Where is Bostons vision for the new teachers contract?
With the current agreement between the Boston Teachers Union and Boston Public Schools expiring at the end of August, the issue of secrecy around the contract takes on a particular urgency: Theres an acting mayor in charge and a hot mayoral race with six major candidates; the Boston School Committee lacks two members; and superintendent Brenda Cassellius  on the job for the last two years  has had a rough tenure . Negotiations between a union representing public school teachers and government officials should be as transparent as possible  after all, its students and parents who will have to live with whatever deal the two sides hammer out. But in Bostons recent history, the teachers contract has been typically worked out in closed-door sessions. Advertisement  Yet there has been barely any public debate about what a new teachers contract should include, at least from the districts perspective. The BTU has been more forthcoming about its vision, conducting open parent and student forums and surveying members about priorities for the new agreement. Both the School Committee and BPSs silence on their contract expectations is deafening. I think its a failure of our political system that we allow such an important issue to be decided behind closed doors and not in the light of day [without] understanding the implications, said John Mudd, a pubic education advocate who is part of the School Committees task force on English-language learners. These are public issues.  The district said, via a spokesperson, that negotiations have not started with the union but that BPS officials are confident the process will begin shortly. Theres nothing preventing the district from outlining and releasing a vision  assuming that it has one. The stakes couldnt be higher. Right before the pandemic hit last year, the state had just completed a harsh assessment of BPSs chronic problems and recommended urgent action. It found, among many faults, that BPS often funnels students with disabilities and language barriers to specific schools. Those challenges were naturally compounded by the pandemic. But now the district is flush with federal relief funds totaling roughly $400 million. Advertisement  According to Jessica Tang, the BTUs president, the union has advocated for more open bargaining and, during the last round of contract negotiations, released a public document of several pages that outlined its objectives. The BTU plans to do the same this time around. For starters, strengthening school leaders ability to hire the teachers that they need, a policy commonly referred to as mutual consent. Similarly, improving the diversity of teachers, something the BTU prioritizes, is crucial. Its not just racial and ethnic diversity, but linguistic diversity as well. In the context of educating English-language learners, teacher assignment is an issue, said Mudd. Nearly half of BPSs students have a native language other than English and roughly a third are classified as ELLs. We have Spanish-speaking paraprofessionals or teachers in classes with ELLs whose native language is Chinese. Thats a contract issue. Indeed, nearly everything a contract covers has broader relevance. How teachers are hired and fired affects the quality of instruction; how much theyre paid affects how much money is available for other priorities. Advertisement  The public may not be able to sit at the final negotiations, but at the very least, parents, students, and other education stakeholders should know what BPS seeks in a new contract. Editorials represent the views of the Boston Globe Editorial Board. Follow us on Twitter at @GlobeOpinion.