Teacher Training

$40,000 Pay Raise for Giving Up Tenure?

larry — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:19:07 -0600

I’ve covered this previously: The DC schools superintendent—a now-famous Michelle Rhee—is proposing to reward teachers who improve student achievement, and end tenure to simplify the removal of chronically ineffective teachers. The idea is generally supported by younger teachers, and opposed by long-time teachers. Current teachers could opt in (or not, and not qualify for the large potential raises), but, at some point, all new teachers would join the new plan. After growing impatient with stalled negotiations, Rhee is moving to administratively impose a 90-day improvement plan on some of the District’s chronically ineffective teachers.

A growing number of folks (including President-Elect Obama) now support reforming the teacher tenure and compensation system as a critical strategy for improving student achievement. And, just today, a teacher’s union president spoke approvingly of a pilot that rewards teachers and other school staff for increasing student achievement (was that a certain fiery place freezing over?). The issue was addressed recently by two national writers, both of whom are almost certainly left-of-center:

Leonard Pitts applauds the dedication of teachers, but maintains that exceptional urban public schools are, well, the exception and not the rule. Student dropout rates and achievement would support his argument. Rewarding teachers and firing the bad ones would go far in improving schools, in Pitts’ opinion. However, nowhere does Pitts mention the responsibility that parents and students bear, though I suspect it was an oversight, as Pitts I think often promotes personal responsibility.

Nicholas Kristoff believes that growing our economy and addressing poverty issues depends on improving our failing urban schools. He highlights recommendations from the centrist Brookings Institute: ease the certification requirements that, in practice, bar talented professionals from teaching; change tenure rules to simplify weeding out ineffective teachers; and give hefty bonuses to teachers willing to serve in low-income areas. Kristoff also argues that we need to pay teachers a lot more.

Of course the devil’s in the details. It’s a complicated issue and many teachers have legitimate concerns that should be carefully addressed. We believe the focus first should be on helping current teachers improve and recruiting potentially great teachers (and compensating them accordingly), instead of focusing solely on removing ineffective teachers.

Pamelia Valentine: Join and Be Counted!

maureen — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 12:26:35 -0500

I’m heading off this weekend to go to the Washington State Arts Education Association’s state convention. I will be doing presentations on becoming a National Board Certified Teacher. “So, one of my teacher-friends asks, why are you going? And really- why are you presenting?” It didn’t take me any time at all to reply. “Because that’s how I get new information!”

When I go to conventions or spend time researching opportunities, I am just adding to my own knowledge base. Yes, I’m sharing information too- but then, I am gaining new information as well. I asked, “Don’t you go to your professional associations state convention?” She said, “No.” In fact, I found out, she doesn’t even belong to a professional association! That answer took me by surprise so I did a little research. . .

I discovered that less than a third of the teachers in my building actually belong to their disciplines professional associations. They are missing out on networking with like-minded individuals. They aren’t receiving the latest publications their association has access to and they aren’t benefiting from the shared knowledge of the national professional group in their field of expertise. What a wealth of information that is passing them by!

I believe that teachers have a responsibility to stay current and to stay curious. When the professional organization participates in developing new standards of practice the whole body of teachers involved with the process receives the updates and they have a chance to vet the new ideas before they become requirements for the students they teach.

When I was still a student our professors required us to join a professional association and that’s what got me actively involved in teaching reading across the content areas. Without my ties to the Washington Art Education Association I wouldn’t have had the information about national standards that I needed in order to pursue National Board Certification.

We can’t afford to sit around and moan about the changes in education that we don’t like. We must be a part of the ongoing process to grow, develop and change our own teaching to align with best practices in an ongoing evolution. One of the sites I visited recently was loaded with information on getting started in joining professional associations.

Join your own professional association and by stay involved in the wonderful jigsaw of professional growth! Go forth and research and then present- we will all profit from your effort!

Pamelia Valentine is a guest blogger and teacher in the Shelton School District.

