Recognize great teachers
respect, train and reward professional teachers
If the job of teaching is to be more than providing custodial care for children, educators must be helped to educate themselves and to create communities of professionals. With that said, incentives must be implemented to encourage accountability, professionalism, and performance.
Performance measurements that simply measure inputs, such as time clocks, demean professionalism and do not ensure better outcomes. Businesses that succeed in "high labor" industries facing global competition must pay well, invest heavily in continuing professional development, and make sure working environments enhance entrepreneurial attitudes and performance.
Following this model means we must increase spending on professional development for teachers. Personnel costs represent hundreds of millions of dollars, which may be a wasted expenditure if we do not continually invest in the renewal of this human capital. Professional development must be viewed as mandatory, necessary for protecting our investments paid out in the form of teacher salaries. Our schools must demand excellence, from both students and educators, and school leaders must rid the system of unqualified teachers. More importantly, all school districts should provide ongoing professional development for teachers and facilitate the development of in-school professional communities.
Performance measurements that simply measure inputs, such as time clocks, demean professionalism and do not ensure better outcomes. Businesses that succeed in "high labor" industries facing global competition must pay well, invest heavily in continuing professional development, and make sure working environments enhance entrepreneurial attitudes and performance.
Following this model means we must increase spending on professional development for teachers. Personnel costs represent hundreds of millions of dollars, which may be a wasted expenditure if we do not continually invest in the renewal of this human capital. Professional development must be viewed as mandatory, necessary for protecting our investments paid out in the form of teacher salaries. Our schools must demand excellence, from both students and educators, and school leaders must rid the system of unqualified teachers. More importantly, all school districts should provide ongoing professional development for teachers and facilitate the development of in-school professional communities.