WEBVTT 1 00:00:27.920 --> 00:00:30.879 Hello, and welcome to this week's episode of The Tribe, 2 00:00:30.960 --> 00:00:35.479 cast live from the Austin Central Library. We're so excited 3 00:00:35.479 --> 00:00:39.560 to be taking this show on the road. I'm Eleanor Klibanoff, 4 00:00:39.679 --> 00:00:43.320 law and politics reporter at the Texas Tribune, joined as 5 00:00:43.320 --> 00:00:46.560 always by my co host, editor in chief Matthew Watkins. 6 00:00:46.920 --> 00:00:48.359 Hello, Eleanor, Hello. 7 00:00:48.960 --> 00:00:50.880 This is quite weird to be out in the real world. 8 00:00:51.079 --> 00:00:53.079 Now we will actually be able to see people not 9 00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:54.439 laughing at our jokes live. 10 00:00:54.719 --> 00:00:56.640 Not gonna be good for our egos, I'll tell you that. 11 00:00:58.240 --> 00:00:58.560 Well. 12 00:00:58.600 --> 00:01:01.159 You know, we're very excited for this conversation because education 13 00:01:01.320 --> 00:01:04.000 has been at the center of the political conversation for 14 00:01:04.040 --> 00:01:07.439 the last few months, with state leaders making a lot 15 00:01:07.480 --> 00:01:10.599 of political hay out of what they think teachers and 16 00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:13.680 students need. But most of these lawmakers have not been 17 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:17.439 inside a classroom since probably their high school graduation, or 18 00:01:17.840 --> 00:01:20.239 perhaps a little earlier than that for some of them, 19 00:01:21.040 --> 00:01:24.400 so to understand the view from inside the classroom. We're 20 00:01:24.480 --> 00:01:28.200 joined by the Texas tribunes K through twelve report Texas 21 00:01:28.200 --> 00:01:31.920 tribunes K twelve reporter Jaden Edison. Jaden, thanks for joining us. 22 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:37.840 Thank you your fans, appreciate you for having me. 23 00:01:37.959 --> 00:01:43.760 Yeah, And Chris Mahailsik, who teaches advanced placement environmental science 24 00:01:43.799 --> 00:01:47.120 at Westwood High School in round Rock and most importantly 25 00:01:47.599 --> 00:01:50.599 is the twenty twenty five TX t O t Y 26 00:01:51.640 --> 00:01:55.000 or the Texas Teacher of the Year. Chris, thanks for. 27 00:01:55.000 --> 00:01:59.079 Joining us, Thank you for having me. So excited to 28 00:01:59.120 --> 00:01:59.439 be here. 29 00:02:00.079 --> 00:02:04.760 He's been saying that all day, by the way, Yeah, yeah, yeah. 30 00:02:04.280 --> 00:02:06.480 It's part of being the Teacher of the Year being 31 00:02:06.519 --> 00:02:09.479 able to handle unruly crowds. Can we rely on. 32 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:12.879 You if yeah, I can make sure everybody stays calm 33 00:02:13.360 --> 00:02:15.039 use your teacher voice, yes. 34 00:02:15.199 --> 00:02:16.280 A crowdsurfer things. 35 00:02:16.719 --> 00:02:20.680 Yeah, well, Christine, really, thank you for joining us and 36 00:02:20.719 --> 00:02:22.039 congratulations on this honor. 37 00:02:22.080 --> 00:02:24.000 I mean to start and you know, tell. 38 00:02:23.879 --> 00:02:25.039 Us a little bit about what it means to even 39 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:26.759 be the Teacher of the Year and sort of what 40 00:02:26.759 --> 00:02:27.719 what that means to you. 41 00:02:28.280 --> 00:02:30.199 So being a Teacher of the Year for a state 42 00:02:30.319 --> 00:02:34.080 is really about being of service to the educators of 43 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:34.479 your state. 44 00:02:34.639 --> 00:02:36.000 We call it our year of service. 45 00:02:36.439 --> 00:02:40.319 So I've been talking to people, I've been This is 46 00:02:40.360 --> 00:02:42.360 my first real big podcast though, So I'm excited to 47 00:02:42.719 --> 00:02:46.879 be here and really just amplifying teacher voice and student 48 00:02:46.960 --> 00:02:48.159 voice across Texas. 49 00:02:48.759 --> 00:02:50.319 Great, well, thank you so much for that. And as 50 00:02:50.319 --> 00:02:52.280 I understand it, you also get to now compete at 51 00:02:52.280 --> 00:02:54.680 the National Teacher of the Year competition. 52 00:02:54.960 --> 00:02:56.840 I was in the running, you were in the runn 53 00:02:56.879 --> 00:03:00.319 but Ashley cross in one. She's the Pennsylvania Texas Teacher 54 00:03:00.319 --> 00:03:00.639 of the Year. 55 00:03:00.680 --> 00:03:01.439 She's phenomenal. 