When Teachers Flunk the Test; Much attention has been given to the poor performance of U.S. schoolchildren on proficiency tests, but many teachers have their own problems making the grade

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Sept 30, 2003 | by Kelly Patricia O'Meara

Stern continues, "So the question is, what is it that they do in these schools, whose teachers don't have the graduate courses, etc., that produce better results? The point is that they use a system of close scrutiny of the knowledge the teacher brings to the subject what they've studied, their academic performance and what they're like in a classroom so they can weed out the teachers who can't make the grade. No one will tell you that having a license guarantees an effective or even adequate teacher. I'm on the side of less licensing and also giving principals and districts the right to devise their own way of assessing teacher competence. We'd save a tremendous amount of money."

How then do you evaluate administrators? Stern says, "It doesn't bother me that a principal fails a test. I'd first want to know what his record is as a principal. You know, does he run a decent school? Look at it this way: What if all the newspapers were required by state law to hire only licensed journalists who had been to graduate schools of journalism? Do you think it would improve the quality of journalism? I think, for sure, there should be some basic tests for teachers concerning liberal arts some minimal understanding of basic curriculum and that they know at least in what century the Civil War was fought, but beyond that we should allow the schools to make those decisions and then hold principals and districts accountable for the results. I just don't think there should be any other iron rule. There are many things to look at before you can determine who is doing a good job and who is not."

Tim Dedman, a senior policy analyst with the National Education Association (NEA) Teacher Quality Department, the nation's leading teachers union, tells Insight that "testing of teachers is something that should occur throughout the teacher-preparation phase of teaching. We have resolutions that speak to teacher preparation, content, competency and lifelong learning, and we believe that's the most appropriate phase of testing teachers. As far as testing teachers in service those who have begun their practice we believe in very strong and jointly developed evaluation systems to promote ongoing career growth."

Just what does that mean? According to Dedman, "In terms of requiring a teacher test for individuals who are already practicing, we do not support that. It would be the equivalent of requiring a lawyer losing a certain number of cases to go back and take the bar exam again. We believe the testing should be based on the content and teaching skills required and determined by the various states as an initial licensure piece."

Lisa Graham Keegan, a former state education superintendent in Arizona and currently the chief executive officer of the Education Leaders Council, a nonprofit organization that advocates for fundamental reforms in education, believes that teachers at every level should be tested. She tells Insight, "It is absolutely essential that a classroom teacher know the subject matter and know effective teaching."