| Author | Message | ||
     Xoptimizedrsx |
Hello Fellow Educators, Most of you are probably aware of SB 6, a bill in the Florida Senate that recently cleared its first hurdle in a Senate sub-committee. The bill sponsored by Senator John Thrasher (R) Jax. would reduce teacher job protection and make it easier for school officials to fire employees. We all might agree that this is necessary at times but not at this cost. SB6 will also require merit pay and enforce penalties on school districts that refuse to offer performance bonuses. "Under the plan, at least half of the teachers performance evaluation (pay) must be based on how well his or her students do on standardized tests." ... "A school district opting against performance pay would see its funding cut by an amount equal to 5% of salaries for teachers and school based administrators. Forcing districts to recoup that money by levying higher property taxes which is a clear violation of the Florida Constitution." (news-press.com) "SB 6 has 38 sections that would do everything from crippling the idea of community control of public schools to no longer considering a teacher's experience or advanced degrees in salaries to foisting even more standardized tests on our schools." FEA .web A few other "highlights" of SB 6: Decreases the ability of local school autonomy and subjects much of what is done to one size fits all mandates from Tallahassee Requires that all teachers be retained, certified and compensated based on standardized test scores not experience Probationary contracts up to 5 years and yearly contracts thereafter....eliminating due process Mandate more standardized testing and additional certification requirements for teachers Exclude the salary schedule as a subject of collective bargaining. The state will decide what categories of differentiated pay will be provided for. The state will have a much greater hand in teacher appraisals. Abolish rewards for those attaining National Board Certification and the list goes on but by now I think you get the point. If you are opposed to politicians interfering in education and deciding your future it is time to act. E mail these politicians and let them know how you feel. Below is a list (including the SB 6 sponsor John Thrasher) with whom you may lodge your complaints and or opinions. Remember, if you don't contribute, don't complain. P.S. Governor Crist and Senator Jeff Atwater support this bill! (Even though what it does is discredits teachers. No matter if a teacher has a basic degree and barly slipped through or they have an extended Dr degree with continued Education. There pay will be the same. the hardest part is pay will be set to one level statewide. there fore some counties are all for this despite the consequences overall. your pay is based on the 80/20 rule if you have less than 80% pass the new standard test Fcat and others you don't get merit pay as well as you loose your job. This is clearly unconstitutional. As you see on Television every week another student arrested for various reasons in the school classroom. when you look into how teachers are scheduled some teach only the with most need and the bad students only. some facilities are only for troubled student and behavioral problem students. theses facilitates and teachers are in a loose loose situation. The students do not care and will not do the required work no matter how well its produced to them nor how well its explained. These students don't care they are vindictive and irresponsible. what we are going to have is an onset of other issues. Teacher that we are already short in demand for and teachers that are going to leave the system due to the facts there pay is based on belligerent students as well as good students. like I said some teachers only get the good where some only teach lower classes. the fixed passing points are not going to work overall. even if a teacher has all bad children with a grade level well below avg and failing at the beginning but raises every student 80% above that level and they still are below your picked 80% on the standard test they are penalized since they didnt pass the 80% standard but did 80% over there original scores? That is not justice to the teachers,parents or school system. It has been proven in many forms you cannot monitor overall education and knowledge on a standard test. there are two many variables. see the Mensa ORG on how inaccurate a Standard test can and will be. ) I am neither a teacher nor a educator but this bill is clearly miss designed and unlawful. I am going to write yes correctly writs a passage to each person below. hoping it helps stop such a bill with so many flaws. because basing how teachers get classes laid out some only teach the ruff students who dont care. now they will know if they all fail the teacher get punished $ wise and can lose there job. its too easy for them to fail by randomly answering the questions. then you have those teachers who go bad students to start with but raised them 100% up but that 100% gain was only good enough to make a 79% on the std test. guess what that teacher gets nothing for all that work and possibly gets fired cause they only had students make a 79%. thats unfair and unjust. this bill is crazy!!! atwater.jeff.web@flsenate.gov (President of Florida Senate) thrasher.john.web@flsenate.gov (SB 6 Sponsor) lemieux@senate.gov Senator George LeMieux billnelson@senate.gov Senator Bill Nelson | ||
| Froggy |
Mike, the news section is for HD/Buell news, so I bumped this off to the Quickboard  | ||
| Hootowl |
If by "experience" you mean "number of years employed as a teacher", I fully support the path this bill takes in that regard. We should't protect the jobs of poor teachers just because they've been doing a poor job for decades. | ||
| Firebolt32 |
Under the plan, at least half of the teachers performance evaluation (pay) must be based on how well his or her students do on standardized tests." They can't let that happen. Why should teachers be punished? When I was in school I did all my homework, showed up to school and failed horribly at tests. Teachers can only prepare you. They can't take the tests! | ||
| Ironhead1977 |
My pay is based on how well I do my job. How well I do my job is determined by how often my customers purchase from my business. Just because I have been doing this for a long time and have been to all the schools to advance my knowledge does not mean my customers will purchase from me. Teachers that excel in what they do should be compensated,Teachers that are slackers should not. Just like everyone else. | ||
