“We can’t reclaim the promise of public education without investing in strong neighborhood public schools that are safe, collaborative and welcome environments for students, parents, educators and the broader community. Schools where teachers and school staff are well-prepared and well-supported, with manageable class sizes and time to collaborate. Schools with rigorous standards aligned to an engaging curriculum that focuses on teaching and learning, not testing, and that includes art, music, civics and the sciences — and where all kids’ instructional needs are met.”
-Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers in the Washington Post Answer Sheet column by Valerie Strauss.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, has made a stand that resonates with many educators. It is possible to embrace the Common Core Standards while being critical of the testing that has accompanied their roll-out. Being quick to find fault is a habit engrained in American culture. Many are critical of the new standards. Ironically, few of those critics are actually educators.
Weingarten is president of the second largest teachers union in the country. One might suspect that she is only looking out for her constituency. That, of course, is her job. Yet, advocating for her teachers ultimately benefits children. Weingarten makes a connection that so many policymakers have missed. When teachers are treated fairly and rationally, they are better educators.
States are using value-added models to evaluate and rate teachers. These measures are attached to the funds that states have received through Race to the Top. In other words, states have been coerced into using test scores to develop complicated evaluation tools for teachers. There is little evidence that VAM-based evaluation tools have been, or will be, accurate and fair to teachers.
By circumstance, principals stand in the middle of this political mess. They have been thrust into a quagmire of illogical formulas designed to quantify the art of teaching. Rather than being overwhelmed by this predicament, principals should be a voice of reason and sound thinking.
While diligently serving as the interpreters of educational change, principals can make sure that good teachers don’t flee a profession they love. The adoption of the Common Core should be separated from the assessment-focused milieu that has been forced on schools. Principals can, and must, do this for their teachers. Principals can foster a transition to the Common Core that does not alienate teachers in the process. If they can’t accomplish this, who can?
Link to full Washington Post article: