NYC HS teachers: Principal gave us bad ratings as retaliation
Teachers at Brooklyn’s scandal-plagued John Dewey HS say they are being punished with bad performance evaluations for standing up to the principal, who they say lets students slide with a grade-inflation system nicknamed “Easy Pass.”
A Post analysis found that half of the teachers at the school were given failing grades from Principal Kathleen Elvin, even though the graduation rate has been soaring.
State education records show that out of 101 teachers, 16 earned “ineffective” ratings and 35 got “developing” ratings last year, a failure rate of 50 percent.
Only 8 percent of teachers citywide received marks that low, leading some Dewey teachers to claim that the game is being rigged by the administration to get back at educators who object to alleged grade inflation.
“This doesn’t make sense. Something is wrong here,” said one teacher, who was rated “ineffective.”
Part of the reason the teachers are blaming the principal is that they had been rated “effective” based on their students’ improvement on state exams.
But when subjective observations by Elvin and her fellow administrators were factored in, their grades sank.
“She has a personal vendetta,” the teacher said. “She’s using the teacher observations as a weapon against teachers. It’s her way to force teachers to leave or retire.”
He said some of the teachers who got the bad reviews were the same teachers who would not alter grades to pass failing students.
The school is under investigation for fixing grades with easy extra credit so it could post higher graduation rates. Students derisively call the system “Easy Pass.”
“I have integrity,” the teacher said. “I refused to give kids credit who didn’t deserve it.”
Only 49 percent of Dewey teachers surveyed by the city agreed that Elvin is an effective manager. She declined to comment and directed inquiries to the Department of Education.
Department spokeswoman Devora Kaye said “Principals must rate teachers fairly and accurately,” but did not address the dispute at Dewey.
United Federation of Teachers grievance director Ellen Gallin Procida called the poor ratings a “red flag.”
“This is the first year we have had this process, but the fact that one school stands out the way it does is noteworthy,” she said.NYC HS teachers: Principal gave us bad ratings as retaliation | New York Post: