I'm hopeful that Flint. can now see how hard it is to suggest measurable and effective tools that value (not applaud) teachers' work.
My opinion on education generally
- Increasing pay will only add incentive for new people coming in
- Teachers in the system for 10 years or more don't have any incentives other than intrinsic (self actualizing)
- Good schools usually have Principals who haven't given up the fight for looking at every individual kid and their personal needs and finding ways to support teachers to meet the needs
- Good schools have a culture amongst the staff of caring about every kid (almost as if they were your own)
- Poor/good teachers can be identified by observations, interviews and work logs by people trained to understand the dynamics of classrooms, pedagogy and the interplay of human motivation (of both teachers and students) and the environment (home/district) in which the school exists.
THIS ONE WOULD COST MEGA BUCKS TO STRUCTURE, ENSURE UNBIASED POSITIONING, AND YEARS TO IMPLEMENT.
- Appreciation (from parents) can be as simple as saying a genuine thanks!!!!! If I heard that once a month I'd be surprised. If I go to my accountant to get my tax papers filed, I'll either see him and say thanks or email him! I show the guy at the 711 more appreciation than I get from most parents.
- The reward for teachers often, is KNOWING that you have reached the kids in some way that has elevated them to a new level. Many teachers won't know this though as it's hard to measure (both in influence and degree).
- Put all teachers on a 5 year contract/terms/tenures with six monthly reviews with their Principal. It might not move the bad teachers out too quickly but I am sure it would raise standards. Unfortunately this may act as a threat but that's pretty much how most industries work. Hell I have been on yearly contracts all my working life (25 years). It's not the greatest feeling in the world but heh...? The cost would be enormous again and the Principal would be consumed with looking through portfolios etc. It's not like you can pull out a spreadsheet and see the amount of widgets being produced/sold.
Some ideas...always more...many not very workable
