An Approach to Teacher Merit Pay I Could Live With
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Who is Arne Duncan and how will his choice as Secretary of Education affect education in the US (and, for better or worse in this hegemonic age, much of the rest of the world)? I’ve spent so many hours since the announcement reading reactions online that both my eyes and my brain cells are fried. (Enjoy the Diigo bookmarks if you’re masochistic.) All that reading will have to steep for a while before I can serve it as tea.
Until that happens, I’m going to focus on one controversy surrounding Duncan, and toss out some thoughts on it. That controversy is performance pay for teachers.
Bill Ferriter’s excellent recent post on this issue at the Tempered Radical got me thinking. I replied there,
Bill, Great arguments all the way through – and greater for the admission there are no easy answers.
I had a conversation last week about merit pay, and why I didn’t believe in it. I said it pissed me off to no end that I _knew_ from all sorts of objective observations that I worked harder and more successfully than many of my colleagues, yet earned nothing more for it – BUT, until a system was implemented that could determine what we mean by ‘merit,’ and avoid causing all of us to teach to tests and thus damage student learning, I was still against it.
What’s the best solution to this dilemma that you’ve thought or read?
Thinking about it a little more, this is what I can come up with so far:
We’d have to define “merit” to include the higher-order thinking skills – analysis, synthesis, evalutation/critical thinking, creativity – that the best learning projects require. This is not the opposite of the “fact-based, right/wrong, multiple choice” testing that NCLB and the College Board/AP/SAT pushes, but what you might call the upward extension of it. Mastery of facts is the beginning, not the end, of the assessment for meritorious teaching and learning.
If we start there, that means teacher merit is measured by the types of projects that are assigned in the classroom – not by the standardized testing industry – and by the performance of students who complete these projects. This further means that said teacher measurement is performed not centrally, but locally – or perhaps by boards consisting of local and central judges. (I know that “central” is vague.)
My thinking is that if teachers were rewarded for designing learning activities that measured positively against a checklist of such higher-order thinking traits – and crucially, that the measurement was based not on a single unit, but on a portfolio of all units assigned throughout the semester or year (this eliminates the dog-and-pony show liability of single principal evaluations) – then the best teachers would be rewarded with higher pay, while the worst ones would have an incentive to change their practice for the better. Teaching to the test wouldn’t be the goal any more; teaching to higher instructional standards would be.
As for what those higher instructional standards would look like, we need look no further than Linda Darling-Hammond for answers. Her presentation linked in an earlier post lays the groundwork for such guidelines.
As I commented on Will’s post about the Duncan pick,
Since Darling-Hammond led BO’s ed transition team, she may have had his ear long enough to fill it with good sense on how to reform NCLB’s assessments for the better – so that they align with better teaching-and-learning.
And I just discovered Bill Ferriter posted a follow-up to my comment, so off I go to fry a few more cells. Bill’s worth it.
- Reply to Gary Stager’s HuffPo Post on Duncan
- How NCLB Could Look if America Looked Abroad
- How Radio News-Writing and -Announcing Make for Ideal, Literacy-Focused Performance Assessment
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I’ve got a post all about the Obama plan regarding assessments coming up soon, but for now check out the NECAP “Inquiry Task” problems (which they appear to be referring to in the written agenda):
http://www.ride.ri.gov/assessment/necap_science.aspx
Jason Dyers last blog post..Observations of the 4×4 Block
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Clay Burell Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 7:57 am
Interesting link, Jason, thanks. Could you throw us another one to that “written agenda” you mention?
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Jason Dyer Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Sure!
http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/issues/PreK-12EducationFactSheet.pdf
I don’t know of any states currently experimenting with portfolio-based high stakes assessment. Closest I can think of is the Studio Art AP test. (I have heard art teachers complain that even that is restrictive.)
Jason Dyers last blog post..Observations of the 4×4 Block
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Clay Burell Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Jason, thanks so much for that Obama k-12 Fact Sheet link. I don’t know how I missed it. It’s required reading, isn’t it? It gives me more hope despite the Duncan pick.
And you have to suspect that Biden’s wife (community college teacher) and Obama’s (half-?) sister, teachers both, had a role in explaining the problems of NCLB seen from the trenches. The details of the plan show some type of intimacy with NCLB’s failures on the ground.
Short version, Jason, a million thanks.
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Madelaine Kingsbury Reply:
December 20th, 2008 at 8:10 am
Jason – In Pennsylvania, all students are required to complete a graduation project in order to receive their high school diploma. At my school, in particular, we require a writing portfolio for their graduation project. Students write a 10+ page research paper along with 10 other short 1 page essays. They must receive a passing grade on the project; if you fail the first time your portfolio is scored, you must revise until you receive a passing score. After 11 years of being multiple-choice-tested, my students like the challenge of compiling a research portfolio, although I find it frustrating that this is often the FIRST TIME in all those years that they are writing a research paper. Madelaine, Philadelphia, PA
Madelaine Kingsburys last blog post..From The Digerati Life Blog – Printer Giveaway – Yippee! Click right here to enter!
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Jason Dyer
18 Dec 08 at 7:51 am
@ Clay
Nice post. I like your thinking along the lines of merit pay not being tied to standardized tests but to other areas. I have heard of a private school in Indianapolis that gives percentage raises based on evidence of such practices. I’ve only heard the principal explain the basics but teachers earned certain points for their willingness to help with school projects, demonstrate professional learning and growth, and register high levels of student engagement within their classes. Measuring these things may be a bit arbitrary but if done right can lead to those who truly deserve it bringing home a better check.
Those who don’t do what good teachers do essentially receive pay freezes and weed themselves out of the system.
