Schools need to guarantee kids’ education — not teachers’ jobs

This is an AMAZING editorial in the Houston Chronicle:

It seems only reasonable to hold teachers responsible for teaching — for making sure that their kids make progress. But in the ossified world of public education, HISD's new policy counts as a major reform.

A little over 400 teachers, or about 3 percent of HISD's teaching staff, are said to be at risk. Given the high stakes, it's not surprising that hundreds of pro-union teachers packed last week's board meeting. But we were surprised that the teacher-heavy crowd booed some speakers so loudly that one board member had to plead for civility. ("Wow," said Harvin Moore, looking stunned. "What we teach children by the examples that we set!")

Notably, all the parents who addressed that angry union crowd favored the change — as did representatives of business and community groups. We strongly agree with the parents' argument: Schools aren't about guaranteeing teachers their jobs; they're about guaranteeing kids an education.

At the meeting, as elsewhere, some teachers argued that they shouldn't be held accountable for the low scores of the hardest-to-reach kids. "We deal with children in poverty," pleaded one teacher. "We deal with lack of parental support. We do the best we can." We feel for her, and we know that her job is extremely hard. But we also think that at-risk kids are precisely the ones who need strong teachers the most. Those kids can't afford to lose ground.

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Tests and teachers

Schools need to guarantee kids' education — not teachers' jobs

HOUSTON CHRONICLE

www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/6874344.html