Seattle teachers ‘are willing to do what it takes’

Henry Baird made his message clear: More recess for all.

The rally-goer stood among frustrated parents and teachers with his hand-written sign on Thursday.

“I just want more recess,” Henry said.

Henry’s mother was also rallying with her son to demand more recess for students.

“I feel that moving children’s bodies helps them focus later on and helps them make connections and they also enjoy school for the social part; when they’re in the classroom they don’t get that,” she said.

But those rallying weren’t just there for more recess. Seattle teachers have a list of demands for a school district they say is not treating its teachers equally and not providing as well as it could be.

The big question here is: are teachers going to strike?

Laura Lehni, on the negotiating team for the Seattle Education Association, doesn’t rule it out.

“Strikes are something that happen with an end in mind, and really, the end in mind is a fair contract,” she said. “We’ve seen time and time again that the district has handed teachers some rough contracts in the past and, at this point, I feel that people feel that enough is enough and we are willing to do what it takes to get the district’s attention.”

“But realistically what we want is to work and serve the kids,” Lehni said.

Teachers are demanding:

&#8226 better pay

&#8226 guaranteed student recess

&#8226 fair teacher evaluations (they say it’s unfair and inconsistent across the district)

&#8226 less emphasis on testing

&#8226 fixing disproportionate discipline issues

“It seems like a no-brainier,” Lehni said. “Recess: all kids need it. They need it to reflect and reset. All the research has shown this for at least 70 years; this is not new. But I’m seeing the repercussions of that.”

Teacher strikes are far from rare in Washington. Earlier this year, Seattle teachers joined others around the state for a one-day walkout to protest the lack of funding that education receives from the state Legislature.