Texas AFT | Stateweb

Spring 2013 Texas Teacher

A look at bills filed on testing, a column from Texans Advocating Meaningful Student Assessment, and observations from a decade-long fight against overtesting.

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See our campaigns where you can make a difference.

Budget Cuts Survey

See results from four surveys on the impacts of $5.4 billion in state budget cuts to public education.

Weingarten Announces New AFT Leadership Team

Two longtime union activists and education reformers are assuming new roles in AFT's leadership, AFT president Randi Weingarten announced on Sept. 9.

AFT Praises President Obama's Bold Jobs Plan

President Obama's bold plan—the American Jobs Act—is the right antidote to help solve our persistent economic problems, AFT president Randi Weingarten says.

Ohio Vote Is a Big Victory for the Middle Class

The citizens of Ohio took back their state with a historic vote on Nov. 8 to repeal Senate Bill 5. The vote, which marks the first time that the collective bargaining rights of public employees have been upheld on a statewide ballot, sends a clear signal that Ohioans will not sit idly by while politicians scapegoat hard-working public employees for an economic crisis they did not create.

Report Looks at Transition Issues for Youngest Students

Many studies over the years have documented the need for smoother transitions from prekindergarten to the elementary level. A new AFT report reinforces that conclusion—and does it in a manner that puts frontline voices at the heart of the dialogue.

New AFL-CIO site shows soaring CEO compensation

The AFL-CIO has launched its 2012 AFL-CIO Executive Paywatch site—now called CEO Pay and the 99%—which includes the most comprehensive data available on 2011 executive pay. All the data available is searchable by industry, by state and by the top 100 highest-paid CEOs.

"Raising the Bar—Aligning and Elevating Teacher Preparation and the Teaching Profession," issued by the AFT Teacher Preparation Task Force, urges a move toward a systemic approach to preparing teachers and a more rigorous threshold to ensure that every teacher is ready to teach. The report says that all future teachers should be required to meet a universal and rigorous bar that gauges mastery of subject-matter knowledge, much like the bar exam lawyers must take before they can enter the legal profession.