Inquirer Editorial: Who teaches matters
A new study by the Gates Foundation merely confirms what was already known: Good teachers make a difference. Researchers reached the conclusion that teacher performance is crucial to student achievement after analyzing 3,000 teachers and their students in eight districts, including Pittsburgh, New York, Dallas, and Denver. They said student test scores, classroom observations, and evaluations from students help identify the most effective teachers.
A new study by the Gates Foundation merely confirms what was already known: Good teachers make a difference.
Researchers reached the conclusion that teacher performance is crucial to student achievement after analyzing 3,000 teachers and their students in eight districts, including Pittsburgh, New York, Dallas, and Denver. They said student test scores, classroom observations, and evaluations from students help identify the most effective teachers.
The three-year study, which cost $45 million, is the first of its kind to demonstrate what makes a good teacher, according to the foundation. The findings released this week should intensify the debate over how to evaluate teachers in holding them accountable for student learning.
The Obama administration has required states to adopt teacher evaluation systems tied to student performance in order to compete for Race to the Top funds or to seek waivers from the federal No Child Left Behind law. To their credit, some teachers' unions have agreed to more rigorous evaluations, an issue they once considered off-limits.
Historically, collective bargaining units have resisted changes in work rules and how teachers are evaluated. But changes must be made to put the best teachers in the classroom and to reward those who get improved results.
It's good to see that the Gates study suggests a variety of ways to evaluate teachers, rather than making the mistake of placing too much emphasis on standardized test scores. That has led to cheating allegations in Philadelphia and other districts.
Teacher evaluations should yield greater accountability. Poor teachers should receive the additional training or resources they need. Those who fail over and over should find another vocation, but that has become nearly impossible under union tenure rules that are often based on ineffective evaluations.
Most teacher observations are cursory at best, conducted by a single person, typically a principal, and are used primarily to decide who gets rehired annually. For example, in the Newark schools, a struggling system with an abysmal 62 percent graduation rate, 95 percent of the teachers were rated "effective" under an antiquated evaluation system that was replaced in November.
The Gates study found that classroom observations conducted by several people, such as a principal, a peer, and an outside expert, yielded the most accurate assessments. Teachers were ranked using a statistical system that calculates how much a teacher has helped students learn based on their performance over time.
Researchers said the most effective teachers were able to replicate good academic results with different students in different years. In other words, the teachers were the variable that made the difference, not the type of students they were teaching.
Every student deserves a good teacher. School districts can make that happen by providing incentives for the best teachers, helping teachers who need help, and getting rid of those who shouldn't be in the profession.
