Rotherham Watch

Andy goes gaga over the Ed Trust going gaga over the compensation magic bullet.

Here’s the theory: If you want quality teachers in underserved schools, pay them to go there.

There may be something to this as a component to a larger strategy for school improvement. But, is there data to support this theory?

These guys never include teacher professionalism as a part of their plan, or local community-teacher collaboration, or rejection of top-down reform plans. Go after the salary schedule. Mess with collective bargaining. That’s the answer these guys always come up with.

Although, when we call for more funding for schools, these are the same guys who claim you can’t just “throw money at the problem.”

Go figure.

Update: Is there another agenda behind merit pay schemes? A story in the Orlando Sentinel reports:

The Sentinel’s review showed that teachers at predominantly white and affluent schools were twice as likely to get a bonus as teachers from schools that are predominantly black and poor.