56 00:03:01.759 --> 00:03:07.240 Damn it, actually Crossing, we are coming for you. 57 00:03:07.280 --> 00:03:09.759 Oh she's pretty nice. No, I'm sure she's amazing. 58 00:03:11.919 --> 00:03:13.680 Well, you know, we want to get into the details 59 00:03:13.719 --> 00:03:17.919 of what this big legislative session for education will mean 60 00:03:18.039 --> 00:03:22.400 for teachers. You know, eight point five billion dollars flowing 61 00:03:22.439 --> 00:03:25.639 into public schools, and Chris maybe even sort of start 62 00:03:25.680 --> 00:03:27.560 us off actually and give us sort of the state 63 00:03:27.560 --> 00:03:30.479 of affairs. You know, how you've seen you know, what 64 00:03:30.520 --> 00:03:32.080 we've heard over the last couple of months has been 65 00:03:32.560 --> 00:03:34.840 you know, decades of underfunding of public schools. How have 66 00:03:34.879 --> 00:03:39.120 you seen that impact you, teachers like you and students statewide. 67 00:03:39.560 --> 00:03:41.599 I think the biggest thing that we've noticed, especially the 68 00:03:41.639 --> 00:03:44.080 last two years after funding was not past the last 69 00:03:44.120 --> 00:03:47.400 legislative session, is a huge increase in class sizes. So 70 00:03:48.280 --> 00:03:50.560 two years ago, our science classes used to be capped 71 00:03:50.560 --> 00:03:53.719 at twenty eight students, and we'd cap our freshman biology 72 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:55.639 at twenty four because they're kind of rowdy they need 73 00:03:55.639 --> 00:03:59.520 more help. And then last not this last school year, 74 00:03:59.520 --> 00:04:01.520 but the year before were our cap was at thirty. 75 00:04:01.639 --> 00:04:03.400 And then this last school year, the twenty four to 76 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:05.800 twenty five, our cap was at thirty four. So in 77 00:04:05.800 --> 00:04:08.080 the last two years alone, we've had, you know, six 78 00:04:08.159 --> 00:04:11.280 more students per classroom, and that means lots of extra grading. 79 00:04:12.240 --> 00:04:13.879 You know, you have to be very mindful to keep 80 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:17.199 things safe in a science lab, you know, really lots 81 00:04:17.199 --> 00:04:18.839 of impact on teacher workload. 82 00:04:19.639 --> 00:04:23.680 So you had thirty four people in a class teaching biology. 83 00:04:24.399 --> 00:04:27.399 Yeah, our biology, we tried to cap our freshman biology 84 00:04:27.399 --> 00:04:29.920 class is a little smaller. They were at thirty. But yeah, 85 00:04:30.040 --> 00:04:32.759 my fourth block class, who I loved. They are amazing humans, 86 00:04:32.759 --> 00:04:36.839 but there are a lot of large athlete senior boys 87 00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:38.879 in there, and it was crowded. My classroom is not 88 00:04:38.879 --> 00:04:42.480 built for thirty four, you know, large humans right all 89 00:04:42.480 --> 00:04:46.959 experiencing the high school live. That's a lot, yeah, a lot. 90 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:48.879 You know, you gotta be mindful with the science safety 91 00:04:48.920 --> 00:04:49.480 with that many. 92 00:04:49.319 --> 00:04:50.800 Folks, difficultiesers that pose. 93 00:04:50.800 --> 00:04:52.720 I'm curious, like in terms of you know, when you 94 00:04:52.759 --> 00:04:55.439 have smaller us bigger, I imagine maybe more difficult to 95 00:04:55.480 --> 00:04:57.639 have individualized kind of attention, oh. 96 00:04:57.560 --> 00:05:01.600 One hundred percent, the ability to really give deep individual 97 00:05:01.639 --> 00:05:04.480 feedback to thirty four students times. You know, my five 98 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:07.759 classes of AP environmental science versus twenty eight kids. You know, 99 00:05:07.800 --> 00:05:09.759 that's a whole extra section of kids that we're trying to, 100 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:12.240 you know, still give the very best possible education we can. 101 00:05:12.319 --> 00:05:15.240 To an English teacher at my school put it really well. 102 00:05:15.279 --> 00:05:17.160 He's like, you know, I used to teach when I 103 00:05:17.199 --> 00:05:17.680 give essays. 