Oklahoma’s teacher walkout to match length of West Virginia

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Oklahoma’s two largest school districts will close for the ninth consecutive day because of a teacher strike, matching the length of a walkout in West Virginia earlier this year that started a rebellion of teachers in some Republican-led states.

Oklahoma City Public Schools, the state’s largest district, and Tulsa Public Schools, said Wednesday that they will remain closed on Thursday. Smaller schools districts have said they will resume classes on Thursday.

Many Oklahoma school districts have canceled classes since April 2 when thousands of teachers traveled to the state Capitol demanding that lawmakers provide more tax dollars for classroom needs.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signed legislation last month granting teacher pay hikes of about $6,100 and providing tens of millions of new dollars for public schools. But teachers demand more.