Simply Put--Israel's Longest Teachers Strike

Prime Minister Etrog Olmert finally met with Irgun Morim's Ran Erez. They lit the Chanukah Menorah together. They showed it on the TV news, but I couldn't find any pictures on Google.

One point for Olmert, since now Ran Erez can't say that Olmert refuses to meet him.

The government, which always claims it doesn't have enough money, has invested heavily in TV ads for the "reform." A young mother touts its praises, ending with:

"And now Dan's teacher will invest more/work
harder for him."

As an English EFL teacher, who teaches general grammar, because the general curriculum stinks, I find that ad highly offensive. It says that the "reform" will make the teachers work harder, meaning that under today's system they're not working hard enough.

Honestly, I don't think teachers will work harder once they realized that their pay has actually been reduced. And those who can't figure it out are too dumb to be good teachers. Teaching isn't a factory job.

I'm amazed at the amount of people who can't figure out what the government has offered. I guess my genes, as CPA's daughter, have kicked in on this:

Think of it this way.

• You're a photographer being paid $500- for five pictures a month, which is $100 per picture.


• Your boss says, I'm offering you more money, a raise in salary! You'll be getting $700 per month, but you have to give me nine pictures a month. "You take more than five pictures a month, so instead of throwing them out, I'll take four more." That means that each picture is now worth $76.66.

Now, for the big philosophical question:

Is this a raise in salary or a reduction?

Yes, you take take more than five pictures, and sometimes you sell them to others for $100 or more, but once you get only $76.66 per picture, your overall value will go down.

At first teachers were told that they'd have those "extra hours" in school for preparation, but then, it was clarified. Teachers would be required to use the hours for individual and small group tutoring and other required tasks. Also, those extra hours are mostly for "homeroom" teachers, known in Hebrew as מחנכים mechanchim, "educators." Subject teachers will not be allocated all the extra hours, and then due to the reduction in hourly pay, and insufficient need, their monthly salary will be reduced.

Fishtandei vu?

Comprendes?

Has this clarified anything for you?

thanks to na for pic info