Philadelphia Teaching Effectiveness Campaign

Philadelphia Teaching Effectiveness Campaign:

"All children in Philadelphia have the right to have consistently effective teaching in every content area and at every grade level, Pre-K through 12.

In too many of our schools, however, the level of teaching and learning does not meet student needs and does not ensure student graduation and postsecondary success. Furthermore too many inexperienced teachers are concentrated in high-poverty and needy schools where they stay only briefly. Subsequently, poor and minority children have the least chance of being taught by a stable, talented combination of effective new and veteran teachers. This teacher “gap” contributes greatly to the District’s stark achievement gap."

Two imperatives guide this platform:

Every child deserves an effective teacher.
Every school needs a stable workforce of effective teachers.

We believe that in order to translate these basic imperatives into reality, the District must do the following:

1. Distribute experienced and effective teachers equitably across the District.
2. Create performance standards for teachers and principals that are aligned with student success, and impplement them consistently district-wide.
3. Create an effective professional development strategy that is guided by teacher input and creates a "culture of collaboration" in schools.
4. Give school leaders the tools & resources to hire and create teams of effective teachers.
5. Create a "deep bench" of applicants for teaching positions.
6. Open school with NO teacher vacancies.