Michelle Rhee Resigns as D.C. Schools Chancellor

Michelle Rhee Resigns as D.C. Schools Chancellor

So now that Rhee is out in DC, what will happen to her uber reform movement? Don't get me wrong, I believe our system needs reform, but blaming everything on the teachers, threatening them, and pay for performance isn't the answer. Unfortunately, some parents and outsiders believe that reform should include making teachers try harder, firing all the bad teachers, and saying that teachers who are good can fix everything that impacts student learning and performance. Last night at a school board candidates' forum, I heard a parent say that Cobb needs to hire Rhee as our new superintendent to come down here and clean up. OMG! As a classroom teacher, I have seen how hard most teachers are working, and threatening them isn't going to make them better. In fact, some principals are trying that method right now, at least from the calls we are getting at CCAE, and it is increasing the tension levels and lowering the moral of teachers. Neither of which is good for schools or students. Good teachers are the first to want to fire bad teachers, but often the firing isn't based on how good a teacher is, it is based on the subjective opinions of administrators. I personally was a great teacher one year, but when I got a new principal the next year, I became a bad teacher. I don't believe I under went a sudden transformation, I believe the viewpoints and expectations of the old principal and the new one were vastly different. So a teacher can be good but not fit what that particular principal wants. I know that in Georgia we don't have unions, thank you "right to work", but as President of what would be a union in another state, all I want is every teacher, every employee, to be treated fair and to have their rights protected. We don't want to protect bad teachers, we just believe everyone deserves a fair shake. So what is the answer? Reform has to come but what that reform looks like is a hotly debated topic. Please weigh in with what you think reform should look like....