Rivals Moskowitz and Weingarten will debate this week on NY1

The crux of the disagreement between the women is Moskowitz’s contention that the teachers union prevents progress in educating children by opposing innovations like charter schools. The union has opposed the growth of charter schools and filed a lawsuit recently meant to block charter schools from replacing traditional public schools. Members of Weingarten’s union say that these efforts are necessary to counter people like Moskowitz, who they say alienate and vilify teachers and seek to bust unions. They also criticize charter schools as divisive because they sometimes have lower portions of needy students, such as those who receive special education students and those who haven’t yet mastered English.

A vice president of the teachers union, Carmen Alvarez, said Saturday at a panel on school governance that I moderated that the parade was meant to counter negative statements about traditional public schools in Harlem. Governor David Paterson was among those who marched in the parade.

The beef began with Moskowitz’s career as chair of the City Council’s education committee, where she took on everything from the Bloomberg administration’s claims about rising test scores to the role that union-negotiated contracts play in constricting school leaders. When Moskowitz lost her battle to Scott Stringer to become the borough president of Manhattan, she said that the election outcome was a result of union’s vociferous campaign against her

Two education leaders who have been via bristling and in Harlem will come face-to-face this week, in a debate broadcast on NY1, the local TV news channel, spokespeople for both leaders have confirmed.

Randi Weingarten, the leader of the politically powerful teachers union, is preparing to debate Eva Moskowitz, the former City Council member-turned-charter school operator, on Dominic Carter’s evening talk show, “The Road to City Hall.”

The teachers union spokesman, Brian Gibbons, said that NY1 contacted Weingarten and asked her to appear on the show with Moskowitz. Weingarten said yes.