New Member Tips K-12 — January From mea.org
• Don't Think It Can't Happen to You • Market a Professional Image • New Pupil Protection Laws may affect you • Who's Who and What's What in the MEA • A History Lesson • Why Do I Need My Association Membership? • Help Site

Don't Think It Can't Happen to You

When you decided to become a teacher, you probably never thought you could become the target of a news story. Yet, year after year, new teachers like you are accused of some type of inappropriate relationship with a student and the media takes the news and runs with it.

Of course, in some cases, the allegations are true, but in many cases, they're not. By the time an investigation is completed and the truth is known, it may be too late to save your reputation.

Take the steps necessary to protect your good name, your reputation and your career. The local association and your Uniserv director are always ready to offer you legal assistance. One of the benefits of being a member of the Michigan Education Association is the $1 million dollars in liability insurance you have should you be accused of a criminal offense while performing your duties as a teacher.

It's sad that we have to worry about our relationship with our students but we live in a society that watches carefully what kind of a role model you are. Try these strategies to avoid liability:

• Maintain your personal space. Young children are eager to show their affection and want to touch you, stroke your hair or just hang on you for attention. Older students may interpret your behavior or actions as an invitation to a romantic relationship. You can't let students invade your space. Set the tone that you will respect the students' space also.

• Watch what you say. Choose your words carefully. An innocent remark or comment can become a suggestive "come on" when students report the incident to parents. The whole context of what you said may become so distorted that you're now in a battle to save your career and reputation.

• Don't discuss sexually explicit topics. Don't be drawn into conversations regarding such topics, song lyrics, jokes or movies. Unless it's a part of the school-adopted curriculum, try to stop those conversations in your presence.

• Don't be alone with students. Avoid being alone with a student. Make sure your can be seen by another adult. After school detention, keeping a student in from recess, make-up tests and tutoring should be scheduled so that there are other adults in view. They can serve as corroborating witnesses should a student accuse you of improper behavior.

• Don't become "friends" with your students. Maintain the line that you are their teacher. When students blur this line, they can become too comfortable with you and make assumptions about their relationship with you.

• Don't socialize with students. Being seen in public with a student can lead to people assuming the worst.

• Don't ever think being falsely accused can't happen to you. It can.

Market a Professional Image

Market a professional image.

The new year is a time for new beginnings. It can be a time for setting a new tone for you and your classroom. Think of it as a clean slate. Your behavior and your interaction with the entire school community can define your image and impact the image of the profession.

Below are some time-tested positive image-makers. Sift through your own personality and knowledge about the community to choose strategies that will work for you.

• Let parents know that you believe that a working partnership with them is best for students. Communicate this in a letter, e-mail, newsletter, etc.

• Send messages home about what parents can do to support learning. Use letters, notes, e-mail messages, newsletters or a Web page.

1. Mail a postcard home once a week to a parent with a positive note.
2. Call at least one parent a week to share a positive comment about their child.
3. Invite parents to join the class and help with school projects.

• Invent ways to give students practical experience with writing. They can write to community leaders about a classroom project that ties into a community organization or activity. They can write letters suggesting a way to deal with a community issue.

• Carry your work around with you. You can grade papers or plan lessons while waiting at the doctor, the laundromat or at the car repair shop. This not only helps you get your work done but it also sends the message that you care about what you do.

• Send home a list of good books for parents to consider buying. Find out when student birthdays are. At the beginning of each month, send a note home to parents suggesting books that can be purchased as birthday presents. This works at holiday time too.

• Send letters of welcome to new students. You could put together a survival kit for new students who transfer to your class in the middle of the year. Include class rules, homework expectations, a list of what has already been covered in your class and what topics will be covered the rest of the year.

• Surround yourself with personal items (within reason). Family pictures, plants and books reflect who you are as an individual, not just a teacher.

• Do business in the community in which you teach. Frequent businesses that your students' families own.

