Education reform: Does Michelle Rhee have the right ideas?
Recently, Michael and I watched a fascinating “Frontline” about education reformer Michelle Rhee. She was the chancellor for Washington, D.C. public schools and her methods to improve schools and children learning are very controversial. Since leaving the schools (being forced out is probably fair to say), Rhee has created an advocacy group called StudentsFirst to counterbalance the teachers unions and promote her brand of school reform.
“Rhee embodies one extreme in the debate over public education. She believes that every child can achieve, regardless of conditions such as poverty, broken homes, underfunded schools. In her view, the main obstacles are weak teachers, bloated bureaucracies, union contracts. She is driven by data, convinced that learning and teaching can be measured with as much certainty as a dieter tracks progress on a bathroom scale.”
“Her agenda has provoked aggressive push-back from teachers unions and many progressives, who say that social factors have a profound impact on children and that Rhee’s policies unfairly scapegoat teachers. They say the worship of test data has created a “drill and kill” culture that has narrowed curriculum, sucked the joy out of the classroom and, in extreme cases, resulted in test scandals in Atlanta, the District and elsewhere….”
“Rhee, 43, aims to spread the kind of change she promoted in the District: closing failing schools, evaluating teachers based in part on how well their students perform, firing weak teachers and paying bonuses to successful ones. She also supports private-school vouchers for low-income children and says parents should be able to shut down weak schools through “parent trigger” laws….”
However critics like Richard Kahlenberg, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation, a liberal-leaning research group, says Rhee’s premise is faulty.
“But, in fact, we’ve got two grand experiments of her theory,” he said. “The first is the American South, where teachers unions are weak and the schools are not lighting the world on fire. The other is charter schools, which are 88 percent non-unionized. In charters, you can do everything that Michelle Rhee wants to do — fire bad teachers, pay good teachers more. And yet, the most comprehensive studies looking at charter schools nationally find mediocre results.”
“So Rhee’s premise is faulty, he said. “But it’s a simple idea, and in the media, it’s powerful to have heroes and villains,” Kahlenberg said. “The fact that evidence doesn’t back her up doesn’t seem to prevent her from getting wide notoriety.”
However, Rhee’s ideas are taking off. The Washington Post reports that 38 states have implemented similar systems of using test scores to evaluate teachers.
The Post also reports that in 2012, Rhee’s organization StudentsFirst contributed to 105 political candidates in eight states and more than 80 percent of those candidates won.
The vast majority were Republicans, however, Rhee calls herself a Democrat and that her organization is bi-partisan. She says that these types of education reforms don’t have to be seen as right-wing.
So what do you think: Does Rhee has the right ideas?
Should we close failing schools, evaluate teachers at least in part on test scores, fire weak teachers and pay bonuses to successful ones?
Are teachers unions too powerful? Should reviews and bonuses be tied to performance? Does this put too much emphasis on testing and not enough on the joy of learning? Does it make it too tempting for schools to cheat on the testing?
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68 comments Add your comment
sneak peak into education
January 16th, 2013
6:43 pm
@DP-there is no such thing as tenure in teaching. What you do have, after 3 years of service, is due process. This is particularly important , especially in the right-to-work state that we live in because it protects the teacher from being fired because their face doesn’t fit, wrongful allegations (remember that some of the APS teachers have been exonerated from all charges), or to make way for administration’s family/friends. Yes, it may be cumbersome and there is lots of paperwork to do but shouldn’t it be difficult to fire someone if they have done nothing wrong. Also, please remember that when a teacher is fired, it is almost impossible for them to be rehired; if they have truly been a good teacher and done nothing wrong, is this fair?
