By Kristin
We had a spirited debate on Tom's recent post about Washington's SB 5399 (and HB 1609, which is the same thing). As someone in favor of 5399, I admit I'm outnumbered and, perhaps, outargued by those against it. I concede, but I'm still not happy.
It's a problematic bill. Brian is right, the math is weird (how can you assign a numerical value to an evaluation system that doesn't have numerical values?) and I admit, it's true that if teachers are fighting to be better than each other, they might be less likely to share and mentor. I wouldn't, many wouldn't, but some probably would.
I'm in favor of 5399 and 1609 because I think they can be revised to be more clear, more accurate and more effective. I'm also in favor of them because they are better than what we have – a riffing system where those with the least seniority go first. But let's leave riffing aside for a minute – it's on my mind because Seattle's going to face another huge RIF, but let's ignore it and look at classroom instruction and the administrators whose job it is to ensure that instruction is done well.
Education is facing a number of big problems, but ineffective teachers are one of the big ones. Now that I'm a parent, I hear it from parents who complain that their child isn't inspired, challenged, or learning anything. I hear it from the data, where I see that about 70% of white kids in Seattle do well on meeting basic standards and 40% of African American kids do well – the numbers are worse if the student is Latino or Native American. I hear it from my students, who dread going to some of their classes because nothing happens there.
If it's the administrator's job to improve poor teachers – and I would argue it's our job, too, as colleagues and taxpayers – let's toss out some plans that deal with the problem and seek a solution.
Don't go into the "People need to support education" and "Parents need to do more" rants – those are dead horses. Stay positive and creative.
What can we do about lazy administrators? What are we willing to do with our ineffective colleagues? How can we fill every classroom with a teacher who cares, who can teach, and who can make a difference in a kid's life?
Try to come up with a five-step plan. Here's mine. It's rough, but you've got to start somewhere.
1. Force teachers out of their comfort zone – switch grades, switch from honors to standard and vice-versa. This might force a teacher to learn and adapt, might flush out an incompetent teacher ("but I did great with the honors kids!" / "the standard kids never complained!") and fight inertia and complacency.
2. Get someone in the building to oversee the principal's management.
3. Encourage walk-throughs, observations, and open doors. I'm amazed at how much harder I work when my door is open, someone's in my room, or I am expecting someone to be in my room.
4. Use data, and use effective data – test kids in September and test them in June and expect them to have learned something. There will always be problems with this, but if you step back and look at patterns and trends I think this kind of data reveals a lot about what's happened in a class. When combined with classroom observations, I think test data can be a valuable evaluation tool.
5. Start firing principals who aren't doing their job, instead of shuffling them around from school to school. I've been told the principal's union is really strong and it costs a lot to fire them. Well, it costs a lot to keep them, too, if they're not able to do their job. Fire them.
Kudos from Arizona for your plan. It’s thoughtful and innovative. As both an NBCT and administrator, I applaud your focus on BOTH teachers AND administrators. The crisis in leadership is something that is not being discussed with the necessary vigor. Hopefully, this will help put some emphasis on the topic…
From the Washington Post- 2/9/11
Eliminating Seniority Based Layoffs: 4 Things to Consider-
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/guest-bloggers/eliminating-seniority-based-la.html?wprss=answer-sheet
Hmmm, Tom. Maybe teachers who are not thriving in one area should change, and that change made possible because other teachers want a change or other teachers move on?
Maybe there’s a difference there between elementary and secondary? I can see a big difference in skill set between the primary grades and intermediate grades, but there’s not such a great difference between 7th and 10th, or 9th and 11th. In secondary LA, we need to create curriculum for certain books, for example. It’s healthy to be forced to revisit your skills and redesign some curriculum by mixing that up. As well, the differences between standard and honors force you to use different skills.
Maybe you’re right – it shouldn’t be change for change’s sake, but a good principal would prevent entrenchment, I think.
Numbers 2, 3, and 5 are in; no question.
Number 4: Use data, but use it all year long. We need to use data to inform instruction. I worry that we’re using instruction to create data.
But number 1: I’m not sure forcing people out of their comfort zone is, in and of itself, a good idea. Think of other fields: plumbing, law, medicine? Do you really want an oncologist who switched from podiatry last week? I’ve taught third grade for almost three decades, with a few years teaching fourth and one year teaching second. I love third grade. I’m comfortable there. Should I change just to shake things up? I don’t think so.
Dr. Pezz, I hear what you’re saying about what’s good for Seattle not being good for other districts. Sometimes I forget how different it probably is in other Washington districts.
Do you find last in first out to work in your district? Do you have reductions in force?
“I’ve taught in Seattle for 8 years.”
I don’t. This type of legislation could really hurt my area, and legislation like this uses a sledgehammer instead of a scalpel to try and fix a problem.
When we race to change the law instead of working to fix the real problems, we run the risk of putting into effect a bad law. And, changing laws back is virtually impossible. Plus, these bills put the power of evaluation and teacher contracts–locally bargained and adjusted based on local needs–into the laws of the inexperienced at the state level.
I very much fear this type of legislation because nuances are ignored, the experts are cut out, and another one-size-fits-all approach is enacted.