104 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:19.240 It used to take me seven hours to grade my 105 00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:21.399 AP English essays, and now with the larger classizes, it 106 00:05:21.399 --> 00:05:22.279 takes me nine and a half. 107 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:22.800 Wow. 108 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:26.759 Yeah, jayden As I understand it. At least according to our legislators, 109 00:05:26.839 --> 00:05:29.439 this is all going to be fixed. Now everything's resolved. 110 00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:32.920 Eight point five billion dollars. Tell us a little bit 111 00:05:32.920 --> 00:05:35.279 about you know what where that money is going to, 112 00:05:35.439 --> 00:05:37.040 and you know how far is that going to take 113 00:05:37.120 --> 00:05:40.439 us to restore what some of this underfunding has done. 114 00:05:40.720 --> 00:05:40.959 Yeah. 115 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:44.199 So I've been talking to superintendents and teachers all week, 116 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:47.199 and I can tell you based off those conversations there's 117 00:05:47.240 --> 00:05:50.199 still a lot of work to be done. You know, 118 00:05:50.240 --> 00:05:52.759 it is eight and a half billion dollars and you know, 119 00:05:52.879 --> 00:05:55.279 really targeted investments, right. I think what makes this bill 120 00:05:55.360 --> 00:06:00.560 different from years past is the difference between flexibility and 121 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:03.839 you know, restrictions on how districts can use the funding 122 00:06:03.879 --> 00:06:06.879 and so particularly you know, you see a huge chunk 123 00:06:06.920 --> 00:06:10.160 of the bill specifically focused on teacher pay, right. I know, 124 00:06:10.480 --> 00:06:13.839 Governor Greg Abbott and other uh you know leaders in 125 00:06:13.879 --> 00:06:16.560 the legislature have made that a top priority, right in 126 00:06:16.639 --> 00:06:19.040 terms of recognizing that obviously you know, who's in the 127 00:06:19.040 --> 00:06:23.800 classroom greatly has an outsized impact on student success as 128 00:06:23.800 --> 00:06:26.600 it relates specifically, you know to the classroom. I mean, 129 00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:29.319 we're going to see you know, a huge overhaul in 130 00:06:29.360 --> 00:06:32.240 the way that Texas fund special education, which is going 131 00:06:32.319 --> 00:06:34.160 to be huge. Those will going to effect the next 132 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:38.199 school year, which the Commissioner, Mike Marath will have you know, uh, 133 00:06:38.279 --> 00:06:40.759 you know time you know between the bill going into 134 00:06:40.759 --> 00:06:43.240 effect September one this year and and the following year 135 00:06:43.240 --> 00:06:44.519 to kind of craft what that system is going to 136 00:06:44.600 --> 00:06:47.680 look like. A lot of investment in educator preparation because 137 00:06:47.720 --> 00:06:51.319 of the rise and uncertified teachers. Actually, you know, we'll 138 00:06:51.360 --> 00:06:54.720 see that teachers without formal classroom training will actually be 139 00:06:54.759 --> 00:06:58.879 phased out of foundational you know classes, so social studies, science, 140 00:06:58.920 --> 00:07:01.600 you know, math, reading by the year of twenty thirty. 141 00:07:02.319 --> 00:07:04.160 You know, there's investment in school safety. So it's a 142 00:07:04.199 --> 00:07:06.920 pretty comprehensibile I mean, it's two hundred and thirty one pages. 143 00:07:06.959 --> 00:07:09.000 Someone fact check me if I'm pretty sure I'm right. 144 00:07:09.319 --> 00:07:14.480 Two hundred and thirty one page of legislation here, yeah, right. 