This is a big step that I'm surprised hasn't gotten more coverage:

New York City plans to pay some teachers bonuses of up to 30% of their salaries for helping students in struggling schools make progress, an extraordinary test of merit pay in about a dozen schools.

The pilot program, which the city's Department of Education and the United Federation of Teachers agreed to, will be implemented in September if the city receives up to $300 million in school-improvement grants it expects from the federal government.

Michael Mulgrew, president of the UFT said he would not call the extra money "bonuses." Instead, he said, it is a way for successful teachers to earn more money by taking on additional responsibilities.

Teachers would be "receiving extraordinary increases in compensation based on performance," said John White, a deputy schools chancellor. In addition, said Mr. White, the plan includes an effort to overhaul the city's teacher-evaluation system to include student progress.

…That the UFT would agree to this is a substantial step, given that teachers' unions in general oppose pay that isn't based on experience. A couple of years ago, the UFT agreed to allow the DOE to pay school-wide bonuses, where all teachers were paid extra for achieving performance targets. This plan goes much further by singling out individual teachers for the extra pay.

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