Wow, you guys, great ideas. Rob D. – I love the idea of an experimental school. In fact, I like the idea of the two-year effort, and have thought for many years that no one should teach in a university teacher education program who is not also circulating through the elementary or secondary classroom. Having a whole school, where you go in and learn new strategies and meet new, inspiring educators…that’s like my dream. It’s like sourdough starter for education. Brilliant.
Patience, yes, but I’ve seen kids who were 9th graders when I had patience become 18-year old felons while I waited for someone to do her job well. I’m tired of waiting. I’ve taught in Seattle for 8 years. I was engaged when I started and now my daughter’s a 1st grader, and I’m still waiting for public education to educate the disadvantaged. Plus, I’m a seriously non-patient person to begin with. This is killing me.
Mark – I see what you’re saying about teachers who find their niche. I too like teaching 9th grade. This year, I’m enjoying teaching 10th grade honors. At the same time, every time I have to change, I have to work hard. I have to reinvent. I have to learn. I think it’s a good sign that I struggle. In my building, we have teachers who are assigned to teach honors, and we have teachers who would never be allowed to teach honors. I think that’s unethical. If you are good, you should teach the kids who need good teachers. If you’re not good enough for the honors kids, you shouldn’t be teaching.
Switching up our area every now and then keeps us on our toes. It’s exciting, scary, and challenging. For some teachers, it will expose that they’ve been hiding behind the students, and will perhaps make it easier for the principal to have that hard conversation with them.
I particularly like 1 and 3. We have a few teachers in our building who have been relegated to classes which are tacitly deemed “less important.” How come those teachers never get to do honors/AP? The reality is that someone doesn’t trust them with that class or those kids. (And there’s the can of worms wherein some teachers think teaching remedial classes is for the teachers who haven’t paid their dues, and “career advancement” means striving to teach seniors, honors or AP). My only concern about step 1 is that there are some teachers who are great teachers to a certain clientele because of their dispositions and experience…this expertise can be verified by implementing your step 3: the walk throughs and observations.
At the risk of sounding arrogant, I personally feel comfortable and confident teaching 9th graders. I’m good at it. I stretch myself by trying new curriculum or approaches, but I like that age, and my dispositions and management style make me effective. Would I do okay as a teacher of senior English? Probably, but there’d be a learning curve, for sure. It’d take me a little while to shift gears to address the developmental, social, and cognitive differences between 14 year olds and 18 year olds. But, I think I could adapt…as long as there are frequent walk throughs and observations so my effort and development is documented, I’d probably be okay with that. However, if we expect everyone to be utility player, it might prove unfair to those specialists who really do excel in a certain niche.
I’m still up in the air about this bill. Keep the dialogue going…
I think some patience is in order.
The state has commissioned districts to create a new evaluation system for the state (which will completely change the way evaluations are conducted). These bills not only undermine the value of the work being done, but also they attempt to cure the symptoms of larger educational issues and slowly introduce a competitive rather than a collaborative approach to education.
Within two years the entire state will have a brand new evaluation system for teachers and principals, and the way they must be completed and assessed will forever change the profession.
I advise everyone to start contacting and following the progress of the pilot districts. Voice your opinions and follow the work.
An elementary focus from Education Czar Rob-
1. Within a district set up an “experimental school” one class per grade. Enroll a representative sample of students (preferably with a high ratio of traditionally under-served students.) Hire accomplished teachers & cycle them out within 2 years. Use this school as a model for professional development and a setting to test new curriculum. Use this setting as a vehicle for testing new best practices and for others to observe these in action. Use the data gleaned from these classes as a reference for other classes within the district.
2. More drop in observations. At a minimum 3 per year by your principal, 3 per year by teacher-peer evaluators & at least 1 with both. The principal’s evaluations should serve the same purpose as they do now. The teacher-peer evaluations are strictly about improving practice and helping to guide professional development. The joint eval (the first of the year) should be used to build consistency in identifying best practices and ensure all parties are on the same page about strength and goals for improvement.
3. Supplemental contracts for those in high need schools with mandatory joint planning time. Have grade level teams truly become teams. Teams use this time to grade each other’s assessments. Jointly plan curriculum. In this way teachers are accountable to each other…nobody hides behind “doing their own thing.”
4. Improve wrap around services in high need schools. Ensure children have access to meals when school is on break. Provide parenting classes with child care provided and meals. Do more to build connections between families and school.
5. Data. As mentioned above. Comprehensive reading assessment at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. Once a student doesn’t meet standard then supports are started, documented, and the effectiveness tracked. Every student, every time.
for a “rough” plan I say you’ve hit on major points education needs to look at and implement.
I’m a fan of 2 & 5 in particular because it’s generally missing from the conversation about creating an effective system (or at least it’s not as explicitly talked about as other issues, or as much as some people would like, myself included). I find nothing more annoying than people who argue against creating an evaluation system for teachers because one doesn’t exist for administrators. Well, I’m happy to have that conversation too. And rather than whining that “well, they don’t do it, so why do we have to” let’s have a meaningful conversation about both.