145 00:07:14.519 --> 00:07:15.680 But going back to. 146 00:07:15.639 --> 00:07:17.360 It, I think the biggest thing though, is, you know, 147 00:07:17.399 --> 00:07:21.079 I think I think districts are generally grateful for the money, 148 00:07:21.959 --> 00:07:26.360 though I do think that they also went into it 149 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:29.279 hoping for more flexibility than what they ultimately ended up with. 150 00:07:30.439 --> 00:07:34.959 I'm quoting from the razier hand Texas briefing that came 151 00:07:34.959 --> 00:07:38.040 after that eight point five billion dollars is not even 152 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:40.920 half of the nineteen point five billion dollars that would 153 00:07:40.920 --> 00:07:45.120 have been needed simply to maintain schools purchasing power since 154 00:07:45.279 --> 00:07:49.879 twenty nineteen, and so I think it is simultaneously true 155 00:07:50.199 --> 00:07:56.000 that this is the biggest individual kind of cash infusion 156 00:07:56.240 --> 00:08:00.519 growth in school funding in the state, while also possibly 157 00:08:00.560 --> 00:08:03.560 true that a lot of people in the education community 158 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:05.800 are saying there still needs to be more that needs 159 00:08:05.839 --> 00:08:07.759 to be done here, and I think also talking about 160 00:08:07.759 --> 00:08:09.720 how a lot of that money is prescriptive. Right, It's 161 00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:14.560 been an interesting political shift over the time that I've 162 00:08:14.560 --> 00:08:17.920 been involved in covering Texas politics and the way that 163 00:08:17.959 --> 00:08:20.240 a lot of our state leaders have talked about education 164 00:08:20.399 --> 00:08:24.120 and educators as well. You know, there was a lot 165 00:08:24.120 --> 00:08:28.000 of kind of ranker and concerns being raised by superintendents 166 00:08:28.040 --> 00:08:30.519 and other people in the education community about the lack 167 00:08:30.560 --> 00:08:34.159 of funding or the need for funding, and you saw lawmakers, 168 00:08:34.320 --> 00:08:36.799 you know, in some cases, kind of turn the blame 169 00:08:36.840 --> 00:08:39.840 back at the superintendents and saying, you know, this isn't 170 00:08:39.840 --> 00:08:42.759 the result of us not funding you enough. This is 171 00:08:42.799 --> 00:08:45.960 the result of you not being responsible with money that 172 00:08:46.080 --> 00:08:49.399 was coming in, including money that was designated for COVID 173 00:08:49.519 --> 00:08:52.080 and things like that. And then you know, you also 174 00:08:52.279 --> 00:08:55.360 just see I think a much more of a willingness 175 00:08:55.759 --> 00:09:00.840 of lawmakers to sort of question the effectiveness or whether 176 00:09:00.919 --> 00:09:03.679 even you should send your kids to public schools. 177 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:03.879 Right. 178 00:09:03.919 --> 00:09:06.200 We'll get to vouchers here in a little bit, but 179 00:09:06.279 --> 00:09:09.559 I think you could maybe see that reflected a little 180 00:09:09.559 --> 00:09:12.120 bit and how this wasn't just here's an eight point 181 00:09:12.159 --> 00:09:14.840 five billion dollar blank check to the school districts, just 182 00:09:14.879 --> 00:09:18.279 spend as you see fit. But here's how you're gonna 183 00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:20.120 spend this money. You're gonna spend it on teacher pay. 184 00:09:20.200 --> 00:09:23.039 I'm sure you probably are okay with that idea, but 185 00:09:23.480 --> 00:09:27.759 crazy and various other things as opposed to just increasing 186 00:09:27.919 --> 00:09:31.559 you know, as the popular term, the basic allotment, right, 187 00:09:31.639 --> 00:09:33.399 which would have allowed people to spend that money the 188 00:09:33.399 --> 00:09:35.200 way they way they chose. 189 00:09:35.679 --> 00:09:37.879 And I think the big thing to note with the 190 00:09:38.440 --> 00:09:42.000 flexibility component, as much as it has to do specifically 191 00:09:42.039 --> 00:09:45.960 obviously with you know, classroom instruction and you know raises, 192 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:49.440 a big thing is operational costs, which we know, you know, 193 00:09:49.480 --> 00:09:52.840 since twenty nineteen, the last comprehensive education funding bill, we've 194 00:09:52.840 --> 00:09:55.519 seen inflation go through the roof. And so you know, 195 00:09:55.559 --> 00:09:58.919 the basic allotment, this kind of flexible funding mechanism that 196 00:09:59.000 --> 00:10:02.120 districts call them for is just as much to try 197 00:10:02.200 --> 00:10:04.759 to keep up and pay for bus fuel, right to 198 00:10:04.799 --> 00:10:06.799 make sure you know, they have you know, money to 199 00:10:06.879 --> 00:10:09.399 address the NEEDE specific to their campuses, and kind of 200 00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:11.600 