• Design a business card that you can give to businesses and parents. Use the same design on stationery so that when you send notes to parents they can identify you as their child's teacher.

• Prepare a teacher marketing booklet. Go to www.mea.org; click on "Press Room - Press Releases, Features, Position Papers"; scroll down to "Toot Your Own Horn" There you will find instructions and a template to create your own personal marketing booklet to give out at open houses or parent conferences.

Sense and Sensitivity

Recent events in our world have brought the issue of accepting people who are different right into your classroom. Like most classrooms, yours probably is a tapestry of different cultures, backgrounds, religions and socio-economic situations. In addition the topics of gender bias and life style choices have also become a part of your education world. Acknowledging these differences is part of your students' learning experience and also a part of your career development.

Think back to your earliest experiences with people outside your own cultural or ethnic group. The more experience or knowledge you had about a different culture or religion, the more you were able to appreciate the differences. Help your students gain that knowledge with these tips for dealing with diversity.

• Learn about who is in your classroom. You don't want to invade anyone's privacy, but being informed can avoid unintentional slights.

• Many times cultural differences mean religious differences. Being sensitive to religious holidays when planning lessons and assignments fosters understanding.

• Use the diversity in your classroom as a teachable moment. Have students study the culture, religion and history of a particular group. Bulletin board displays, projects and presentations can send a positive message.

• Vary your teaching style and lesson planning to accommodate different learning styles.

• Take a look at the curriculum materials you use. Look for ethnic and culture bias.

• Promote healthy and effective interaction among diverse groups when it comes to lessons, decision-making and problem solving.

• Don't allow derogatory language, teasing or bullying. Consider it another teachable moment of tolerance and respect. Connect to www.nea.org for resources on these topics.

• Avoid gender bias. Make your expectations the same for all students. Be conscious of activities, lessons and projects that stereotype or segregate students.

• Remember-the goal of diversity is acceptance, support and appreciation of our similarities and differences.

• Whatever you do to promote a multicultural environment for your students helps prepare them for the future.

• Talk to your mentor, association reps and colleagues about this topic and see how they handle the issue.

Who's Who and What's What in the MEA
 

• More than 1,000 local associations are affiliated with MEA.

• Lu Battaglieri was elected MEA president in 1999.

• Iris Salters assumed the position of vice president in September 1999.

• Steve Cook became secretary-treasurer in 1991. Prior to that he was an ESP member in the Lansing School District.

• Delegates who are elected by locals to attend two annual Representative Assemblies (RAs) each year make MEA policies.

• In between the fall and spring RAs, the MEA Board of Directors meets six times a year to make policy.

• The nine members of the MEA Executive Committee meet regularly to conduct business.

• MEA Legal Services, Uniserv, Government Affairs, Research, Professional Development and Human Rights, ESP/Organizing/Higher Education/Bargaining, Communications and Political Action provide services to members. If you need help, let your association rep and leadership know.

A History Lesson
 

Want to know how you-the Michigan Education Association (MEA)-came to be? Read on!

• MEA came into being on October 12, 1852.

• MEA was first established as the Michigan State Teachers Association (MSTA) with about 200 teachers as its first members. Dues were 25 cents.

• Dramatic growth in membership called for the MSTA to establish a regional and district system that is still in existence today. There was also a statewide movement to improve the profession. Issues like sick leave, retirement, higher salaries, credit unions, tenure and standards were reviewed.

• In 1926, MSTA officially became the Michigan Education Association.

• In 1929, MEA built its own headquarters in Lansing.

• By 1958, MEA had grown to 48,000 members and became the fifth largest education association in the nation. MEA adopted an intensive legislation program designed to improve the welfare of the profession.

• In 1964, MEA moved to its present headquarters in East Lansing.

• Public Act 379, the Public Employment Relations Act (PERA) was enacted in 1965 by the Legislature giving school employees the right to bargain with their employers as equals under the law. MEA became a force for teacher rights, welfare and professional concerns.

