Op-Ed on the Chicago Public Schools Strike

Image taken by Kamil Krzaczynski / Getty. Oct 24, 2019

We are learning how we can change the status quo. In order to change the status quo, we need to learn what the status quo in our community is. Recently, The city of Chicago is dealing with a strike between Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the CTU. The  CTU (Chicago Teacher's Union) is demanding for smaller class sizes, counselors in every school, nurses everyday of the week and many more things that have been a huge issue for all CPS schools. The following is an Op-Ed about my opinion on the Strike, and how the strike is changing the status quo.

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DISCLAIMER: The Op-Ed talks about suicide in this Op-Ed. If you are sensitive to that topic or anything related to the subject, please do not read this. Thank you.

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It is true. CPS students’ learning is disrupted because of the strike. CPS students of young ages are left alone at home, because their parents work during school hours. CPS students in the athletic fields can’t practice with their team, for their next matches. It is true that all of these students are losing something because of this strike. But, all of these students, have so much more to gain from it.

I am a student in a private school known as Global Citizenship Experience Lab School. This may make me seem unreliable, because I don’t attend a CPS school, and I am not affected by the strike, but I have attended a public school from 2nd to 8th grade. I currently have a sister attending a public school, so I am very aware of what happens the way CPS schools function today.

My sister is mistreated at school. Her classmates make fun of her for her short hair, and judge her for spending more time with the boys than the girls in her class. None of these issues are addressed by the teachers or supervisors of the school. The mistreatment became harsher, and during one recess, a group of boys, some of which she considered her “friends” threw a football a the back of her head and tugged on her hair. This was the only thing that was addressed by the school.

The bullies were punished for their actions, and everything was resolved, or at least everyone believed it was. My sister was not asked how she felt after this by the school. After the incident, her good friends began to distance themselves from her. In return, this caused her to spend more time with her “friends,” even after they assaulted her, and distance herself from everyone else in school, and at home. But these friends, didn’t care about her, even when she gave them kindness and tolerated their selfishness.

She began to feel more alone than she ever felt before. She felt unappreciated and wondered if she ever would be. She began to think that she would never find a true friendship that would last, because it had been several years since she had one. She felt trapped; She felt like everything was on loop, repeating itself over and over again, until she couldn’t handle it anymore. She thought there was only one way out.

She wanted help. She spoke to her school counselor, and tried to explain what was bothering her. Her counselor did not fully understand the severity of my sister’s situation and how far deep her rabbit hole went. The counselor did not make an attempt to speak with her again. This lead to my sister’s final reason to leave. She attempted suicide, and kept it to herself for four months before telling an officer.

I am grateful to her school for having a counselor, but if there are several students the counselor has to speak to, it can be overwhelming for the counselor. This will disrupt the counselor’s ability to help students mentally and emotionally, which, in turn, disrupts their learning.

This doesn’t not only does this apply to counselors. This applies to teachers as well. In a class of 30 students, it is hard for teachers to give individual time to any student that needs help with school work. It leaves them with less time to understand their students emotional state, their lives at home, and what helps them learn best.

A recent editorial published by the Chicago Tribune on October 27, 2019 states that “refusing to accept a generous contract offer has been… all about the children.” The rejection of mayor Lori Lightfoot’s offer to the CTU was for the children, even though the offer would’ve resolved many of the main concerns the CTU had. The contract stated that it would only last for five years, which was not long enough for the CTU.

As I said from the beginning, CPS students have so much to gain. They will have counselors in every school, and I nurse everyday of the week. Smaller class sizes will make work learning easier for students and work less overwhelming for their teachers. Mental health will be addressed for every student. This strike is trying to change the way the CPS system is functions. This is not just about quality education for students. It’s about mental health for CPS students. The way the CPS runs its schools not only affects its students, but also the family’s of it’s students. What my sister has gone through shouldn’t happen to students in other schools, and the strike will change that.

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THE USE OF RHETORICAL DEVICES

I used Anaphora throughout my Op-Ed but it is most prominent in my opening statement. I started each of my sentences with CPS students. I majority of my appeal was pathos but it was used to credit my opinion which is ethos. My counter argument to the Chicago Tribune article that I am targeting near the end of my statement. The provocative opinion that I have brought to my Op-Ed is my belief that the strike does not only affect the students of CPS schools. It will affect the relatives and friends of those students. The sentence "How deep the rabbit whole goes" is an analogy of the way my sister felt.