what their argument is is that you know, when you're 201 00:10:11.600 --> 00:10:14.559 giving US specific funding. You're assuming that we all have 202 00:10:14.600 --> 00:10:17.519 the same issues, right as opposed to you know, this 203 00:10:17.639 --> 00:10:22.440 district in West Texas has significant differences from what's happening 204 00:10:22.480 --> 00:10:25.120 in Houston is ISD, right, and so it's been a 205 00:10:25.120 --> 00:10:27.519 really interesting thing to kind of observe kind of the 206 00:10:28.080 --> 00:10:29.879 you know, the kind of back and forth over the 207 00:10:29.879 --> 00:10:30.639 course of the session. 208 00:10:31.879 --> 00:10:35.480 Can we talk a little bit about teacher recruitment, retention 209 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:37.720 and pay here. I mean, that's a big part of 210 00:10:37.840 --> 00:10:43.039 HB two, the funding bill. There is there's two different 211 00:10:43.039 --> 00:10:45.399 factors here. There is the teacher pay raises, but there's 212 00:10:45.440 --> 00:10:50.279 also this effort to address what has been a concern 213 00:10:50.519 --> 00:10:54.519 in the education community about teachers coming in who did 214 00:10:54.559 --> 00:10:57.840 not have the sort of traditional training to become teachers 215 00:10:57.840 --> 00:11:01.519 and everything like that. I'm curious in your experience whether 216 00:11:02.559 --> 00:11:05.960 that was something you noticed as a teacher, that more 217 00:11:06.080 --> 00:11:10.120 uncertified teachers were coming in, and if so, was it 218 00:11:10.200 --> 00:11:13.480 a problem. How did you experience or witness that as 219 00:11:13.600 --> 00:11:15.639 as an educator out there in the field. 220 00:11:16.120 --> 00:11:18.279 So I'm also the Science department chare in our school, 221 00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:20.720 and our school is very big on teacher leadership. So 222 00:11:20.879 --> 00:11:23.120 I've been in a lot of interviews in the last 223 00:11:23.159 --> 00:11:25.440 four years of folks coming in wanting to be a teacher, 224 00:11:25.919 --> 00:11:29.559 and we have been forced to hire somebody that's not 225 00:11:29.559 --> 00:11:32.159 been certified. We had somebody leave two years ago two 226 00:11:32.159 --> 00:11:34.720 weeks before school started to be an assistant principle, and 227 00:11:34.759 --> 00:11:36.360 we had to fill that position. And it is very 228 00:11:36.399 --> 00:11:39.120 hard to hire anybody at all two weeks before school starts, 229 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:42.080 so we had a long term sub for six weeks 230 00:11:42.080 --> 00:11:44.440 and we hired somebody that was uncertified. She had a 231 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:48.080 PhD in biology, and you know, she was fabulous with 232 00:11:48.120 --> 00:11:52.080 the content, but not having any classroom experience, classroom management planning, 233 00:11:52.639 --> 00:11:55.159 she did not She did not serve our teenagers, she 234 00:11:55.240 --> 00:11:57.360 did not engage with our students, she did not. 235 00:11:57.320 --> 00:11:58.279 Serve our teenagers. 236 00:11:58.399 --> 00:12:00.320 So she did not make it through the years. Hire 237 00:12:00.320 --> 00:12:03.080 someone else. We had the same thing happened last year. 238 00:12:03.080 --> 00:12:05.120 We had somebody leave to be an instructional coach. And 239 00:12:05.200 --> 00:12:07.279 I'm always happy when people can move up in education, 240 00:12:07.399 --> 00:12:10.080 but it's tough to find people. In July and we 241 00:12:10.120 --> 00:12:12.399 had somebody that was not uncertified, had not been in 242 00:12:12.399 --> 00:12:15.600 a classroom before. It didn't last very long. So there 243 00:12:15.679 --> 00:12:19.080 is huge value in having those folks come in that 244 00:12:19.159 --> 00:12:22.279 are certified that have gone through a program where they've 245 00:12:22.440 --> 00:12:25.440 interacted with teenagers before they get to us, and then 246 00:12:25.440 --> 00:12:28.000 it puts a huge burden on the teachers that have 247 00:12:28.039 --> 00:12:30.240 to work and mentor them and train them. Our mentor 248 00:12:30.320 --> 00:12:32.759 teachers were often spending two of their five off blocks 249 00:12:32.799 --> 00:12:35.279 a week directly working with teachers trying to get them 250 00:12:35.360 --> 00:12:38.000 up to speed and mentorship is amazing, but that was 251 00:12:38.159 --> 00:12:41.360 extensive mentorship because they just didn't have any experience with teenagers. 