ELKHART -- A student's improvement is as vital as his performance when used to evaluate his teacher.
This was the local reaction to news from the Indiana Department of Education this week highlighting the state's education agenda for 2011.
The agenda, pitched by Gov. Mitch Daniels and State Superintendent Tony Bennett, focuses largely on ensuring that accountability for educators is based on student performance instead of seniority. Area educators agreed that keeping teachers accountable is good, but want to ensure the accountability methods used tell the whole story.
The 2011 agenda states that leaders need the freedom to make improvements within their schools and should be held responsible for student performance. It goes on to say that "reliable, fair, accurate evaluations" of student achievement should be used to assess the effectiveness of teachers and administrators, and that educators should be compensated and given tenure based on student achievement rather than seniority.
The agenda also calls for offering high school seniors the chance to graduate early and scholarship money for those who do totaling the amount the state would have spent during their last year in school.
Superintendents Mark Mow and Joe Sabo, of Elkhart and Wa-Nee Community Schools respectively, agreed that accountability for educators is good, provided there's a clear blueprint for evaluation.
A member of Bennett's study council, Mow didn't see a lot of surprises in the 2011 agenda. The most critical component of the plan, he said, will be implementing an accountability system that's fair. That means including student improvement as well as performance when determining a teacher's effectiveness.
"Not all kids start at the same place," said Mow, "and improvement is the key part of that equation."
Mary Beck Elementary is in its first year of a pilot program that includes merit-based pay for teachers. The program stemmed from an agreement Elkhart officials reached with the IDOE after the school failed to consistently make Adequate Yearly Progress.
Mow said officials will meet with teachers from Beck early next year to receive feedback on the plan. Initially teachers told Mow they didn't believe incentive-based pay could help them work harder than they already do, but added it would be nice to have their work recognized.
Sabo said that while no one in Wa-Nee is wary of accountability, he isn't aware of any clear models that can be used to annually assess educators' performance.
"Very necessary work," he said of assessing educators. "Just not sure how we get it done."
Marie Giese, UniServ director for the Indiana State Teachers Association who oversees Elkhart and Baugo Community Schools locally, is also concerned about finding an accurate method of evaluation. In addition to tests that only track student performance, there are no universal evaluations for curriculums outside of core areas, she said.
Giese also questioned the potential effectiveness of merit-based pay.
"Teachers work together as teams," she said. "They don't compete with one another."
An extra $500 isn't going to help a teacher find another great idea for a classroom activity or another hour for planning. A better use of money, she said, would be hiring more teachers -- ultimately reducing class size -- and providing more opportunities for preparation and professional development.
Giese added that if Daniels and Bennett would show more appreciation for the job teachers do it would go a long way to improving morale, which she said has never been lower.
"They feel like they're not valued," Giese said of teachers, "that the good things they have accomplished are not recognized. That every time Bennett speaks, he speaks of how badly Indiana is doing, which is not true. And that does not a good leader make."