Education Lobby Plays on Emotions of Oklahomans!

Weekly Opinion Editorial

LISTENING TO THE DISTRICT?

by Steve Fair

     This week, thousands of Oklahoma teachers walked out of their classrooms and gathered at the state Capitol to lobby the state legislature for more education funding.  Last week, the legislature passed and the Governor signed a bill that was the largest tax increase in Oklahoma history.  The increased revenue will give a $6,000 average annual pay raise for Oklahoma teachers, and smaller amounts for teacher aides and state workers.  The Oklahoma Education Association have demanded the legislature figure out how to give the teachers a $10,000 raise or they will continue the walk-out. Five observations:

      First, no one disputes that Oklahoma teachers are underpaid.  As the husband of a 40 year educator, I can assure you my wife deserved more money than she made all those years, but so did her jelly salesman husband.  All Oklahomans are underpaid, not just teachers.  Oklahomans are making $5-7,000 per year less than a Texan doing the same job.  That’s the case for teachers, auto mechanics, cashiers, lawyers, doctors, etc.  

      Second, citizens who don’t support more taxes are not anti-education or anti-teacher.  It’s unfair to caricature or condemn someone simply because they don’t trust the education establishment.  For years, they have been told if ‘x’ was done, education would be set in Oklahoma.  Liquor by the drink, pari-mutuel betting, Indian Gaming compact, and a lottery were all sold to Oklahoma voters as answers to education funding. They all failed to meet revenue expectations, so who can blame the skeptic?  They have no reason to believe this tax increase will solve the problem of education funding in Oklahoma.

     Third, Oklahoma common education must start talking about more than money.  Oklahoma has too many school districts (514).  Consolidation is a dirty word to education, but its past time for it to be done.  An honest evaluation of the Oklahoma education model and a plan of action to improve efficiency must be done.  Mark Twain said, “Education consists mainly in what we have unlearned.”  In Oklahoma we have unlearned how to be efficient in educating our children.

     Fourth, this is an emotionally charged issue.  When you start talking about teachers and education, emotion rules the day.  It involves our children and grandchildren.  Everyone, even those who oppose tax increases, want what is best for the children.  The education lobby very effectively uses emotion to appeal to students and parents to support the cause, and that draws in some people who normally wouldn’t support huge tax increases.  So long as they are aware of their actions, they are free to support more taxes for education, but it is the right of every citizen to support or not support an issue.

     Fifth, we live in a democratic republic where the people are self-governed.  All of those state legislators, both those who supported the tax increases and those who opposed, will ultimately face voters at the ballot box.  It remains to be seem if they were ‘listening to their district,’ when they voted for the largest tax increase in Oklahoma history.