DP
January 16th, 2013
6:54 pm
@sneak peak into education — There are many provisions in the paperwork that DO make it cumbersome to fire even the bad teachers. I’m not talking about those who have committed crimes and therefore are easier to dismiss, but teachers that everyone knows should not be in the classroom.. Parents know it, Admins know it, and even other teachers know it when there is a lousy teacher in their midst. The teacher hasn’t done anything that would make it easy to fire the individual, so she remains in the classroom because it IS TOO cumbersome to fire a teacher without so called “grounds.” There do need to be protections from firing as you say “to make way for administration’s family/friends,” but there has to be a way to get rid of incompetence in the classroom.. and it IS THERE!! I’d bet there’s a teacher that needs to go in just about EVERY school…more than one in most schools I know!
FCM on my cell
January 16th, 2013
8:21 pm
@Angry, it has been many teachers. I do have an agenda to get my child educated. She is required to do the work an has a 3.72 gpa. That is not because of her teacher, we go over things at home. I do not hate all teachers…in fact I can think of some I have championed. I do find those to be too be too few.
My older child has 2 great teachers (of 7) this year. Last year she had 1. So put of 14 teachers 3 wete good…sad.
I respect MJG & catlady for teaching. I thank them for what they share…I thank the 5 great teachers.. my kids have had (out of about 32 total) I just really wish there were more
Jane W.
January 16th, 2013
8:48 pm
@ Rockerbabe: I’m a retired middle school teacher and I know the teachers’ union better than you do (or will admit to?)
Some of those union thugs who busted up the Wisconsin state capitol building last year, and terrified the families of law makers, had New Jersey accents. You want readers to believe the union money spent up there on “community outreach” isn’t similarly spent here to stifle education reform?
Sorry. Go peddle naive somewhere else.
catlady
January 17th, 2013
6:14 am
FCM: Thank you. Where do your children go to school, that you have had such poor teachers? I teach in a school with about 40 teachers. I would classify two as overmatched in their classrooms. They need remediation or assignment to a different level. Of the others, nearly 20 I would classify as rock star. The rest are competent, good, and effective. Thinking back, that is about normal for the last ten years.
Most of the teachers at my school are veterans–they have been in the classroom ten years or more. Virtually all have masters, many have EdS, and there are two of us with PhDs, with another on the way. Virtually all are devoted to their kids.
Is our school unusual? Not around here. Being a small system, I know most folks (Heck, I taught many of them–16 at last count just in this system) Over half of our teachers are “from around here”–a very important criteria in many people’s eyes.
Looking back on the teachers of my children here, they had maybe a half dozen that I thought needed additional development (PDP), and I made only one request for a specific teacher in all those years. (Funny story: my younger daughter, when she found out I had requested a change in her team so she could have this teacher in 8th grade, went into a days-long swoon. I had “ruined her life.” “8th grade was going to be awful!” But I maintained that I wanted her to work under him. The second day of school, she came home and said, “Okay, I understand why you wanted me in his class.” She ended up in college (grad and undergrad) in majoring in the field that was his special interest! The other teacher would have been fine, but she got a rock star in the particular area I thought she showed an interest in.
motherjanegoose
January 17th, 2013
7:21 am
@ FCM…thanks…I had a long day yesterday and will also have a long day today. Being a good teacher is getting harder and harder. I see it all the time. The ratios you share about good teachers can also be applied to students. Children can and will learn but it takes more time when they come from homes that have not prepared them to learn or respect a teacher. It is a wonderful day when the lightbulb goes on!
I just had a discussion with a peer about classroom self control and direction following. His comment was : Conformity is dead in businesses that want to survive and thrive in the 21st century.
I am all about innovative ideas. I also hear, from teachers, that many children have NO self control and this is a big hurdle when trying to teach them. Is it true that businesses do not embrace conformity? Is that a dead skill? Classes will be a free for all, if there are no rules… IMHO. Anyone care to comment on his comment? I am listening.
I did read this:”Conformists, though they may be useless at generating breakthrough ideas, dramatically increase a team’s radical innovations. “
Repeat after me, there are no Teachers Unions in Ga.