252 00:12:41.360 --> 00:12:45.279 So from my perspective, I want a good certified teacher 253 00:12:45.320 --> 00:12:49.919 in every classroom in Texas, and passing this and hopefully 254 00:12:49.960 --> 00:12:53.919 strengthening our pipeline will really help, I think well. 255 00:12:53.759 --> 00:12:55.120 And I want to talk about the other side of that, 256 00:12:55.159 --> 00:12:59.440 which is like retaining qualified teachers. You've been in the 257 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:03.000 field twenty three years. I'm sure you've probably would not 258 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:05.240 have been Texas Teacher of the Year your first year, 259 00:13:05.600 --> 00:13:09.399 like oh no, oh no, Like what is the benefit 260 00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:11.320 of having teachers who have been in this for a 261 00:13:11.320 --> 00:13:13.639 long time? I mean, for in your specific classroom, but 262 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:15.679 also you're talking about being becoming a mentor teacher. 263 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:19.440 Oh the things that you learn along the way, you know, 264 00:13:19.480 --> 00:13:22.840 even I started teaching ap environmental science eight years I 265 00:13:22.840 --> 00:13:24.639 think into my career and even my first year I 266 00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:26.559 was kind of horrible then too. Even though I knew 267 00:13:26.600 --> 00:13:29.519 how to manage students and work with them, I forgot 268 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:31.200 two of the six major air pollutants. 269 00:13:31.279 --> 00:13:32.600 Yeah, when I was teaching them. 270 00:13:32.639 --> 00:13:33.759 So my, oh my god. 271 00:13:38.840 --> 00:13:43.879 Now Pennsylvania they went back and checked and checked the 272 00:13:43.919 --> 00:13:44.360 record and. 273 00:13:44.440 --> 00:13:46.480 Pennsylvania managed all six of them. 274 00:13:48.519 --> 00:13:50.919 But no, there's there's so much value in getting better 275 00:13:51.000 --> 00:13:53.240 in your job and becoming a master teacher. You learn 276 00:13:53.279 --> 00:13:56.120 where the students misconceptions are. You learn how to help 277 00:13:56.200 --> 00:13:58.919 other people in your field grow. Uh, those are the 278 00:13:58.919 --> 00:14:00.799 ones that are running our major clubs, right, like our 279 00:14:00.879 --> 00:14:03.919 National Honor Society, that type of thing. So retention, I 280 00:14:03.960 --> 00:14:06.080 think there's been a lot of focus on like let's 281 00:14:06.080 --> 00:14:08.480 just get any human into the classroom, and I think 282 00:14:08.519 --> 00:14:10.240 really the focus needs to be how do we retain 283 00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:10.919 our good teachers? 284 00:14:10.919 --> 00:14:12.960 How do we keep them the race helps? What else 285 00:14:13.000 --> 00:14:13.600 do we need to do? 286 00:14:13.799 --> 00:14:16.080 Which is what ultimately created where we're at right now, 287 00:14:16.159 --> 00:14:17.799 right is that you know, you had so many teachers 288 00:14:17.799 --> 00:14:20.639 that left the profession, and so you know, I think 289 00:14:20.720 --> 00:14:22.519 you know what we found is that you know, through 290 00:14:22.679 --> 00:14:26.720 kind of particular legislation passed, you know, intending for one thing, 291 00:14:26.879 --> 00:14:29.159 ended up becoming a lifeline for many districts, you know, 292 00:14:29.240 --> 00:14:31.480 in terms of now you know, I'm able to bring 293 00:14:31.519 --> 00:14:35.279 in teachers because you know, qualified teachers are leaving the classroom. 294 00:14:35.320 --> 00:14:37.639 So it's a really it's an interesting It's interesting that 295 00:14:37.679 --> 00:14:40.120 this is a focus for lawmakers because in a lot 296 00:14:40.120 --> 00:14:44.000 of ways, you know, it was a problem created that 297 00:14:44.000 --> 00:14:47.279 they created, but almost it was unintended, you know, given 298 00:14:47.320 --> 00:14:50.440 the law that passed that allowed kind of the exemptions 299 00:14:51.159 --> 00:14:52.279 you know, for certification. 