Maryland teachers fight to include class sizes in collective bargaining agreements

MARYLAND- Maryland teachers are fighting to have a say on class size as part of their collective bargaining negotiations. A new bill introduced in the state legislature would allow teachers to include class size limits in their collective bargaining agreements with school districts, a measure previously barred from discussions between the state and the Maryland State Education Association.
The MSEA has come out in favor of the legislation, and their local partner, the Wicomico County Education Association believes kids deserve more time with teachers, and that can only happen when class sizes are smaller.

“If we are going to help students on an individual basis then we need to invest the time to do that and that time needs to come through smaller classroom size,” said Wicomico County Education Association President Joan Smith, adding “smaller classroom size truly helps teachers to address needs of students when they act out because they might need that extra help.”

Smith tells us– smaller classroom sizes will mean more manageable workloads for teachers and help with educator burnout.