When Teachers Grade Each Other
http://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2011-06-16/when-teachers-grade-each-other
Sometimes the toughest grades teachers have to give are for each other. Montgomery County is among the jurisdictions where teachers participate in "peer assistance and review" - a system that allows senior teachers to evaluate newcomers and under-performing veterans. We explore how it works and where it fits in evaluating teacher performance in the classroom.
Guests
Doug Prouty
President, Montgomery County Education Association
Kate Walsh
President, National Council on Teacher Quality
Nathan Saunders
President, Washington Teachers' Union
Comments
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With all due respect to your panelist, many teachers under peer review are not struggling, instead they chose to teach in a different manner, "outside the box" if you will and are penalized for it. Montgomery county has found a way to fire teachers without actually having to do the dirty work by putting so much pressure on the teachers under review that they opt out to leave instead of getting fired and have trouble finding a new job.
I do believe on paper it's a good idea to help and encourage teachers, however I question the manner in which it is implemented and the limitation of teachers' rights who are under these reviews.
As a retired administrator/teacher in MCPS, I have seen that many teachers when confronted with the prospect of being placed on PAR voluntarily resign from the school system and seek other employment elsewhere or retire if they are of the appropriate age. Thus, those teachers who enter PAR tend to be more motivated to improve and more receptive to the work of the consulting teacher. At the schools where I worked, I observed very few underperforming teachers, and most of them either left the system or went on PAR and subsequently left the system or improved.
Kojo,
I don't see why a teacher needs to be
told how to improve at their job. I spent 23 years in IT where.
I was expected to go out and find classes and other resources to
Improve my knowledge. I never got paid time off to do my work
Teachers get teacher work days and extra time on Mondays to grade
Papers etc. I often hear teachers talk about the pay difference
And how important their job. If they want comparable pay let them put
In the same work, time, and effort as we do
When I grew up our teachers did their jobs. Without all this paid time off
They knew my abilities and when I was not trying
They did not have the resources that today's teachers have yet they did a
Great job.
Venus
I listened to the whole show - found it very timely with a good representation of speakers.
As a recently retired teacher in both Art and Special Education fields (28 years!), there are two other related topics I would like to hear discussed on your show and others:
1. Re help and support for new teachers: When I was first started teaching, there was ZERO (0) support! You were basically on your own, and it's not just about knowing your content area and having good communication skills. A new teacher has to learn the particular school culture, i.e.: makeup of the student body, expectations from administrators (they are all different and have their own individual styles), what are the office procedures - availability of xerox machines, paper supplies, signing in, substitute procedures, report card procedures, field trip procedures, how to get a repair from maintenance or computer techs, ordering procedures, meeting times, school duties outside of classroom, rules for parent communication, discipline measures, etc ........it's a very tall order, and it's one of the reasons new teachers struggle so much and why even veterans can get overwhelmed.
When the Montgomery county representative described their program as immediately enrolling all new teachers, I thought it very smart and was actually jealous I hadn't had that kind of support when I first started teaching!
2. What administrators (if any) are giving thought to using some of the
strategies that the Special Ed communities have incorporated and which ones do they find plausible? To wit:
- Special Ed schools routinely hold staffings (in-depth discussions) on
all students, but when a student is having a particularly rough time -
and consequently giving the staff a rough time - they will hold special
staffings (crisis meetings on that individual) and while time-consuming,
important information comes to light that usually benefits everyone.
Ex: staff finds out that student has a particularly tough time with
male teachers or vice versa. One teacher has found out a student's
sibling is very ill; another has noted the student has no real friends at
school; sometimes the teachers find that the student is 'playing' all of
them; on and on. At the meetings at least one counselor and
administrator are present.
- Student schedules are individualized as much as possible; again, it is
very time-consuming, but lays good groundwork for a successful
school year.
- Advisor systems: many private schools and colleges do this; while it
adds another time-consuming duty to teachers, it helps with student-
teacher-parent communication and the community at large.
There are a number of other transferable strategies, but the above three
come to mind as the ones with the most impact. For public schools to implement them would probably require smaller class sizes, but they are worthy goals to aim for.
Thanks for reading, I really enjoy your show when I catch it!