• In 1965, membership stood at 130,000, which included teachers and support personnel.

• MEA works to improve the working conditions for teachers and support personnel. MEA local units in more than 500 Michigan school districts are bargaining master contracts with the help of MEA staff and resources.

• In 1974-75, an MEA task force recommended the formation of an organization to represent educational support personnel (ESP). In 1975, the MEA Representative Assembly (RA) endorsed the recommendation and the Michigan Educational Support Personnel Association (MESPA) became a reality.

• MESPA affiliated with NEA in 1981 and effective on May 19, 1984, ESP members joined MEA. Combining the groups created one of the largest single unions dealing with public education.

• MEA currently represents more than 160,000 teachers, support personnel and higher education employees.

Why Do I Need My Association Membership?

A lot of money comes out of your checks as dues to pay for your membership in the NEA, MEA and your local association. So you may be asking, "Why do I need the MEA?" Read on.

• You need your association as a source for professional development, career assistance and educational leadership. It is the MEA that can provide assistance in planning meaningful professional development experiences. MEA provides these monthly tips to help you make your first years successful. And it's the MEA that keeps you up-to-date with news of the best teaching practices.

• You need your association to promote a positive image of school employees and education. Currently MEA is involved with other educational groups to promote adequate funding for schools.

• You need your association to lobby for better educational legislation. The legislators in Lansing determine everything that happens in education and MEA is a strong force in making decisions about what's good for teachers.

• You need your association if you are charged with some criminal activity connected with your job. As a member of MEA/NEA you are eligible for $1 million professional liability insurance coverage. This coverage provides you with protection if you're sued as a result of doing your job.

• You need your association to help you receive discounts and other financial benefits. MEA membership gives you access to all kinds of insurance, credit cards, travel programs and retirement benefits. Once you register online, your membership card opens up a world of discounts and services. Click on www.mea.org to learn more. Check with your association rep or president if you haven't gotten your membership card yet.

• You need your association to bargain for you. Your association has access to the time, money and extensive legal knowledge needed to bargain a contract that addresses the issues of new teachers. An individual is not as strong as a total association and all of its resources. Your Uniserv director is the field representative for this service.

Help!

Web sites

• MEA has joined with other education groups to lobby for legislation that will resolve the education funding problem. Go to www.mea.org to find out more about this K-16 Coalition and its efforts to address a $2.06 billion revenue shortfall in public funding for Michigan’s schools.

• What’s a teacher worth? That’s the issue NEA deals with in its comparison of teacher pay with other professions. NEA uses the Economic Policy Institute’s teacher compensation study to determine how the teaching profession stacks up against other professions. Read the report at www.nea.org.

• If you’re looking for ideas for ways to help parents become more involved in their child’s education, NEA offers A Parent’s Guide to School Involvement that lets parents know what they can do at home and at school to get involved. You can download the guide at www.nea.org.

• The National Association for Beginning Teachers is designed to provide new teachers with tips and skills for dealing with student achievement, parent involvement and classroom success. Go to www.beginningteachers.org to learn how to join the organization and access their resources.

Books

• Guilty Until Proven Innocent is based on real cases of teachers who have been falsely accused of abuse against their students. Greg Lawler, a staff attorney for the Colorado Education Association, is the author. The book is available at www.amazon.com for $16.95.

• Too Dangerous to Teach tells the true story of the author, Isobel Kleinman, who’s labeled too dangerous to teach because she dared to challenge the education establishment of her school system. With the help of her association, she stands up to career-ending challenges. The book is available at www.amazon.com for $25.49.

People Resources

• Your association leaders and building representatives

• Your Uniserv director – Check the front of your MEA calendar to find your local MEA office.

• MEA headquarters staff (800-292-1934) in Bargaining, Communications, ESP, Government Affairs, Higher Ed., Organizing, Professional Development, and Research

Print the January K-12 Tips here