Educators must take lead in defining school reform
Linking the achievements of schoolchildren to the evaluation and compensation of the adults who work with them is an important undertaking. It is so important that the federal government has selected 13 states and the District of Columbia to receive $4 billion in Race to the Top grants to develop education reforms. A primary area for research is the recruitment, development, reward and retention of effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most.
The Bill and Linda Gates Foundation is also funding experiments in teacher evaluation and performance pay. The Pittsburgh school district obtained $40 million; Los Angeles charter schools, $60 million; and Memphis schools, $90 million. The Hillsborough County district in Florida, which includes Tampa, won the biggest grant: $100 million. This, the nation's eighth-largest school system, is looking to reshape its 15,000-member teaching corps by rewarding according to student achievement instead of teacher seniority.
New Jersey, which notoriously did not obtain Race to the Top funding, is headed in the same direction, but on a different path. Gov. Christie has