Chicago strike could influence teacher accountability debate
by Michael Pearson, CNN
(CNN) The debate over teacher evaluations that's taken center stage in the Chicago schools strike could have major effects on the issue in the future, an education expert says.
"Chicago absolutely matters," said Elena Silva, senior associate for public policy engagement at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
"I think what happens here will substantially matter for what we see happen with teacher evaluations nationwide," she said.
In the last three years, 21 states have passed have legislation or implemented new regulations designed to highlight teacher accountability, according to a report by Bellwether Education Partners, a consulting firm.
The changes came often by way of the kind of standardized testing that one Chicago Teachers Union board member referred to as "data-driven madness."
My View: A parent's take on the CPS teachers strike
In many - but not all - cases, the reforms were hotly contested, with teachers unions saying the changes put jobs at risk without enough evidence they would work in the way both sides say reforms should work - helping students learn, said Sara Mead, a Bellwether analyst who tracks teacher effectiveness policy nationwide.
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naturally like your website but you have to test the spelling on several of your posts. A number of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very troublesome to tell the reality then again I will definitely come back again.
Teachers and all other union members, around the work environment should all come to an agreement sometime or another, its not fair for people to have to go to on strike, or even lockouts because of a disagreement between one, or many people, everybody has the right to disagree, or agree. Because of this, many teachers in Chicago as well as Students are not getting the education they need, or money to be able to put food on the the table.
Teachers who are well respected in their community should have a role and input in designing the evaluation for their particular school district. This way it would be fair, and the teachers would also be more invested in making it work.
There are definitely factors outside of test scores that could impact the results of student performance and in some instances should be considered as part of the evaluation. Our school system is failing but we can's place the blame on teachers. From how we perceive education (privilege vs. right) to the lack of resources to poor practices all contribute to what has not changed since public education was first established in this country (excluding the Quakers).