News Briefs
California allows teacher pay to be tied to student test data
Oct 29, 2009 10:54 AM
In a bid to secure federal Race to the Top funding for schools, California legislators struck from a 2006 state education law a clause barring the tying of teacher pay or promotions to students’ state test results. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan called it “a victory for children,” arguing that the $4.35 billion in education funding available to states at his discretion cannot have any “firewall” between student achievement data and teachers.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger emphasized that the bill does not guarantee the state any federal funding and urged legislators to approve other legislation, including repealing the state’s charter school cap, to give California a better chance of getting education dollars.
Federal officials have emphasized that the Race to the Top funding is competitive and that only a handful of states will get grants.
Race to the Top grants will be awarded in two stages. The first deadline, which has yet to be finalized, is expected to be sometime this winter.
States that apply but do not receive funding during the first round will get a detailed response from the federal government and can try again.
Other states, including Louisiana, Indiana and Tennessee, are also changing their laws to become competitive for the big payout.
The UFT believes that standardized stakes test results are not an adequate gauge of teacher effectiveness.
LA Now (Los Angeles Times blog), Oct. 13