Previous Blogs:

Building Relationships with Difficult Students

I WILL know what you did last summer

A Rennaissance for Our School

Finally a meme (and a terrific blog) I care about!

maureen — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 13:37:23 -0500

Stumbling on to the Stories from School blog is a bit like finding a best-kept-secret coffee shop. Half of you can’t wait to share it with your friends and the other half greedily wants to keep it just for yourself to enjoy. Well, my former half is about to win.

Stories from School was created by the Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession (or CSTP) as a means for Nationally Board Certified Teachers to reflect on the effects policy has on their classroom practice—and reflect they certainly do. These teachers aren’t just engaging narrative writers, they essentially collapse the divide (let’s face it, grand canyon) between policymakers and educators.

Witness their coverage of ELL instruction, performance pay, and the alternative routes to certification debate.

My favorite set of posts on the blog, however, are the type I usually hate: memes. Over the last few weeks, Stories’ teachers have each listed “5 things policymakers ought to know about my classroom”—and the lists are terrific. Here’s a taste:

Tom: “3. Many of my students eat the best meal of their day during lunch in the cafeteria. And they get it for free. I worry about them over the summer.

4. Nearly half of my students speak a language other than English at home. Twenty years ago, when I first started teaching in my school, there were less than ten bilingual students in the whole school.”

Richelle: “3. All day kindergarten (and preschool) matter! Having taught elementary students for 16 years, I can often tell which students have had such high quality early learning experiences. It is always frustrating to see, at the age of five, that some kids are already so far behind their peers.”

Shelley: “3. The emotional needs of children in my classroom are often overlooked or neglected because there are not enough resources available to help them. In order to help students learn, we must first take care of their emotional needs. Experts recommend one counselor for every 250 students across all grade levels, but the current ratio at my middle school is 454:1. Our community counseling services for children are also overloaded.”

Curious? Check out Stories from School for yourself.

Pamelia Valentine—I WILL know what you did last summer...

maureen — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:37:49 -0500

Summertime and quite honestly- the living isn’t really all that easy. This is the time of year that I reflect on what went well last year and what I am going to change for this year. As folks in the education profession know first-hand, we don’t really “get the whole summer off” as my non-teacher friends jealously assert. We attend conferences, we go to extra classes and, yes, we have time to mow the lawn a couple of times. I know that I’m not alone in this information seeking and gathering pursuit because the other teachers in my building are also engaged in a like manner.

But I have noticed a disturbing thing that happens when we all get back to school each fall. We don’t have an efficient mode of sharing our epiphanies with each other. We can be totally blown away with a new approach for teaching reading or writing or. . . fill in the blank. But when September arrives we are back to business as usual even though the teacher across the hall has learned a method that really changes his life. We miss out on the opportunity to build collegiality. According to an article I found at Successful Teachers Successful Schools, “Today’s teachers must interact with each other more than ever before. . . collegiality greatly impacts teachers’ morale, happiness, and satisfaction”.

With that in mind I began to think about a way for staff to share what they learned over the summer with each other this fall. I came up with a short survey that we could fill out on our first staff-training day. Something simple, direct and informational that could be used for building connections all year long. Here it is:

We DON’T Know What You Did Last Summer- (But We’d Like To. . . )
Name:_______________ Subject you teach:_______________ Grade level:______
Training(s) you attended:__________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

Top three ideas that you use in your classroom:
1)____________________________________________
2)____________________________________________
3)____________________________________________

Tips and tricks?

_________________________________________________________________

I will compile the results and then share them with the whole staff. [Ed’s Note: We’ll be interested to know what you found from your colleagues too!] From that point we could invite someone to present at a staff meeting or we could form groups based on our like interests. A couple more great outcomes of this would be:

Sharing new and exciting information making all of us richer for the experience of one.
We would have “go-to” people identified right up front and that might save time as well as help us to build relationships with our colleagues.

I’m going to try this at my school this fall. I’ll be excited to discover if it helps us build collegiality. At the very least, I’ll find out which conferences I’d like to attend next summer.

Pamelia Valentine is a guest blogger and teacher in the Shelton School District.

