Michelle Rhee, Merit Pay, & Cheating

"...

Michelle Rhee, then chancellor of D.C. schools, took a special interest in Noyes. She touted the school... as an example of how the sweeping changes she championed could transform even the lowest-performing Washington schools. Twice in three years, she rewarded Noyes' staff for boosting scores: In 2008 and again in 2010, each teacher won an $8,000 bonus, and the principal won $10,000.

A closer look at Noyes, however, raises questions about its test scores from 2006 to 2010. Its proficiency rates rose at a much faster rate than the average for D.C. schools. Then, in 2010, when scores dipped for most of the district's elementary schools, Noyes' proficiency rates fell further than average..."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2011-03-28-1Aschooltesting28_CV_N.htm?sms_ss=twitter&at_xt=4d8ff2dc3b0fe8d5,0

Great Article on Diane Ravitch

"...Once a vocal proponent of No Child Left Behind, charter schools, vouchers, and merit pay for teachers, Ravitch decided sometime around 2006 that there was actually no evidence that any of those policies improved American education. She now believes that the “corporatist agenda” of school choice, teacher layoffs, and standardized testing has undermined public respect for one of the nation’s most vital institutions, the neighborhood school, and for one of society’s most crucial professions: teaching...."

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/41083/diane-ravitch-the-anti-rhee/full/

Kasich's Pension Hypocrisy

It's an old article that's linked below, but I still can't get over the irony of Kasich's Lehman Brothers work, his scapegoating of firemen, teachers, & police for the economic problems we find ourselves in, and his advocacy for "merit pay". Here's a man who worked as a managing director for an investment company whose bankruptcy was the largest in U.S. history. Lehman's sleazy practices and subsequent failure played a big role in the recent financial crisis.   Was Governor Kasich involved in these unethical practices that helped tank the global economy? Probably not. But he did try to persuade the Ohio Police & Fire Pension Fund and the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System to invest with Lehman. Both purchased funds from Lehman, although the governor's efforts may not have played a role in the purchases, they lost hundreds of millions. The governor is now blaming the pension systems of these same "greedy" firemen, policemen, public employees, and teachers for the state's economic woes. That takes chutzpah. Was his multimillion dollar  salary some form of merit pay?

http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/05/12/copy/candidate-connected-pensions-lehman.html?sid=101

MIchelle Rhee, Cheating, & Incentives

John Kasich is taking Michelle Rhee's advice on formulating a merit pay plan for Ohio teachers. It appears that Ms. Rhee's tactics have some unintended consequences...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2011-03-28-1Aschooltesting28_CV_N.htm

SB5 Fact Sheet (as it applies to teachers)

http://www.scribd.com/doc/54263272/Ohio-Senate-Bill-5-One-Page-Facts

Kasich & the Bureaucracy Hypocrisy

"Putting money in the bureaucracy is not the ticket. It's dollars in the classroom" -John Kasich

I guess the governor forgot about this promise when he created his education reform plan, which takes dollars out of the classroom and creates vast new bureaucracies. How many people will be employed by the state to formulate the "merit" pay formulas and assessments? Implementation? Evaluation (after it becomes clear to even his followers that the system has too many flaws)? What will be the cost of their salaries and benefits? How much red tape will local schools have to follow to be compliant? Bureaucracy. Bureaucracy. Bureaucracy.

What will the additional costs be to perform the additional teacher evaluations? Most principals are able to exercise situational leadership. This plan takes away their ability to do so and mandates that either most of their time be spent on observations and conferences or that they hire additional administrators to do the evaluations. Costs. Costs. Costs. (Outside of the classroom).

Listen to the Governor's own words:

An explanation of the science behind motivation, incentives, and merit pay

An explanation of the science behind motivation, incentives, and merit pay. The bottom line: higher incentives work for people performing mechanical tasks, but in jobs that require cognitive skills "merit pay" leads to poorer performance. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc