Morgan Hill’s teachers union has received attention for their
creative efforts in calling attention to their cause, with more
than a dozen videos uploaded to YouTube.
Morgan Hill’s teachers union has received attention for their creative efforts in calling attention to their cause, with more than a dozen videos uploaded to YouTube.
The Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers, which have been in a harried battle with Morgan Hill Unified School District during belated contract negotiations, shot video of a recent trustee meeting.
Videos of teachers’ impassioned speeches can be viewed at youtube.com/user/morganhillteacher.
In its winter newsletter, the California Federation of Teachers cheered Morgan Hill’s teachers for their efforts and union leaders John Loyd and President Donna Ruebusch may attend a February conference to talk about using online technology during their campaign to accelerate contract negotiations.
The union’s YouTube channel, as of Dec. 31, had received more than 2,200 hits, including the most watched video of El Toro Elementary School teacher Jackie Lee’s impassioned speech, and has been viewed more than 300 times.
Civics students fueled the furor with MySpace and Facebook discussions linking to the videos.
In the videos, teachers speak about the centerpiece of their concerns, being included in curriculum decisions. District staff and teachers agree that they can’t agree on this sticking point.
Loyd, who shot the videos, said he’d like to have videos on not just the teachers’ feelings of frustration, but also about things going well.
Talks have begun for the Morgan Hill chapter to write a tutorial on using YouTube for use by Federation of Teachers groups nationwide, Loyd said.
