Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Young Teachers Assess Old Views and Traditional Methods: 7 Out of 10 Gen Y Teachers Open to Incentive Pay, but Only 10 Percent Rate Standardized Testing as Successful Measure | Reuters


Young Teachers Assess Old Views and Traditional Methods: 7 Out of 10 Gen Y Teachers Open to Incentive Pay, but Only 10 Percent Rate Standardized Testing as Successful Measure Reuters:

"NEW YORK, Nov. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new study released today paints
a national picture of Generation Y teachers revealing an openness to incentive
pay. Seventy-one percent of Gen Y teachers are open to rewarding teachers
based on incentive pay, whereas only 10 percent of Gen Y teachers think that
student performance on standardized tests is an 'excellent' measure of teacher
success. The nationwide study, Supporting Teacher Talent: The View From
Generation Y, from Public Agenda, a nonprofit research organization, and
Learning Point Associates, a nonprofit education research and consulting
organization, offers a comprehensive and nuanced look at the question of
whether different generations bring different aspirations, concerns, and
perspectives to teaching.

'Traditionally, teachers have strongly opposed differentiating pay based on
student performance, but we found evidence that those attitudes may be
changing among Gen Y teachers,' said Jane Coggshall, Ph.D., co-principal
investigator for the Supporting Teacher Talent study. 'However, young
teachers, like teachers of all ages, are concerned about using standardized
test scores as the principal criterion.'"