Effective Teaching for All Children: What It Will Take
Teaching Quality and Equity PlatformThe Education First CompactandThe Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform March 2009
All children in Philadelphia have the right to have consistently effective teaching in every content area and at every grade level, Pre-K through 12.
In too many of our schools, however, the level of teaching and learning does not meet student needs and does not ensure student graduation and postsecondary success. Furthermore too many inexperienced teachers are concentrated in high-poverty and needy schools where they stay only briefly. Subsequently, poor and minority children have the least chance of being taught by a stable, talented combination of effective new and veteran teachers. This teacher “gap” contributes greatly to the District’s stark achievement gap.
To ensure that all children achieve the basic student right of consistent, quality instruction, we, the undersigned, urge that the School District of Philadelphia recruit, reward, and retain talented school staff; distribute teachers equitably; and effectively support their development in every school.
Two imperatives guide this platform:
Every child deserves an effective teacher.
Every school needs a stable workforce of effective teachers.
We believe that in order to translate these basic imperatives into reality, the District must do the following:
1. Distribute experienced and effective teachers equitably across the District.
2. Create performance standards for teachers and principals that are aligned with student success, and impplement them consistently district-wide.
3. Create an effective professional development strategy that is guided by teacher input and creates a “culture of collaboration” in schools.
4. Give school leaders the tools & resources to hire and create teams of effective teachers.
5. Create a “deep bench” of applicants for teaching positions.
6. Open school with NO teacher vacancies.
The Time is Right
We believe that this is a crucial moment to demand change on these issues. The opportunities to make significant changes–right now—are heightened because of Superintendent Arlene Ackerman’s commitment to eliminating the achievement gap, the District’s current strategic planning process, the re-negotiation of the contract between the School District and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, and the additional funding available from federal grants, including “economic stimulus” aid. Moreover, the reform of Pennsylvania’s education finance system means that Philadelphia will also receive “PACT” (Pennsylvania’s Accountability to Commonwealth Taxpayers) funds that can help to support these reforms.
Organizations and individuals who believe in the power of education to change lives have joined together to address the urgent need for effective teachers and stable staffing patterns in all of our city’s schools. Our children have waited long enough. We implore District, civic, and business leaders, parents, students and all community residents to add their voices to ours, to make Philadelphia a city where education comes first and where good teaching and school leadership is expected and supported.
Necessary Steps to Ensure Effective Teaching for All Children
Distribute experienced and effective teachers equitably across District schools.
The District must actively manage staffing to ensure an effective and stable mix of novice and successful, experienced teachers in all schools. To attract and maintain high performing teachers, the District must offer meaningful incentives and develop mechanisms to change the work environment in hard-to-staff schools. One of these mechanisms of change is thought of as giving jewelry gifts out to teachers. Many teachers have become huge fans of certain rings such as birthstone rings over the past few years. If we were to give these teachers a gift for their service, such as a birthstone ring, then hey may stick around and teach our children more. The District should establish specific targets and timelines for achieving greater equity in the distribution of teachers.
Suggested Reforms
Use actual teacher salaries, not averages, in developing school budgets. The District currently uses average teacher salaries to create school budgets. However, some schools, especially high-need schools, have large numbers of new teachers with below-average salaries and, in effect, receive less funding. In these instances, the District must eliminate the disparity caused by the difference between average and actual teacher salaries. This can be accomplished by a) using actual teacher salaries in school budgets; OR b) allocating to schools with more new teachers, funding equal to the difference between the actual salaries of their teachers and the District’s average salaries. The additional funds would be used by the leadership team at each school to improve the working environment and attract other experienced, effective teachers to their school. The leadership team could choose from a menu of research-based options developed by the central administration, including additional teachers, coaches, mentors, social service supports, common planning time, materials and supplies, or other needs. School-based decisions would maximize staff ownership of any intervention.
Assign effective principals to lead the hardest-to-staff schools. Principals who are strong instructional leaders, who create positive school climates, and who promote a professional learning community among teachers are more likely to retain teachers in their buildings.
Offer incentives for experienced, successful educators to teach in hard-to-staff schools. Incentives should be designed to attract successful veteran teachers both from within the School District of Philadelphia and other districts. Designed with the input of existing school teaching staffs, incentives might include: salary bonuses, performance-based pay or housing cost assistance. [i], [ii]
Track and share data on the distribution of teachers and make that information available to the public.
