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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Randi Weingarten: Calling the Right Plays to Help Teachers Succeed

Randi Weingarten: Calling the Right Plays to Help Teachers Succeed:

Randi Weingarten

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Calling the Right Plays to Help Teachers Succeed

Posted: 1/17/12 02:33 PM ET

My beloved New York Giants seem like a different team than they were just a month ago, when they were coming off a humbling string of losses. If the Giants' owners had simply demanded a new lineup, or the coaching staff had told the players to figure it out on their own, I have no doubt the team would not be playing -- and winning -- any playoff games.

I'm not privy to the Giants' game tape analyses, but I can bet that the team -- from top to bottom -- took a hard look at what was and wasn't working, and worked together to figure out and implement solutions. It's what winning teams do, and it's a lesson American public education could learn much from.

In education, teacher evaluations are supposed to gauge what is and isn't working in teachers'