Letters to the Editor – Dallas ISD, Texas House, State Fair, farmed animals

TEI is objectively higher

Re: “Does best-teachers system deliver? Equity concerns nag effort to aid neediest schools,” Sunday information story.

This article on Dallas ISD’s pay-for-efficiency mannequin missed the mark. While the Teacher Excellence Initiative (TEI) will not be excellent, it’s objectively higher than what got here earlier than and clearly advantages college students.

The story highlighted the inequitable distribution of prime-ranked lecturers throughout DISD faculties. However, what the authors missed is that due to TEI extra sturdy lecturers at the moment are educating in excessive-precedence campuses. That’s benefiting college students at this time. The information additionally reveal how a lot work continues to be wanted to guarantee all DISD college students have entry to nice lecturers.

The actual takeaway: We know that extra excessive-high quality lecturers are wanted throughout the district thanks to TEI information. The earlier district analysis system rated practically all lecturers as efficient. Anyone who’s frolicked in a faculty is aware of that’s not correct. With TEI we now have a clearer view.

It’s true that now we have much less information now than 18 months in the past due to COVID-19 disruptions and the district wants to handle round that. But DISD is aware of extra about trainer high quality than it did seven years in the past, and it definitely is aware of greater than most districts. Because of that, it’s higher ready to serve college students.

The district ought to preserve TEI in place to reward the experience of DISD’s most interesting educators, deal with frequently bettering the follow of all DISD lecturers, and recruit extra sturdy lecturers.

Anne Wicks, director of the Education Reform Initiative at the George W. Bush Institute

Justine Taylor-Raymond, former trainer and senior program supervisor of the Education Reform Initiative

DISD makes nice strides

Bravos and kudos to The Dallas Morning News for what’s sure to be award-successful information and editorial protection of Dallas ISD’s exemplary strides regardless of pandemic setbacks.

Bravos and kudos to the Dallas ISD for exceptionally serving the complete spectrum of scholars, from these with disabilities to bilingual college students/English-language learners. Congratulations and properly accomplished, every person!

Katherine V. Homan, Dallas/East Kessler Park

GOP is on a shedding course

The Texas House committee on redistricting is doing its finest to dismiss the transformational demographic change that has occurred in the state over the previous 10 years. Like the present Texas Senate and U.S. congressional district proposals for brand new maps, the House has adopted swimsuit in searching for to preserve and/or broaden the previous establishment.

Instead of defending Voting Rights Act obligations, eliminating gerrymandering and pursuing a path to neighborhood and neighborhood inclusion, the House has failed in any respect three.

The folks of the state deserve honest maps that replicate the transformational demographic change that has occurred throughout the final decade and can proceed. It’s time to incorporate it into legislative pondering and actions. Attempting to preserve the previous establishment will end in varied authorized actions and in the end the state’s GOP will lose.

Our legislators want to act on behalf of our state, not their get together, and let the voters determine what occurs subsequent — accurately.

George Dailey, Dallas/West Village

The Texas ‘audit’ will not be information

Yes, the “audit” is a stunt, one other greedy-at-straws effort to construct doubt about our electoral course of. It is a waste of the state’s money and time, about which we will now do nothing.

It shouldn’t be a waste of money and time for The Dallas Morning News, nonetheless. Now that you just’ve lined this story on each your entrance web page and editorial web page, it’s time to put it on the again burner the place it belongs.

Otherwise, you’re giving free protection to a Republican speaking level, one that you just have identified will not be legitimate. If and when the outcomes of the “audit” are revealed, publish them at the moment. Until then, please deal with the actual issues dealing with Texas and our nation.

Susan Griffith, Plano

Gee, thanks Gov. Abbott

My household appears ahead yearly to going to the State Fair and have been saddened final yr when COVID-19 shut it down. On Sept. 26, we have been thrilled to have the ability to go once more.

There have been indicators at the entrances to and inside of every constructing saying that masks have been obligatory. The indicators have been overwhelmingly ignored.

One lady selected to harass me for carrying a masks. When I pointed to certainly one of the indicators, she snapped again the governor mentioned we don’t have to put on them.

There will most definitely be a surge of COVID circumstances linked to the unmasked crowds at the Texas State Fair. I suppose we will thank Greg Abbott for that.

Nancy Bryant, Dallas/The Village

The excessive price of farmed animals

For the previous 38 years, World Day for Farmed Animals (WDFA) — Oct. 2 — has been noticed round the globe. In spite of reaching tens of millions with a message of compassion, the animal agricultural complicated nonetheless converts 77 billion sentient beings into meals yearly.

Nearly all farm animals are raised in “factory farms,” the place they’re caged, crowded, abused, drugged and denied their pure wants.

Worldwide, waste from manufacturing unit farms continues to foul rivers and groundwater aquifers, but 80% of all our water continues to be used for manufacturing unit farming, regardless of widespread shortages.

The United Nations has declared animal farming as a significant contributor to world warming and rainforests are being stripped to dust.

To assist with outreach in 2021, WDFA has partnered with the Animal Activism Mentorship Program, the Animal Law Firm, ClimateHealers.org, Casa Vegana, Jewish Veg, Their Turn (the social justice motion of our time), VeganDesign.org and World Day for Farmed Animals Asia, amongst others.

Eric Lindstrom, Bethesda, Md.

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