Previous Blogs:

A Rennaissance for Our School

Being a Teacher Leader--Within, Across and Beyond

Becoming a Teacher Leader

“For every action…

maureen — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:10:42 -0500

…there is a reaction.” Newton said that about motion, but he could have just as easily said it about the inertia of education reform—particularly when it comes to getting more teachers into the classroom. Circling around the news today, a Tacoma News Tribune column demonstrates this very point.

Responding to Liv Finne’s editorial on the barrier of teacher credentials in Washington state, Jill Van Glubt flies to the Professional Educator Standards Board’s (PESB) defense. Van Glubt, chair of PESB (which governs teacher certification in WA), seeks to make it clear that changing teacher certification laws to allow more professionals access to the classroom isn’t the silver bullet to increasing math and science teacher capacity or student performance.

“A high degree of knowledge in math and science is necessary for effective teaching, but not sufficient. Just knowing a tremendous amount about a subject does not mean you can teach it to a classroom of 14-year-olds,” writes Van Glubt.

“Teaching credentials that reflect attainment of both subject knowledge and teaching skills do, and must, matter. The purpose of a license is to assure the public that the holder has achieved an expected level of competency. After all, we are entrusting our children to that person’s care. Not only do we know that parents want licensed and qualified teachers, we know from research that it does make a difference.”

But what about Teacher for America? you might ask. Don’t those young teachers lack full licenses and have been shown to increase capacity and test scores?

Van Glubt responds: “Studies on TFA graduate effectiveness haven’t addressed the impact of credentialing and, in one, more TFA graduates held certification in the subject they were teaching than non-TFA. TFA has an impressive track record of high-caliber recruits that achieve positive student learning results. However, very few teachers in TFA stay beyond their two-year commitment.”

The debate on whether or not to reduce teacher certification laws in order to allow more mathematicians and scientists to teach is certainly far from over. Van Glubt recommends “a more aggressive recruitment strategy and greater access to a wider variety of training options,” but one wonders if this is merely more of the same strategy we’ve been using along. On the other hand, as the shortage of math and science teachers captures more attention, we may see more of a public push for dramatically improving current teacher recruitment and retention practices.

Perhaps only time will tell. I wonder what Newton would say…

To learn more about this issue and Alternative Routes to teacher certification, visit PESB’s website.

Planting the teaching seed

maureen — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 13:03:29 -0500

It seems like we wring our hands constantly about teacher shortages. Well, it’s Friday and my hands are tired. Fortunately, Heritage University has created a program that gives Eastern Washington high school students who aspire to be teachers a chance to gain experience.

Dubbed “Recruiting Washington Teachers” (clever! sorry) and run through Educational Service District 105, the program starts with a three-day teacher prep academy, which commences a year-long course of study. Throughout the year, high school students will be able to work with teachers in their high schools as advisers and mentors for other students. They’ll also be given tailored college counseling in order finish well and enter undergraduate teaching programs.

"This program helps you get the confidence to share your ideas and go out and do what you want," Xuxa Garza, who will be a junior at the Yakama Nation Tribal school next year, told the Yakima Herald Republic. "I enjoy being in the classroom and learning and stuff. School work was my way of getting away from my problems."

Ultimately, the program’s goal is to recruit more students from diverse backgrounds into high shortage content areas, such as math, science, ELL and special ed. Sounds good to me (and my hands)!

TGIF.

When Early Childhood and Higher Ed Collide

maureen — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 10:52:24 -0500

I spent last Thursday nearly nose-to-nose with an epic dinosaur skeleton in the UW’s Burke Museum. No, I wasn’t taking a day off to soak up history. I was crammed into a meeting of Representatives from the House Higher Education and Early Learning/Children’s Services Committees to discuss preparation programs for early learning professionals and options for legislation in the 2009 session.

Here’s what I found out:

-Early Learning Preparation Programs in Washington are pretty patchwork. Some programs exist as a mishmash of interdisciplinary AA requirements. Some exist as an added emphasis to an education degree. Some exist completely outside of colleges of ed. And frankly, those are just the few I remember from the four-hour meeting. In any case, the most promising program was launched this year by the UW as an undergraduate degree in early childhood education. This degree was separate from the College of Education and added elements of pediatrics and development psychology, which I found impressive.