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Clay Burell Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 10:57 pm
Charlie,
Yes indeed. That “self-weeding” is the point. And that “measuring . . . done right.”
I do think the biggest fear of teacher unions, and the rationale for tenure – that single administrators can railroad good teachers unfairly – could be mitigated by a group evaluation of teachers. Such a group, constituted rightly (ie, independent of each other, not in cahoots with or under the sway of each other), could even conceivably have the rights to do that weeding themselves.
But I suspect the positive incentives and clear communication and modeling of what is desired would minimize the need for dismissing all but the very hopeless teachers. And I doubt many are that hopeless.
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Sean Nash Reply:
December 23rd, 2008 at 12:30 am
Yes- I like this: “a group evaluation of teachers.” I have thought of peer review (including administration) in the past. I kick it around in my head… talk to a few folks… just seems daunting. I live in an area where our state association (MSTA) is far more populous than NEA, and still- and teacher organization would oppose letting the lowly teacher in on such a cluster.
I agree fully that the only rational thing that allows me to see tenure as even remotely valuable is the one you mention here. I think we’ve all heard of the small and poor town that would release teachers prior to year 5 (tenure year) in order to buy another younger, and thus cheaper, teacher.
Although overall- I detest tenure and teachers unions. From my (non-administrative) vantage point, their ultimate contribution to the party is protection for criminally-lazy and ineffective teachers. I’ve just seen it too many times. It is disgusting. If it wasn’t the “kid business,” it would be easy to put on blinders and just worry about what goes on within my four classroom walls.
But hey- this IS the kid business.
Sean
Sean Nashs last blog post..Writing online: what really changes?
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Charlie A. Roy
18 Dec 08 at 8:38 am
I score second year teacher portfolios in Connecticut. teachers have to score a 2 or above in order to get their certification. I would not mind using the rubric that we use to determine merit pay. Maybe only 4 scores get the merit pay, not 2’s. When I first started scoring I really thought I would use the experience to expose the faults of the system. 11? years later I just can’t find a problem with it. There are some 2’s that I think should not get their certificate, but I have never seen a 4 that I would not want to hire. Teachers who score a 3/4 on the rubric always have a unit that is focused on higher order social studies skills, and a solid inquiry lesson.
The rubric can be found here:
http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/PDF/BEST/feedback_profiles/ss_rubric.pdf
Paul Bogushs last blog post..“I don’t need to know it for tomorrow.”
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Clay Burell Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 10:59 pm
Paul, that’s interesting testimony and an interesting link. This is getting interesting the more people share their examples of stuff on the ground. Thanks for that.
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Sean Nash Reply:
December 23rd, 2008 at 12:32 am
NICE> thanks for that link. Concrete examples of tasty goodness that haven’t seen the light of day in the midwest.
Excellent.
Sean Nashs last blog post..Writing online: what really changes?
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Paul Bogush
18 Dec 08 at 9:00 am
Hey Clay,
First, I completely agree that rewarding work at the upper end of the thinking spectrum is what is most needed for kids to be successful in tomorrow’s world—and your checklist idea about the kinds of work assigned is simple and brilliant.
It actually leaves me excited about evaluation—to see teachers trying to align their instruction with predetermined characteristics of high quality is cool. It would be a lever to improving instructional practices that might just work better than anything we’ve ever done before.
Here’s the hitch, though: The general public—or at least the influential political decision makers—seem (rightly or wrongly) to have settled on some form of standardization in the assessment of schools/teacher performance and they’re not likely to buy into any plan that doesn’t guarantee standard comparisons across schools, districts and states.
Anything that is observationally based and open to judgment, then, is going to be received critically. I think the pressure only goes up when we’re tying teacher pay to those observational judgments. (Can you imagine the lawsuits in the US when a teacher disagrees with the level assigned to one of his assignments by an outside observer? And the sad part is you know it will happen.)
So I guess what we’ll need to do to make your plan work is make sure that the observational checklists are beyond reproach. They’ve got to be researched and developed to the point where there is mathematical evidence that teachers rated highly are also producing students who can perform highly on the kinds of indicators that communities most desire.
Without that clear, uncompromising evidence, we’re going to end up stuck with skeptics who see the same exam given to kids in the same way on the same day as the most trustworthy approach to judging teacher performance.
Does any of this make sense?
Bill
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Clay Burell Reply:
December 18th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Bill, it does make sense and all your points are well-taken. Darling-Hammond’s presentation (linked above) on this approach to teacher and school assessments in the countries with the strongest educational rankings at least shows that a) there are precedents in other countries that do it with proven success; and b) since she knows Obama and Duncan, she can push for consideration of reforms along these lines.
Whether the broader climate in the US is capable of supporting such reforms, though, I can’t speak to. But isn’t there going to be litigation in any model? Again, I’m not suggesting I know the answer to that question. It’s not rhetorical.
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Bill Ferriter
18 Dec 08 at 8:47 pm
Nice post. I have had this one open in a tab for… ever it seems. That is the problem with you, you know? Perhaps you should stop posting things that require so much research and thought.
Come on now, what do you think about posting a “cool link of the day” instead?
Heh. Sorry.
I’m a guy- I guess all compliments in maledom have to come with a poke in the ribs of some sort, right? Right? No? Ok, good.
But yes -through all of the reading you so passively implored me to do by posting this- I am thinking I am still well left of this guy. Here’s hoping he is capable of being bent away from the business-like approaches to “accountability” we have seen this far in ed. I guess we’ll all just have to wait and see on this one.
As always- thanks.
Sean
Sean Nashs last blog post..Writing online: what really changes?
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Sean Nash
23 Dec 08 at 12:51 am
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