Comments on teacher quality

While the Baltimore Sun editorial that I included in my last email was very nice, it misses a HUGE point, as do most articles I've read.  The editorial said:

The key factor in the KIPP academy's success seems to be a culture of discipline and conduct, high expectations and the ability of teachers and staff to work intensely with students who may be having difficulty. For example, KIPP teachers remain accessible by cell phone to help students until 9 or 10 p.m...KIPP and other successful models show that an emphasis on small and highly focused schools is critical.

Why does this article dance around the critical factor of teacher QUALITY?!  Of course high expectations, extended hours, etc. are important, but the overwhelmingly most important factor in ANY successful school that I've ever seen is having exceptional teachers.  THIS, far more than anything else, is why the KIPP students are learning like crazy and the average Baltimore student isn't! 

 

As a society, we have no problem saying that the investment bankers at Goldman Sachs are better than those at some third-tier firm -- they're smarter, more motivated, more creative, etc.  The same is true for virtually any profession: surgeon, pilot, athlete, lawyer, plumber, carpenter -- and money manager for sure!  At ANY task, some people are just BETTER and there shouldn't be anything wrong with saying this, measuring it and rewarding top performers -- and weeding out poor performers so they can find another profession that they CAN succeed at.

 

But when it comes to teachers, it appears to be politically incorrect to acknowledge that some teachers are better than others, much less measure individual teachers, and then have substantially different pay, based on performance. 

 

It's so ironic that the teachers' union is constantly calling for teachers to be treated (and paid) like professionals (which I agree with!), yet fiercely resists basic, obvious things that are part of the deal with virtually all other professionals such as measurement of performance and the ability to reward top performers and remove bottom performers.