Teacher evaluations called unproductive

Dave Berns:

The assumption behind Gov. Brian Sandoval's education reform package is that red tape has prevented schools from getting rid of bad teachers, who are increasingly viewed as the greatest impediment to improving public education.

Simply put, the governor wants to make it easier to fire teachers by ending tenure and removing those who fail annual evaluations.

Testifying Saturday on behalf of the reform measure, Assembly Bill 555, Sandoval's senior adviser, Dale Erquiaga, noted that 0.3 percent of Nevada public school teachers annually lose their jobs because of poor performance. The national average, he said, is 1.5 percent.

The implication: The current process fails to weed out poor teachers.

Erquiaga argued the process is "too hard" and "too cumbersome," citing research showing 5 to 10 percent of teachers could be replaced for poor performance.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at April 22, 2011 2:04 AM
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