January 17th, 2013
7:41 am
Jane W., I do not believe for one minute that you are a former teacher and if so you certainly did not teach in this state. Teachers unions are “forbidden” by the state constitution and thus we have no unions. The greatest tool of a true union is collective bargaining, something teachers in Ga. don’t enjoy. This constant refrain from the Faux News crowd is tiring.
motherjanegoose
January 17th, 2013
7:55 am
My last paragraph was a quote from the Harvard Business Review.
RJ
January 17th, 2013
8:29 am
I have never worked in a school where there were more than 2 or 3 poor teachers. I have only worked in Title I schools with impoverished students, and the teachers teach their butts off. They go into their pockets to buy materials for class. They work late. Some even visit homes when they can’t reach a parent. It’s a tough job. I work in a school where kids come to school hungry. They fight for breakfast. Nobody helps them at home. It’s a tough situation. I would love for any of my colleagues to teach my children. If you can teach these kids, you can teach anywhere.
We don’t have unions in Georgia. GAE, AFT, and all the others are just professional organizations. We have no collective bargaining rights. This is part of the problem in Georgia, but it will never change. I am trying to make my transition into something else. Having a baby has slowed me down, but I have to move on. This profession doesn’t respect teachers. Students are out of control. And it’s all the teachers fault.
Voice of Reason
January 17th, 2013
8:38 am
Can we get a new topic please? This one sucks.
Google "NEA" and "union"
January 17th, 2013
9:33 am
Whatever else is claimed by its defenders above, the National Education Association itself doesn’t deny its union status. Says it right on the NEA website. All members of the Georgia Association of Educators belong to the NEA and are charged an extra $168 yearly to pay for the NEA’s politics.
In Georgia the NEA’s politics include resisting education reforms and especially expanded parental choice as advocated by Michelle Rhee’s group.
In states where union membership remains obligatory parental choice translates into more charter schools. And therefore fewer unionized ones. The NEA views such reforms here in Georgia as an eventual threat to its revenues elsewhere, should the reform movement spread.
Theresa Walsh Giarrusso
January 17th, 2013
10:16 am
Guys — I wrote three new posts last night and it was supposed to be there at midnight. There is clearly something wrong in my WordPress — I am posting it now manually and sending my boss a note — I am very sorry there wasn’t a new topic up this morning — It irritates the sin out of me when things don’t work like they are supposed to. Very frustrating!!
sneak peak into education
January 17th, 2013
10:34 am
All of those bleating on about unions thwarting the current reform movement;
1. The states where the unions are strong generally outperform those states without unionized teachers.
2. The studies have shown that charter schools, in the majority of cases, do NOT outperform those of the traditional neighborhood schools.
3. The states that have introduced “choice” into the schools by the way of charters, vouchers, etc… have shown that the reforms do not work and have nothing but create turmoil in the system. Not a good thing for our children.
4. Bring on reforms that are researched based and proven to show educational success in the lives of our children. Trouble with this is it costs money because before you can even begin to successfully educate the students who are failing in our schools you have to treat the whole child and ensure that they have access to health services, nutritious meals, safe living conditions.
FCM
January 17th, 2013
11:26 am
@ catlady…I am not going to share where the kids go to school for the same reason I use the name FCM. I do not wish backlash on my children for the thoughts/actions of Mom.
@ Angry, catlady, MJG…you have caused me to stop and re-evaluate if I just expect too much of teachers. I place a very high priority on teaching to the child’s ability, on learning (not just in a classroom but in life), and to deveolping the critical thought processes that allow a person to grow and form their own opinions. The teachers I champion/championed (and the 3 Adminstrators) tend to be people who really do that with the students. Most of them still have contact with my children via email. They are the instructors who leave their fingerprints on your mind….I had 10 in my whole scholastic career (including the current pursuit of a second degree in university).