The UW is also exploring creating a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education Leadership as the next step for individuals who complete their undergrad degrees. However, the UW’s representative added that this was contingent on (you guessed it) funding.

-We’re all still learning what “good” early learning professional preparation means. The meeting was a great chance for early learning professional preparation programs to share what they’re doing and the challenges their students face. What I found encouraging was the amount of emerging early childhood research many schools are incorporating into their programs. This keeps students/childcare providers aligned with cutting edge knowledge and researchers in touch with those in the field. Good all around.

-Coordination is going to be key moving forward. Early learning is such an emerging field, it seems like everyone’s taking the ball and running in different directions (one organization who complained of lack of student scholarships was astonished that another offered them). The legislature is going to really have to drill down and—in a manner similar to K-12—designate who is responsible for what and what bodies govern whom. They’ve done this to some degree with the creation of the Department of Early Learning and Thrive by 5. But no one disagrees that they’ve got a lot more work ahead of them.

Well, there you have it folks. To learn more about Early Learning initiatives throughout Washington state, visit the Early Learning section of our site.

The Certified Difference

maureen — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 13:03:07 -0500

Interesting news coming of the NYTimes today, in regard to a study performed by the National Research Council that found students taught by educators certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards make bigger gains on standardized tests than students taught by other teachers.

''I would sure look for the credential,'' Milton Hakel, a Bowling Green State University psychology professor who headed the committee that conducted the council review, told the NY Times. ''The fact that the signal is there is something that's useful to superintendents, to hiring committees, to districts.''

It is not clear from the research whether the process of getting certified by the national board makes teachers better or if those who get certified were already top performers, according to the report. More research is needed to try to determine that, Hakel said.

For me this is sort of a “no-duh” situation. We’ve long said that board certification (including subject-area tests, submitting on-the-job videotapes and samples of student and teacher work) is a terrific indicator of teacher quality. And does it matter if these teachers are supposed “top performers?” Either way, they are demonstrating a commitment to their craft and students and becoming a leader to their peers. This is certainly evident in the words and stories of our guest teacher bloggers, Pamelia Valentine and Molly Berger.

Unfortunately, just 64,000 teachers have earned the accreditation nationwide, which amounts to a mere three teachers in every five schools, according to the report. And Washington state holds a mere 1,313 accredited teachers out of a nearly 56,000 educator workforce—behind the scenes, however, groups like the Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession are working to change this.

For more information on National Board Teacher Certification in Washington visit our Teacher Quality section.

Pamelia Valentine: Being a Teacher Leader--Within, Across and Beyond

maureen — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 11:28:44 -0500

This time of year as things are winding down at school and summer is on the horizon it seems like a good time to get a new perspective and hone in on the things that are really important. One thing that is important to me is to continue learning and making connections. The first weekend in May, I decided to attend the annual Center For Strengthening the Teaching Profession (CSTP) sponsored National Board Certified Teachers’ (NBCT) retreat at Sleeping Lady resort just out of Leavenworth, Washington.

The retreat focus was on building teacher leaders “Within, Across and Beyond.” It was an investment that was worthwhile and will be long remembered. The CSTP founder, Jeanne Harmon was full of energy, as usual, as were the presenters.

With the number of NBCT teachers growing every year there are more and more potential teacher leaders and teaching opportunities. This retreat offered the NBCT teachers the chance to think about taking a leadership role to act upon immediately or mull over for the summer. Ideas like scoring the WASL assessments in order to help students know how to respond to questions; serving on OSPI (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction) committees; working within my school in groups of “Critical Friends” or helping out with one of the WEA (Washington Education Association) sponsored events that help National Board Candidates begin the process: “Jumpstart” or finish it up and send the material in for scoring: “Homestretch.”

But as I reflected on the wonderful weekend– great food– closing ceremonies including Terry Bergeson current Superintendent of Public Instruction and our own Andrea Petersen– National Teacher of the Year– both dynamite speakers and excellent role models– I had to think: What if I hadn’t pursued National Board Certification? Would I still have had opportunities to learn and lead?