300 00:14:52.440 --> 00:14:54.000 So well, and one of the things I found we 301 00:14:54.039 --> 00:14:56.799 did an entire episode of the trip cast about uncertified 302 00:14:56.840 --> 00:14:58.519 teachers and that sort of issue, and one of the 303 00:14:58.519 --> 00:15:01.240 things I found so interesting from that is like teachers 304 00:15:01.279 --> 00:15:04.840 who maybe would have otherwise gotten certified, who are now saying, well, 305 00:15:04.919 --> 00:15:06.519 if I get paid the same and I don't have 306 00:15:06.600 --> 00:15:08.480 to do all this training, like I'll just go in 307 00:15:08.519 --> 00:15:10.279 the classroom and figure it out as I go. So 308 00:15:10.320 --> 00:15:13.559 it's a disincentive even to teachers who might want to 309 00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:18.360 get certified if that's not required. So it briefly walks 310 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:21.679 through like what the provision is, like they'll have to phase. 311 00:15:21.360 --> 00:15:23.720 This out right, they'll phase it out, So that'll be 312 00:15:23.799 --> 00:15:27.000 by by twenty thirty that'll be I think, I forget 313 00:15:27.120 --> 00:15:29.519 the specificate, but it'll be twenty thirty when the commissioner 314 00:15:29.799 --> 00:15:33.039 when he can no longer allow exceptions to so it'll 315 00:15:33.039 --> 00:15:35.120 be a gradual kind of phase out. But the other 316 00:15:35.159 --> 00:15:38.200 important thing to notice that now you know, teachers will 317 00:15:38.240 --> 00:15:40.159 be able to be compensated or excuse me, teacher candidates 318 00:15:40.200 --> 00:15:42.360 will be able to be compensated for going through high 319 00:15:42.480 --> 00:15:46.679 quality preparation programs, right, whether that be you know, this 320 00:15:46.679 --> 00:15:49.200 this new kind of apprenticeship model that has come around 321 00:15:49.240 --> 00:15:50.879 and gained a lot of tracks in recent years, which 322 00:15:50.919 --> 00:15:53.720 basically I've actually visited one of these in huddle. They're 323 00:15:53.799 --> 00:15:55.399 kind of really cool when you go up and see them. 324 00:15:55.399 --> 00:15:57.720 It's basically, you know, you have these these teacher candidates 325 00:15:57.720 --> 00:15:59.639 who spend you know, considered amount of time in the 326 00:15:59.679 --> 00:16:02.679 class room working with a veteran teacher kind of learning 327 00:16:02.759 --> 00:16:05.080 under their wing. And so what they're trying to do 328 00:16:05.200 --> 00:16:07.559 again is to gradually kind of phase out these teachers 329 00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:11.279 specifically again to clarify in core kind of these core 330 00:16:11.320 --> 00:16:16.840 foundational subjects reading, mad science, social studies, while also incentivizing 331 00:16:17.720 --> 00:16:22.080 teachers to go through quality training programs and get them 332 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:23.720 on a pathway to certification. 333 00:16:26.039 --> 00:16:28.679 And then the other thing is to keep them, as 334 00:16:28.679 --> 00:16:31.120 you already mentioned, right, and a big part of that 335 00:16:31.320 --> 00:16:33.399 is teacher raises. 336 00:16:33.519 --> 00:16:33.679 Right. 337 00:16:33.720 --> 00:16:37.159 And so I'm reading this from a story that Jaden wrote, 338 00:16:37.279 --> 00:16:39.559 so you know, properly attributing here. 339 00:16:41.720 --> 00:16:42.000 Public. 340 00:16:42.679 --> 00:16:49.879 Yeah, so districts in uh within school teachers with teachers 341 00:16:49.879 --> 00:16:53.000 in school districts with more than five thousand students with 342 00:16:53.120 --> 00:16:55.279 three to four years experience get a twenty five hundred 343 00:16:55.320 --> 00:16:58.279 dollars raise. Five thousand dollar rais for five or more 344 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:01.960 years experience that's in increases to four thousand and eight 345 00:17:02.000 --> 00:17:04.680 thousand if you're in a smaller district, more likely a 346 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:08.640 rural district where attracting teachers is more challenging. So my 347 00:17:08.759 --> 00:17:11.079 question to you is, I mean, I know this probably 348 00:17:11.119 --> 00:17:15.640 happened after school is out, and you know, but what 349 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:19.200 is the feeling among the teachers you talk to? What 350 00:17:19.319 --> 00:17:21.960 is your feeling about this? Is this enough? Is this 351 00:17:22.079 --> 00:17:26.640 going to change things in terms of keeping teachers around 352 00:17:26.720 --> 00:17:29.000 or incentivizing people to join the profession. 