@ MJG ” Is it true that businesses do not embrace conformity?” Well I have to adhere to a code of ethics, a dress code, a code of conduct. I am expected to be polite, do my work according to the rules/laws that govern that work… I would say that means I have to conform–like no jeans in the office.
I am encouraged to think outside of the box on how to best assimlate the information I am given and how to creat better faster process. So that may be what the person you were talking to meant.
I love what you said about the light bulb moment. I had one that wanted to do the rocky path possible and had everyone (even me) getting to the ledge…all of a sudden she just decided to buy in. That is the big one for me teachers want me to just “make” the kid do whatever…it is SOOOOOOOOO much better when you get a person’s buy in (all the change management books agree on that)…but now that she has she just left us all in the dust. She really wants to learn, wants to do the work and most important she takes pride in getting the best grades possible. My other child took the rocky path, and we had a come to Jesus meeting in November. Her turn around was slower but a recent note from one of her teachers said “She seemed like a different kid” (after the Holiday break) and I have to agree. At home she has too. We all (teachers, Mom and others) hope that it continues! (@VOR whatever was supposed to pop up at Midnight obviously didn’t. TWG has had on-going issues with that.
bigbill
January 17th, 2013
11:50 am
More on Michelle Rhee and StudentsFirst: follow the money. Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst has become a major funder (in many states around the country) of pro-public school privatization initiatives and candidates for public office who support this agenda. My question is two-fold: (1) what individuals and corporations are funding StudentFirst to funnel the money to support these initiatives and candidates and (2) which initiatives and candidates are being supported by StudentsFirst around the country? Another related question is this: are Michelle Rhee and StudentsFirst setting up or assisting in the creation of front organizations with innocuous, innocent sounding titles to indirectly funnel funds as a way to accomplish their goals?
Here is an interesting article by Connecticut pro-public school blogger Jon Pelto in his blog “Wait, What…” entitled “CSI: We Got a Match:”
http://jonathanpelto.com/2012/04/18/csi-we-got-a-match/
In this article Pelto focuses on a non-profit set up to promote a public school privatization initiative in Connecticut funded by some powerful players in the school privatization world and StudentsFirst’s role in its creation.
Jane W.
January 17th, 2013
11:53 am
Theresa, you will by now have taken the hint—that the anti-reform crowd would prefer you to “remain in the kitchen” and not venture into weightier issues like our failing public schools.
All such discussions must be confined to another AJC blog run by their reliably anti-choice ally.
So … what yummy cookie recipes might you have to share with us today?
bigbill
January 17th, 2013
12:36 pm
@Jane W. I am delighted that Theresa posted this blog for discussion. Good on her for doing it. No one is asking her to “remain in the kitchen.” What nonsense.
Jane, maybe you would like to discuss Georgia Rep. Ed Lindsey’s Parent Trigger bill, one more attempt to further traditional public school privatization for the profit of the giant hedge funds and wealthy right-wing ideologues supporting it. Michelle Rhee and her StudentsFirst organization will no doubt be directly and indirectly funneling tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions to Georgia representative and senators supporting the bill. (My question: are these not funds which StudentsFirst obtained in some part from radical right-wing billionaire backers of public school privatization?)
Thanks, Theresa, for giving those of us who oppose turning public schools into profit centers for the right-wing Republican-backed entrepreneurs, hedge fund operators, and their enablers who want to get their hands on the trillion dollars in taxpayer funds spent every year on traditional public education. This is not “school reform” and never has been. Click here for yet another article describing what Michelle Rhee is actually doing:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/04/1080679/-Students-and-parents-from-New-York-to-Seattle-are-fighting-corporate-education-reform-agenda
KiFe
January 18th, 2013
6:21 pm
Michelle Rhee’s ideas have NOT caught on. The 38 states that incorporated value-added measures into teacher evaluations and other Race to the Top initiatives were bribed or coerced into doing so to get badly needed funding directly from RTTT or the stimulus package during the worst of the recession.