What does the IEA prez say?

IEA President Ken Swanson:

Hi Fred

There is a default provision in which a state designed model with a 50% weighting would be implemented absent the development of a district/local plan.  We and IFT will both have significant influence in the state plan development.  I believe if we do this well this gives us more voice in how we define and measure growth.  Also keep in mind the evaluators will have to prequalify as competent to evaluate. For as long as I can remember we have wanted to address the competence of evaluators.  I also believe creating the fourth catagory of needs improvement is advantageous where someone may need to improve some skills but the level of deficiency does not warrant an unsatisfactory rating.

We tried to highlight all this and more in the webinars.  We will do more with that technology in the days ahead to keep staff and leaders informed as we see what is next as we await the next word from the feds.

I hope this is helpful.  At the end of the day the reality is that what we have is infinitely better than what we would see coming at us if we had taken a just say no to the development of legislation.

Ken

Hi Ken,

For you it appears there were two options. Only two.

We could agree to Arne Duncan’s blackmail and establish evaluation rules that promise what they can’t possibly deliver: A system that somehow quantifies what an individual teacher contributes to the growth of an individual student. Whether it is tied to a single test or some other so-called growth model, it is junk science.

Or we can, as you put it, say no to the development of legislation.

But those were never the only choices.

After all, other state NEA affiliates are opposed to the Race to the Top and refused to sign off on their state’s application.

You agreed to the Duncan agenda without so much as a whimper. If Race to the Top had come from the Bush Department of Education (and it certainly could have), the IEA would have been yelling and screaming as we did when it was called NCLB.

A year ago, it surprised me when you praised  what seemed to me to be the anti-teacher agenda of Washington DC’s Michelle Rhee. I saddens me to see where this has now led.

It is one thing to say we want a seat at the table. It is another thing to eat what ever is put before us.

-Fred

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