Confronting Union Bosses
Most of education in America is a mess. The cost has skyrocketed, but performance is flat. Why? One big reason is that the government monopoly, aka the BLOB, makes it nearly impossible to fire a bad teacher.
In the classic 2012 investigative report by John Stossel, he confronted union leaders, such as Washington, D.C., boss Nathan Saunders, who opposed judging teachers by student test results. “I know my kids are learning when I look in their eyes,” he said. New Jersey union leader Joseph Del Grosso opposed charter schools: “Over my dead body, they’re gonna come here.” When Saunders and Del Grosso were kids, they attended private schools, but at the time of these interviews, they vehemently opposed vouchers. This is a common phenomenon amongst members of the BLOB.
The scenario has been played and replayed by union bosses over the years and is still prevalent today. In this Stossel classic, he brings to light the problems facing both sides of the issue, which are still at the forefront today.
