From Montclair SocioBlog.
Only 5 states do not have collective bargaining for educators and have deemed it illegal. Those states and their ranking on ACT/SAT scores are as follows:
* South Carolina – 50th
* North Carolina – 49th
* Georgia – 48th
* Texas – 47th
* Virginia – 44thIf you are wondering, Wisconsin, with its collective bargaining for teachers, is ranked 2nd in the country. Let’s keep it that way.
I haven’t verified these stats. But I do want to point out that teachers unions are often accused of looking out for themselves before looking out for their students. Perhaps the same should be said of union busters.
Also, consider this–it’s not so crazy–perhaps what’s good for teachers isgood for students.
The problem with the stats? As PolitiFact discovered, the data came from 1999, not 2010. Moreover, a variety of factors account for test score results.
While the most recent data on SAT/ACT scores shows outcomes not altogether out of line with the 1999 figures — with South Carolina scoring 49th on the 2010 SAT and 46th on the 2009 ACT, while Wisconsin ranked third and 13th, respectively — the point remains that judgment is better withheld on what the scores say in regard to collective bargaining. Here's how PolitiFact put it:
A review using current data finds that Wisconsin does perform better on test scores than the non-union states, but not as dramatically as suggested in the Facebook post. And there is at best limited evidence that unionization played a causal role in shaping differences in test scores.
Thanks for the update/clarification.