As I gave those ideas some consideration I had to admit that I am now more aware of opportunities for teacher leaders. The retreat expanded on those familiar territories and elucidated a myriad of other potential roles for teacher-leaders. But as a teacher I have always had chances to learn through classes offered at local colleges and through various professional development lessons. I concluded that I wouldn’t necessarily have to be an NBCT to participate in some of these activities.

The real decisions that every teacher has to make are the decisions concerning the use of that most precious commodity-time. Some choose to coach sports, some choose to coach peers, some choose to pursue higher education or to spend more time with a growing family. Each of these are valid choices. Teachers have so many options that it’s almost like the old “Let’s Make a Deal” game- only ALL the doors are great prizes!

Whatever I choose to spend my time on I know that I can make a difference WITHIN myself, my school, my community and ACROSS the hall, the curriculum, the ESD and BEYOND the scope of the classroom to reach and teach as far as my imagination can take me.

That realization alone was well worth the price of the retreat. I’m glad I chose to spend my time at the Sleeping Lady retreat and I appreciate the partnership of the CSTP, the WEA and the OSPI for supporting teachers in this state and giving all of us the opportunity to grow and learn.

Pamelia Valentine is a guest blogger and teacher in the Shelton School District.

Previous Blogs:

Becoming a Teacher Leader

Practice Makes Perfect

Creativity Really Does Matter

Ladies and Gentleman, the Washington Class of 2008

maureen — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:32:33 -0500

Just like the tagline of a cinema epic, the road forged by the class of 2008 has been a groundbreaking one, more than a decade in the making. In the next few weeks, students will graduate as the first class to be better prepared for life after high school, demonstrating their ability to succeed on the reading and writing WASL, complete a culminating project and implement a "high school and beyond" plan.

No one doubts the that process of implementing these new graduation requirements has been difficult, but to the credit of principals, teachers, students and parents, out of 67,000 12^th graders currently enrolled in Washington schools an impressive 91.4 percent of students have met state standards in both the reading and writing and are on track to graduate later this month.

“This is a celebration of over a decade of work. These are our first graduates to have more scrutiny placed on them than almost anyone in the state and they’ve risen to the challenge,” said Terry Bergeson, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. “But the big picture is that our schools are now delivering more personalized attention than ever to keep students engaged in school and help them achieve high standards.”

It’s important to note that, to date, there are 3,000 students who have yet to take the test. When these students are subtracted from the total population, the number of students who have met standard goes up to a remarkable 95 percent.

A More Meaningful Diploma

The delivery of these results has proven both inspiring and cathartic for students and teachers. Many students took the reading and writing Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) several times to reach state standards, others demonstrated their capabilities through the submission of portfolios, still others used SAT and AP scores to prove their skills. But later this month, they will all receive a diploma that’s more meaningful than any in our state’s history.

Rose Worgum, an academic counselor at Curtis High School, has seen firsthand how the state’s new diploma requirements have helped to better prepare students for the world of college and work.

“One thing that stands out as significant to me is a student that I worked with who transferred here from the Ukraine in her sophomore year, just a few months before the WASL was administered,” said Worgum. “She spoke no English and ended up taking the WASL that year and did not pass. She worked very hard in her classes and with her English language and in her junior year when she took the WASL, she passed with Level 4's (advanced) in reading and writing and also passed math with a Level 3 (proficient).”

The state’s other new graduation requirements including the completion of the culminating project have also posed challenges for students, but significant benefits, as well, as they plan their next step in life.

“When students are invited to stretch their learning in a meaningful and manageable way, they rise to the occasion,” said Molly Berger, an English teacher in the Yakima School District who supported many of her students through the new culminating project requirement.

The Credit Deficiency Culprit

The students who have not yet passed the reading and/or writing WASL still have a chance to meet state standards through either registering to submit a “collection of evidence” portfolio by June 16 or retaking the WASL in mid-August. The decision to allow these students to participate in graduation ceremonies has been left up to individual districts.

In most cases, however, failure to pass the required reading and writing WASL will not be the decisive factor that holds some students back from graduation. According to a 2007 Washington State University study of more than 10,000 students in 13 districts, lack of sufficient course credits will hold far more students back than failure to meet state graduation standards (see chart below).

