Politics and education reform are among the major topics at a national convention of more than 3,500 teachers union members this week, including some from Minnesota.

The American Federation of Teachers is among the groups that endorsed Kamala Harris for president, and leaders at the conference are also pushing for more money and better working conditions for teachers nationwide.

Leah VanDassor, president of the St. Paul Federation of Educators Local 28, said crowded classrooms significantly affect the education system.

“What’s the educational cost? What’s the emotional cost? What’s the mental health cost of having so many kids in a room?” VanDassor asked. “That’s why we push so hard for all of that because learning conditions are very tightly tied to working conditions. You can do a lot better job as an educator if you have fewer students in the room.”

While conservatives have argued public employee unions are too powerful, VanDassor noted educators disagree. She added most schools have no structure or funding in place to deal with the current mandate to handle the mental health crisis among students.

Vice President Kamala Harris was in Houston on Thursday to address the American Federation of Teachers conference.

Randi Weingarten, president of the national union, praised the Biden/Harris administration’s commitment to public education in her keynote speech while accusing Republicans of undermining workers’ rights and attacking academic freedom.

“When the history books are written about this moment, let them record that we, the people, united, mobilized, and voted down this existential threat to democracy and freedom,” Weingarten stressed.

Weingarten also criticized the Trump administration’s support of school vouchers, the effects of social media on students, and the movement to control or censor topics or books with which they disagree.

“They fear what we do,” Weingarten asserted. “The teaching of reason, of critical thinking, of honest history, of pluralism. Because their brand of greed, of power, of privilege cannot survive in a democracy of diverse, educated citizens.”

Mike Moen writes for Minnesota News Connection.