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Should teachers be paid based on their performance?
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There has always been a lot of discussion about whether teachers’ pay should be based on merit.
While I totally agree that it would be nice to reward outstanding teachers and get rid of the incompetent teachers, it is difficult to picture how such a system would be set up.
As a former Compensation Specialist at the University of Michigan, I know how complicated it is to fairly evaluate personnel. It seems to me that a teacher’s evaluation in particular could be very subjective.
Would you be able to base the evaluations on measurable areas, such as student achievement? Or would the merit pay be based on the principals' opinions?
Perhaps students and parents could have a say in the evaluation. After all, they are the clients. How fair would that be?
Tom Watkins, former Superintendent of Michigan Public Schools, believes that it is time to pay teachers based on their performance.
In a recent article for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, Watkins points out that teacher pay is based almost exclusively on years in the classroom and college degrees, yet neither of these improve teachers' effectiveness in raising student achievement.
He believes that merit pay program should be based on student achievement measured by statistics to ensure teachers are not penalized (or rewarded) for factors they cannot control, such as students' family incomes and backgrounds.
Watkins points out “Merit-pay programs are being tried elsewhere, such as Chicago, Denver, Minnesota and Florida. Yet few Michigan school districts are experimenting with merit pay as a means to better compensate our great teachers.”
A major reason that Michigan has not created a merit pay system is politics. Local union contracts and state budget issues have always been major influences on Michigan schools.
I do agree with Watkins that it is time for a change. Something needs to be done to reward the good teachers, and encourage them to excel at teaching children.
For more information, see Public Education: Time for Change Based on the Merits?
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