READERS WEIGH IN ON TEACHER LAYOFFS, LEGALIZATION OF DRUGS

Many agree that the last-hired, first-fired system is no way to
attract bright minds to education. And 94% in an online poll say it's
time to regulate and tax marijuana. Would it be irresponsible of me to
mix education and drugs in the same column?

Perhaps, but here goes.

Readers far and wide wanted to weigh in on two of my recent columns,
one about statewide teacher layoffs and the other about a conservative
Orange County judge who supports the legalization of drugs, so I'd
like to keep both conversations going.

But let's begin with the column on pink slips and teacher tenure. A
few dozen of the responses, I'm sorry to report, had me worried about
the reading comprehension levels of certain teachers.

"All the articles I've read including yours equate experience with
burnout," wrote a 27-year L.A. Unified teacher. "Labeling me burnt out
or less enthusiastic than a younger teacher would be arbitrary,
inaccurate and unfair."

Thanks for that, and thanks as well to all the other educators who
parroted the same sentiment. But I said no such thing, and I want all
teachers who missed the point to go to the chalkboard and write, 500
times, "I will read more closely in the future."

In fact, here's a line from the column in question:

"Every school has teachers who stand above the rest. Some of them
veterans, some of them not."

My point, as I made clear in the column, is that it's a shame that
when we do lay off teachers, ability has nothing to do with it. The
only consideration is seniority.

Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Ray Cortines told me Tuesday
that in the best scenario, a school has a good mix of senior,
middle-experience and newer teachers, all of them feeding off of and
learning from each other.

But the last-hired, first-fired system is no way to attract bright
minds to the profession. Why would you want a job where you knew that
the minute hard times came along, you'd be automatically bumped while
less competent teachers would keep their jobs? And judging by my
e-mail, a lot of teachers agree. In fact, some of them sound ready to
rise up against their union bosses.

"I was fortunate to not get a pink slip but many of my fellow teachers
did. They, in my opinion, are the best teachers at our school," wrote
a middle school math teacher who said her blood boils at UTLA meetings
when talk of reform is crushed by teachers who like things as they
are. "If I am not performing my job to the best of my ability, I WANT
. . . to be fired even if I have been teaching for 20 years."

Another middle school teacher and UTLA rep was disappointed in her
fellow union pals. At a recent meeting, she wrote: "I stated that we
should at least consider furlough days in order to save our friends'
jobs and help our students. However, I did not hear a single person at
that meeting express even the slightest amount of support for my proposal."

"I work at a small middle school with a staff made up of 40% doers and
60% time clock punchers," another teacher wrote. "Of course the
committed, involved, motivated and most excellent teachers and
administrators at my school received their . . . notices."

A fourth-grade teacher said she's no fan of UTLA boss A.J. Duffy, but
she likes the security guaranteed her by the state education code and
the UTLA contract.

"The solution is making sure that bad teachers don't become permanent
to begin with," she argues, suggesting that the district can and
should do a better job of that.

Agreed, but UTLA is no help in that regard. It's true there is no easy
way to evaluate teachers. But that's because of the sorry politics of
the matter, in which teacher unions are at war with school districts,
politicians are paid too well to challenge the teacher lobby or fix an
absurdly byzantine school funding system, and the children pay the
price for the inability of the adults to work it out.

Principals, teachers and administrators need to grow up and work
together to bounce the bad apples, polish the good ones and create
bonus incentives for the best, and I'm tired of hearing everyone whine
about how it can't be done or won't be done, or that no model exists.

If that's true, then create one, already. Or, as California Board of
Education President Ted Mitchell suggests, give the Milken Institute's
Teacher Advancement Program a try.

And now, I'm sorry to say, there is no smooth segue to our next
subject, the increasingly disastrous war on drugs, other than to say
that if we weren't wasting billions of dollars on it, maybe we
wouldn't have to fire teachers.

To say that readers agree is an understatement. Even retired Judge Jim
Gray, the legalization proponent I wrote about Sunday, was surprised
by the results, as was state Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San
Francisco), whose bill would legalize, regulate and tax marijuana.

Now you could say that maybe potheads have more time to respond to
online polls, but with 4,400 votes cast as of midday Tuesday, a
staggering 94% of readers had lined up on the side of
legalization.

Ammiano called this "a perfect storm" moment, in which the recession
and government cutbacks are accompanied by humongous drug war
expenditures. At the same time, the drug cartels are more powerful and
violent than ever, with bloodshed in Mexico spilling across our
borders. Although some polls have indicated majority support for
decriminalization, according to Ammiano, I think some politicians will
be reluctant to go out on that limb. He said he won't push for passage
of his bill until next year, taking time to build support.

Judging by my mail, readers don't want to wait.

"Hurray for the judge!" wrote Barbara Collins of Studio City. "What
did prohibition get us? The Mafia. What did the war on drugs get us?
The Mexican drug cartels and the financing for the Taliban."

"I would strongly encourage you to look into the oft-reported fact
that in the Netherlands, where the purchase and use of marijuana is
legal, the rate of use of the general public is significantly lower
than in the U.S.," wrote Devin Shoecraft of San Diego.

And Glenn Backes of Sacramento was kind enough to send me an
ending.

Yes, he said. Legalize and tax drugs, and use the revenue for drug
rehab.

And for our schools.