Blackboard Unions

The history of unionization of teachers, with the movement's complexities and inconsistencies--from the 1902 Clarke School strike in Chicago to the 1968 Ocean Hill-Brownsville strike in New York City--is ably chronicled in this detailed study. Beginning with school centralization at the turn of the century, the author, history professor at Swarthmore College, follows the slow pace of unionism until its ``coming of age'' in 1961 with the acceptance of collective bargaining that focused attention on the rights of teachers and the concept of professionalism. The first teachers' union, the American Federation of Teachers, affiliated itself with the American Federation of Labor, thus becoming a unique element in the labor movement. The contradictions faced by unionized public employees, the rivalry between AFT and NEA (National Educational Association) are analyzed in a significant study that will be of interest to professionals. Photos not seen by PW. (Jan.)