AFT-Speeches

Shanker talks about removing disruptive children from the classroom, considering whether or not students should have due process rights. This is a rough edited version.

Al Shanker laments the Reagan Administration's education policies and implores the Democratic Party to refute them in its platform. Specific policies he deplores are tax exemptions on private school tuition, a voucher program, and merit pay for teachers. Shanker urges the Democrats to hold two goals for education: giving aid to people who need it and improving the quality of education. He mentions that raising teacher salaries is important in improving education quality, while noting that much of that policy will be set at the state level.

Al Shanker begins by highlighting the AFT's growth and success since the last convention. He then discusses the upcoming presidential election between Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale and details why he is optimistic for a democratic win. He further argues for the AFT and labor's involvement in Mondale's campaign. Next, Shanker turns to education reform, stating that the AFT has led the discussion on innovative school reform while the NEA has remained traditional in its responses to bad reports of school status.  read more »