“The problem of credit deficiency is ultimately a larger challenge for our students than assessment,” said Brian Jeffries, Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) graduation policy director. “Thankfully, programs like ‘Navigation 101’ that help students plan for college and careers and tie their courses to their future goals will reduce credit deficiency as a barrier to graduation.”

Strengthening the Graduation Rate

OSPI will not know the total graduation rate for the class of 2008 until early September, after the August WASL retake. But contrary to the fears of some, there is no indication that the dropout rate will increase this year as a result of the new requirements.

“It is unacceptable to assume the WASL will either increase or decrease our state’s dropout rates,” said Larry Ehl, executive director of Partnership for Learning. “While the WASL itself is not a means to fix our dropout rate, it measures whether a student is ready to take that next step in life. We must continue to explore ways to keep students engaged, motivated and supported while also holding them to the high standards needed for college and work success.”

Supt. Bergeson has often noted that, in other states, the implementation of testing requirements have little impact on graduation rates over time. They have, however, been shown to decrease the number of remedial classes students must take when the exit high school and enter post-secondary institutions, which often strengthens the student incentive to finish well.

Looking Ahead

In many ways, the success of the class of 2008 is just the beginning. The classes of 2009-12 will be subject to the same requirements, but will also be expected to build on this year’s achievement as the process for helping students meet standards and finish requirements becomes more clarified and streamlined. Starting in 2013 and 2014, students will be required to pass the high school math WASL or an end-of-course exam to graduate (currently, students who don’t pass math WASL can earn two math credits after 10^th grade to meet standard).

But Supt. Bergeson doesn’t want to short-change this year’s accomplishment.

“To the students, I must say: Congratulations. You’ve met the challenge and you’ve prepared for your future. You will be going into the 21^st century with the skills to build our future and make our country and economy what we truly want it to be.”

Tracking the Class of 2008

This diagram, created by OSPI, shows the progress of the class of 2008 starting in 9th grade.

Resources for the Class of 2008

To learn more about the requirements for the Class of 2008 and the upcoming requirements for the Classes of 2009-2013, visit OSPI’s resource page.

To find out about the alternative methods for students to meet state standards and graduation requirements, visit OSPI’s Certificate of Achievement page.

Key Upcoming Dates

June 3 -- Public release of 12^th grade WASL results

June 6 -- School districts receive individual student WASL score reports from Pearson Educational Measurement, the state’s testing contractor. School districts receive combined score report for assessment for segmented mathematics

June 9-13 -- Individual student results for grades 10, 11 and 12 available for districts to share with students and their families.

June 16 -- Deadline to submit Collection of Evidence and Report to Families: OSPI’s announcement of state-level High School WASL results and progress with graduation requirement in reading, writing and math

June 9-27 -- Registration window for August High School WASL

June 16-20 -- Third batch of Certificate of Academic Achievement/Certificate of Individual Achievement certificates delivered

August 11-14 -- August High School WASL (Counts for 2007-08 school year)

By September 10 -- OSPI releases statewide Spring 2008 WASL performance in all subjects and all grades.

Washington Math Teachers Gear Up for New Standards

With Washington’s new K-8 math standards in place, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) is undertaking a series of massive training sessions for more than 10,000 math teachers statewide.

The training sessions will take place in Spokane in late June and in Tacoma in late July and early August. Some Educational Service Districts (ESDs) and school districts are scheduling their own sessions, as well. The state will pay for related materials including copies of the 2008 Washington State K-8 Mathematics Standards for all participants.

“The mathematics standards training is not required,” said Lexie Domaradzki, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning at OSPI. “However, starting in the spring of 2010, math tests at all grade levels will assess whether students have learned the mathematics content contained in the new standards.”

Professional development for mathematics standards in grades 9-12 will be scheduled later this year, following the adoption of the revised standards for those grades.

For more information on — and to register for — OSPI and ESD-sponsored trainings visit https://eds.ospi.k12.wa.us/EventsManager/Public/Calendar.aspx (Events Manager search terms: Revised Mathematics Standards, Math, K-8).