Teachers open to merit pay

Feb 23, 2010 — The Arizona Daily Sun

Hillary Davis

Feb. 21, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- It's not a new topic: Performance pay for teachers.

Current federal education reforms put the spotlight back on the practice, sometimes known as merit pay, as part of the Race to The Top overhaul under Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

The local teachers' association won't dismiss performance pay out of hand, but it wants to know more details before committing to a system, especially if Arizona is approved for Race to the Top funding.

The Flagstaff Unified School District does not have a classic individual performance pay system in the same manner as the national attention-getting Denver Public Schools. It follows a seniority system with rewards for advanced education and participation in programs like Career Ladder, a statewide program that compensates teachers for attaining certain skills and student achievement.

John Corcoran, as president of the Flagstaff Education Association, signed off on FUSD's potential participation in Arizona's pending application for Race to the Top money. The district did not develop a performance pay plan, but it did not have to just to apply for the funds.

If Arizona is approved, he said, FUSD would have to craft a performance pay system, and would do it through the employee negotiation group in cooperation with administrators.

Corcoran takes a measured approach. A high school math teacher, he won't attach himself to ideas that are still abstract or hypothetical, nor will he reject them.

"It isn't that teachers are opposed to having measurements that might determine their compensation," he said. "It is coming up with absolutely clear, objective standards that everybody can say, 'Yes, you met it or you didn't.'"

One district resident and frequent critic has long held to the idea of "true" individual performance pay.

Bruce Johnson, a Doney Park resident and longtime observer of FUSD fiscal practices, brought up performance pay at a debate earlier this month about FUSD's override election, telling a teacher that it would be the single best reform the district could make. When he was on FUSD's Citizens Budget Committee several years ago, the group recommended it as a local reform.

He said performance pay isn't connected to the current override issue, but it would lead to an improved district as it offers incentives to top performers.

Johnson likes the idea of multi-variate performance pay systems for all district employees, not just classroom teachers. He'd want to see components like individual evaluations by supervisors, and possibly evaluations from students, parents and peers, even peer rankings.

"The typical things that you would expect to see in most any private business that's evaluating employees in terms of the outcomes," he said.

Killip Elementary had a pilot merit pay system with similar requirements. The program, which started in 2001, was grant-funded and has since expired.

Johnson said there would never be enough money in the district to reward the best teachers with what they deserve, so differential boosts could spread out rewards-- good teachers get more money than average, better even more, and best yet more.

"There are a lot of teachers in this district that are probably great teachers and deserve a lot more money, but the way the system works now you can't give them the money they deserve without bringing up all the mediocre teachers and even all the poor teachers to the same point."

Corcoran said "true" merit pay would require an infusion of money, and can be done but with a manageable format that would make sense to a third party.

Standards might need to be different, though, depending on the teacher's assignment.

"If a teacher happened to be teaching upper-level math classes, by self-selection you have far better students. A teacher teaching low-level math classes (has) many, many more students with not just academic needs but (who) tend to have socioeconomic needs, also."

During a December board discussion on qualities FUSD should look for in its new superintendent, to be installed this summer, board member Chris Bavasi suggested they consider applicants experienced with administering merit pay systems.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0065-42299716