger Dauble, Judy Dotson, Susan DuFresne ,Becca Ritchie, Susan Bowles, and Beth Dimino.

BATs also got to hobnob with the stars. On social media BATs called Whoopi Goldberg on the carpet for her statements on The View about teacher tenure. BATs also put Dax Shepard in his place when he supported privatizer Marshall Tuck for California state superintendent of education. BATs were honored to have Louis CK, Montel Williams, Rosie O’Donnell acknowledge their support of public education and the work of BATs on Twitter.

BATs presented on panels across the nation. Some panels that we presented on were Network for Public Education in Brooklyn, Network for Public Education in Chicago, United Opt Out in Florida, NYCORE in NYC, Working Families Party in Philadelphia, Netroots in Detroit, RootsCamp in Washington D.C., and members of the BATs Leadership Team marched in the Black Lives Matter march in Washington D.C.,NYC, and Oklahoma in December.

BATs were published extensively in 2014. BATs were published in the Washington Post, Huffington Post, LA Progressive, Progressive Magazine, Time, and on Diane Ravitch’s blog in 2014. Bloggers and Writers like Dr. Denisha Jones, Dr. Yohuru Williams, Steven Singer, Dr. Mitchell Robinson, Kathleen Jeskey, and Karen Wolfe continue to speak truth to power in their writings. BATs continue to be interviewed for such national circulations as the New York Times, Time Magazine, Progressive Magazine, and The Washington Post. BATs were published in 2 amazing books on activism; Jesse Hagopian’s More Than A Score and Resisting Reform by Kjersti VanSlyke-Briggs, Elizabeth Bloom, and Danielle Boudet.

BATs took to the airwaves with a strong presence and firm voice for kids in 2014. BATs leadership team member Dr. Denisha Jones appeared on B.U.S. (BATs, United Opt Out, and SOS) a monthly radio show on Education Town Hall. BATS were on the Rick Smith Show and are happy to report he will live stream the BATs Teacher Congress http://thericksmithshow.podbean.com/.../baltimoreuprisin.../ BATs appear regularly, and proudly sponsor, Just Let Me Teach – Indiana Talks with Justin Oakley.

BATs awarded our first Book Scholarship to Chastity Berrios an education major at Fairfield University.  It was an honor to give her an extra $400 to put towards purchase of her books for college. 

On Twitter BATs hijacked Arne Duncan’s #whatif hashtag with snarky comments like #whatif he funded education.  Based on the idea from the ever creative BAT Leadership Team member Aixa Rodriguez, BATs swarmed with her to set Duncan straight!

Perhaps our greatest accomplishment in 2014 is that we continue to give support to teachers across the nation and provide them with a clearinghouse of what is happening to public education across the nation. We continue to fight for equality and equity in both society and education. We look forward to 2015 and to our continued effort to win back great public education for all our children, and return classrooms back to teachers and their communities.

Because of BATs
By:  Brittany Alexander, Ohio BAT Admin and BAT Leadership Team Member

Because of BATs,
I am still teaching

Because of BATs,
I swarm into action for
colleagues around our country

Because of BATs,
I am more involved in my unions

Because of BATs,
I know I am not alone

Because of BATs,
I continue to learn and grow

Because of BATs,
I feel hopeful

Because of BATs,
I feel less afraid

Because of BATs,
I know we will win for our children

Because of BATs,
I will not quit