353 00:17:30.359 --> 00:17:33.960 I think it feels a little bit like just some respect, 354 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:36.440 some respect for the profession, like, we realize you are 355 00:17:36.480 --> 00:17:37.279 not being paid. 356 00:17:38.759 --> 00:17:41.480 You know, a lot of teachers have side hustle jobs. 357 00:17:41.480 --> 00:17:44.279 We great essays in the summer, We mentor a lot 358 00:17:44.319 --> 00:17:47.640 of teachers in math, especially tutor So it feels respectful, 359 00:17:47.640 --> 00:17:50.519 like we're acknowledging that we haven't had a teacher raise 360 00:17:50.519 --> 00:17:50.920 in a while. 361 00:17:50.960 --> 00:17:52.119 Our district gives teacher. 362 00:17:51.920 --> 00:17:53.720 Raises, but this is probably the biggest raise I've ever 363 00:17:53.720 --> 00:17:55.920 gotten as an educator in my twenty three years. 364 00:17:56.160 --> 00:17:57.960 And once, yeah, I. 365 00:17:57.920 --> 00:18:01.039 Was talking to it, actually a teacher today in a district. 366 00:18:01.279 --> 00:18:04.079 They're about eight hundred and thirty students total in their district, 367 00:18:04.160 --> 00:18:08.079 so very rural community. And it was interesting because she's 368 00:18:08.119 --> 00:18:10.240 been teaching for like twenty four years as well, so 369 00:18:10.519 --> 00:18:12.440 you know, we were talking and she's like, you know, 370 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:16.079 this all sounds great, but I'll believe it whenever my 371 00:18:16.160 --> 00:18:21.799 paycheck actually increases. So yeah, it's really interesting. But to me, 372 00:18:21.839 --> 00:18:24.400 it was funny. I laughed, but it highlighted kind of 373 00:18:25.160 --> 00:18:27.759 somewhat of this kind of distrust. I mean, you've gone, 374 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:29.440 you know, so long with the kind of back and 375 00:18:29.480 --> 00:18:33.319 forth between the ISDS and lawmakers about you know, adequate funding, 376 00:18:33.559 --> 00:18:35.599 and that I think some people, teachers and maybe you 377 00:18:35.599 --> 00:18:37.440 could speak to this, are kind of just fatigued and 378 00:18:37.480 --> 00:18:39.680 are just like, Hey, if it's going to happen, it'll happen. 379 00:18:39.880 --> 00:18:42.599 When when my superintendent or principal tells me I'm getting 380 00:18:42.599 --> 00:18:44.279 the raise, I'll believe it. But for right now, I'm 381 00:18:44.319 --> 00:18:46.559 just gonna sit back and keep doing. 382 00:18:46.359 --> 00:18:46.839 What I'm doing. 383 00:18:48.200 --> 00:18:49.079 Yeah, I think certainly. 384 00:18:49.160 --> 00:18:52.160 I think, Like I remember, I mean two years ago 385 00:18:52.200 --> 00:18:54.319 when the funding sort of fell apart, that there was 386 00:18:54.319 --> 00:18:56.519 a lot of sort of teachers who were like I 387 00:18:56.559 --> 00:18:58.039 was sort of banking on that. I kind of thought 388 00:18:58.039 --> 00:19:00.319 that was happening. I would imagine this time around owned 389 00:19:00.599 --> 00:19:03.279 a lot more skepticism and a lot more wait wait 390 00:19:03.319 --> 00:19:03.839 till I see it. 391 00:19:04.039 --> 00:19:06.200 Yeah, for sure, I think with the way the bill 392 00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:08.920 is structured, you know, it'll be quite some time before 393 00:19:08.960 --> 00:19:11.519 I think the story's actually written on house build too, 394 00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:14.480 because there are these kind of new funding mechanisms. One, 395 00:19:14.839 --> 00:19:16.480 I think districts have to actually get the money in 396 00:19:16.519 --> 00:19:19.279 their hands and kind of realize, you know, understand, kind 397 00:19:19.279 --> 00:19:21.079 of you know what's allow here? How can I use 398 00:19:21.079 --> 00:19:21.680 this money there? 399 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:21.920 Right? 400 00:19:21.960 --> 00:19:24.680 Because of the different restrictions and whatnot. So I think 401 00:19:24.720 --> 00:19:27.680