| Johnnymceldoo |
Accountability is a good thing but I agree a hand full of really bad students shouldnt ruin a teachers career. I went to a vocational school with alot of hard knocks. I know how much of a pain in the ass they can be. | ||
| Nobuell |
Sounds good in theory but pay based solely on standardized tests scores will really hurt the teachers in inner city schools. My wife is a very good teacher but when the kids get to her 4 years behind in reading and math levels it is a struggle moving the kids forward. She deals every day with non existing parents, non-english speakers, bad attendance and emotionally handicapped. I really tire of hearing how the teachers are always at fault. I do not have a problem making it easier to get ride of bad teachers. Penalizing the teachers in the inner city schools will just push the good teachers that the kids need out of the districts. | ||
| Firebolt32 |
Teachers that excel in what they do should be compensated,Teachers that are slackers should not. Just like everyone else. But how do you know who excels and who slacks as a teacher? I was a poster child of a terrible student per my respect for that teacher. If I didn't like you I pushed buttons, ran my gator and did enough to keep the GPA where needed to play sports. I single handed drove a Brother of the Catholic church to quit teaching and drop out of the Brother Hood.(Don't even know if that's what it's called.) Looking back these were good teachers. If this proposed law was in affect then, I'd have a gang of teachers with a bounty on my head. | ||
| Nevrenuf |
caught on the news last night about the 30 some kids who should be in juvi over in st pete and one of them even punched a pregnant teacher but there allowed to come back because of the no child left behind thing. one of the school board members called them hoodlums and of course caught some crap for it. they ought to bring back paddling in school just like it was when i went to school. you f'd up and the big ole vice principle got a piece of your butt. but nooooooo. to many bleeding heart liberals along with dr what's his name saying that kids need to be nurtured. bull hockey pucks. teachers need to be accountable but in the same breath, so do parents. | ||
| Jsg4dfan |
"How well I do my job is determined by how often my customers purchase from my business." Accurate, but not a valid comparison. How would you like to be judged solely on that criteria with these restrictions? - a fixed set of customers, some of whom hate your product, who are required to shop only at your store. - a fixed product that you have little to no choice to change or improve. - a scripted sales and marketing approach that you have little to no choice to change and improve. - an administrative environment that fully supports any customer complaint regardless of the first three conditions. Think about that for a minute. You can only sell to "these" customers, they can only shop at your store, you're selling something that some of them hate, you have to use the same sales pitch regardless of their socio-economic status or desire for your product, and you have to make this scripted pitch to all of them at the same time (while one is asleep, two are humping in the back of the room with three others recording it on their cell phones, one is telling half the room what he wants to do to your wife, one is flashing her boobs at you, and another is throwing stuff at your head). Plus, if even ONE of them doesn't buy from you, or one that does says you were anything less than profoundly kind and professional, then you are completely to blame and must be punished. B^%ch, please. This is exactly why, with a master's degree in education and 6 years of teaching experience, I am by my own choice managing a quick lube establishment. | ||
| Firebolt32 |
Your right Neil. Teachers are human too and have their breaking point. A guy I ref with taught in the Wesley Chapel area. He's got a damn good looking wife and the kids know it. One kid said he wanted to screw his wife and that if she wouldn't let him he'd just rape her. My buddy walked calmly over to the kid and flipped the desk over with the kid in it. The parent of the kid even told all parties involved that his boy was a punk and deserved. My bud still lost his job and can no longer teach in Pasco county. | ||
| Xodot |
A teacher could simply "teach to the test" and cash in. Teaching an appreciation for a subject changes lives and opens creativity and imagination and a young person's inner being. It is not the same as teaching some one what they need to know to pass a test. Hail the teacher who takes an interest in his/her students and tries to build a youth into a finished person. Something needs to be done to improve the profession. I doubt this is it. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Laws like this wouldn't be necessary if the NEA were willing to give on tenure. My friend and child are being terrorized by a teacher who has tenure and is a menace. It's impossible to get rid of a bad teacher. I don't think this single litmus test comp structure is the answer. | ||
| Paint_shaker |
While their intentions may be in the right place, this bill (and others like it) are not the way to get things done... Remember these same politians had good intentions when they passed the $1000 fine for improper tag, wheelies, etc... On a side note, If my pay was based on how well I did my job, they would be a LOT of pissed off motorists and many of you would despise me... (Message edited by Paint_shaker on March 18, 2010) | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
We all know a good teacher when we see one. We all know a bad teacher when we see one. The problem is that we are not able to fire bad teachers and give good teachers pay raises. This bill provides at least ONE way for a teacher to control their own destiny and be able to increase their performance compensation. A bad teacher won't be able to teach even to the test. A good teacher will be able to have good scores in spite of a few bad students. | ||
| Zane |
My younger son is dyslexic and even though he's pretty smart, has a hard time with school. There is no provision in the bill for "special needs" kids. Our education systems needs some drastic change but this window dressing not fixing the problem. | ||
| Paint_shaker |
Firing "bad" employees is not as difficult as is made out to be, especially in a right to work state such as Flori-duh. It is normally a matter of administration working putting in the effort and LOTS of documentation. |
