The news hasn’t been great for American academics lately. ACT scores are at record lows, and the preview of the National Report Card shows nine-year-olds have decreased in mathematics and literacy skills.

So what is the leader of the second largest teachers union focusing her efforts on? Campaigning for Democrats hoping that her organization’s bus tour can help invigorate liberals to come out and vote to stave off the red wave that is speculated to crash on our shores in November. 

What an interesting use of her and her organization’s time; I’m not sure taking her failing message on the road like a rock star is the best move for Democrats right now. I enjoy a good bus tour so let’s see what this new venture is about.

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#whatkidsneed

The American Federation of Teachers website describes the launch of their bus tour in a very bright light:

“On a sunny autumn afternoon, AFT leaders kicked off the “#AFTvotes – what kids and communities need” bus tour…”

Of course, the President of the AFT, Randi Weingarten, was there for the launch, looking proud as ever in all the photos. She said and tweeted at the event:

“This November so much is on the ballot: our democracy and our freedoms, public education, healthcare, medicare and social security, safety from gun violence, and economic security. Who is going to help solve this and who will make it worse?”

I enjoy a good show, so I checked out the tour’s schedule to see if I might get a chance to chat with Randi about my thoughts on who can help solve our problems and who has consistently made them worse.

Unfortunately, for some reason, the tour bus isn’t scheduled to come through my home state of Virginia.

Nor is it swinging by Florida. I wonder why?

What Parents Want

The tour claims it’s all about pushing for our kids’ needs, but Randi also weighed in on what we parents want. She tweeted:

“…parents want schools to deal with the basics – reading, emotional well being, career as well as college pathways, funding, teacher shortages – not banning books or culture wars.”

I don’t know what parents Randi is speaking to, but it’s not parents like me, of which there are plenty. She doesn’t include mathematics, science, history, or critical thinking as basics.

She also illustrated what this election is about:

“This is an election of contrasts. Who is fighting for democracy? Who is tackling the concerns that keep people up at night? On the other hand, who prefers to stoke resentment, anger, and fear – rather than find solutions to our biggest problems?”

She seems to think that individuals like herself and those she supports are the ones finding solutions. So let’s take a look at that track record… shall we?

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The Worst

Public education bureaucrats and unions haven’t had such an excellent record lately regarding caring for parents and their children. ACT score averages are at the lowest since 1991, showing that this past group of graduates is less prepared than ever for higher education and adulthood.

The younger generation of students has lost literacy and mathematics aptitude to the tune of a 5% and 7% decrease, respectively. In addition, the National Education Association promoted sexually explicit education materials that detailed various sexual activities and ‘how to’ guides.

The NEA also earlier this year promoted books that applauded kneeling for the National Anthem and the cavalier use of illicit drugs by teenagers. Finally, let’s not forget that the unions pushed to keep schools closed, so much so that Randi and her ilk made sure that the CDC considered them a “thought partner.”

As Moms For Liberty co-founder Tina Descovich told our very own Brett Smith:

“Randi Weingarten is the worst thing to ever happen to public education.”

Ouch. 

A Little Late

While Randi and the gang are taking their show on the road, the Department of Education announced that they would finally take action on the learning loss our kids endured thanks to their terrible policies. The Department of Education is hosting five sessions to address the learning loss, titled ‘Raising the Bar: Literacy and Math Series to Address Academic Recovery.’

Should we consider it a coincidence that they made this announcement the week before the official release of the National Assessment of Educational Progress? How very reactive of them.

The focus of this five-part series will be to develop “strategies and programs to boost literacy and math outcomes.” I have a strategy.

Teach reading, math, science, and history. That’s a solid strategy. It should also be reasonably easy to execute. Still, they would have to divorce themselves from the special interest group money they receive. 

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#whatkidsdontneed

You have to give it to Randi; she’s good at her job, which is securing her place as a political operative and relevance in the progressive space. But her boldness is also worthy of applause.

Only Randi can claim that conservatives are sewing discontent and discord in the education system. This is coming from the same woman who said Governor DeSantis’ push for parental rights is akin to an act of war.

Speaking of war, Randi even found time to travel to Ukraine to see how Ukrainian teachers and students were holding up. After her return, she sat down with MSNBC and gushed that the Ukrainian educators were “nation builders.”

Pay attention, parents. Undoubtedly, Randi is hoping to be a nation builder, and if we aren’t careful, she will be. With the recent CDC recommendation to add the COVID vaccine to vaccination schedules, you can bet Randi will be leaning on their “thought partner” to apply as much pressure as possible on states and public education institutions to comply.

I want to start a new hashtag campaign, #whatkidsdon’tneed. Top of that list of what kids don’t need: Randi Weingarten. Kids don’t need a fat cat education bureaucrat touting social justice initiatives, racial and gender ideologies, and social-emotional learning programs. 

Kids need to learn the fundamental basics; reading, math, science, and history. Leave the rest to the parents.

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