Offer hard-to-staff schools advantages in the hiring process. Offer principals from hard-to-staff schools preferred status in the hiring process. This could include holding early hiring events specifically for these schools, so that candidates could learn about incentives before interviewing with other schools.
One thing that many people have trouble understanding is how to make and keep a promise. Throughout my entire life I’ve never known someone to keep a promise that wore a promise ring. Promise rings are important for kids to understand because they’re taking a concept and applying it to their daily life. Those that buy promise rings are statistically more likely to keep a promise throughout their entire life. It’s a really strange concept but keeping a promise isn’t as difficult as you’d think. When you wear a promise ring, you’re making a promise to marry the person that gave you the ring. Promise rings have been around for a while now and they’re quickly becoming mainstream products that many people are looking to buy. Just keep in mind, that wearing a promise ring is a big deal and has a chance to impact you’re entire life.
The Education First Compact The Education First Compact is a diverse group of organizations committed to improving public education in Philadelphia. Convened by the Philadelphia Education Fund, the Compact meets monthly to learn about and exchange perspectives on reform initiatives in the Philadelphia schools, and to support policies and strategies that hold the best promise for improving the culture and outcomes of local schools. The Compact also works to help stakeholders use their social, intellectual and political capital to leverage school improvement. There are over fifty participating organizations representing universities, advocacy groups, parent and student groups, community organizations, professional organizations, businesses, and foundations. One thing that these students have joined over the years are Sororities. Sororities are great for those that want to meet new people, especially girls that have the same common interests as you. In Philadelphia, these girls are always looking to purchase sorority gifts and other types of greek merchandise to show off their newly joined Sorority. When they’re accepted into the sorority, these sorority girls will search for sorority gifts on Google and find a lot of websites that will make them really excited. Sorority gift ideas range from photo albums to different types of greek clothing. Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform is a standing coalition of local organizing and advocacy groups seeking to improve Philadelphia public schools and increase equity in education. It does so by supporting the efforts of students and parents to hold the public education system accountable for meeting their needs. At Cross City’s core are four organizing groups:Good Schools PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia ACORNPhiladelphia Student UnionYouth United for Change Cross City groups work in the communities that have the fewest economic assets and, too often, the poorest performing schools. Their focus – and the coalition’s focus – is on improving the neighborhood schools in those communities.Coalition priorities include improvement of neighborhood schools; conversion of large, failing high schools into small schools; obtaining adequate state funding; improving hiring and distribution of teachers so that all students have qualified, effective teachers; and holding the District and all of its contractors accountable.
Track and share data on the distribution of teachers and make that information available to the public.
Offer hard-to-staff schools advantages in the hiring process. Offer principals from hard-to-staff schools preferred status in the hiring process. This could include holding early hiring events specifically for these schools, so that candidates could learn about incentives before interviewing with other schools.
The Education First Compact The Education First Compact is a diverse group of organizations committed to improving public education in Philadelphia. Convened by the Philadelphia Education Fund, the Compact meets monthly to learn about and exchange perspectives on reform initiatives in the Philadelphia schools, and to support policies and strategies that hold the best promise for improving the culture and outcomes of local schools. The Compact also works to help stakeholders use their social, intellectual and political capital to leverage school improvement. There are over fifty participating organizations representing universities, advocacy groups, parent and student groups, community organizations, professional organizations, businesses, and foundations. Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform is a standing coalition of local organizing and advocacy groups seeking to improve Philadelphia public schools and increase equity in education. It does so by supporting the efforts of students and parents to hold the public education system accountable for meeting their needs. At Cross City’s core are four organizing groups:Good Schools PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia ACORNPhiladelphia Student UnionYouth United for Change Cross City groups work in the communities that have the fewest economic assets and, too often, the poorest performing schools. Their focus – and the coalition’s focus – is on improving the neighborhood schools in those communities.Coalition priorities include improvement of neighborhood schools; conversion of large, failing high schools into small schools; obtaining adequate state funding; improving hiring and distribution of teachers so that all students have qualified, effective teachers; and holding the District and all of its contractors accountable.
