Sad Day for Teachers in NY

My response to an editorial by the Albany Times Union, stating it is "Time to End the School Fight." No.  It is not.  Here's why:

Oh goodness.  Where do I start?  TU Editors, how would you like your job to hang on how well citizens understand your articles?  They could take a test to determine your overall effectiveness as an editor.  We'll make the test impossibly hard, with reading levels years beyond the ability/age of your readers, and there will be no transparency so you will never get to see the test. Oh and answers on the test will be "equally plausible" choices (see EngageNY test directions). Don't worry, we'll notify the public that 70% of people will fail this test.  But that won't save your job.

The tests are designed for failure.  In my last response to an editorial here, I said they were calibrated to a 1500+ on the SAT.  Upon more research I found it is actually a score of 1630, higher than the score College Board uses (the 1500 number) to define college readiness.  Under the Governor's direction, State ED and Regents inflated those scores impossibly high so that 70% of our students were guaranteed to fail.  How did they know that ahead of time?  70% of SAT test-takers fail to get a 1630.  Then just in case, they set the cut scores after the tests are taken to give the Governor his failure rate and fire teachers.

THE GOAL of our Governor, and his hedge fund privatizers, is to use these tests to demolish our public schools and teaching force.  Our high-quality master's degree teachers are to be fired and replaced with lower wage workers or "facilitators" who watch children learn online.  It is happening in other states (see Chicago for ex).  And now the fight has come to New York.  The reason we have an abundance of "effective" teachers in NY is because this is one of the few states to require a master's degree, tough entrance exams for certification, and ongoing professional development - not to mention three years of probation on the job.  Are there a few ineffective teachers out there that need to be removed?  Sure.  That's why in 2008 the legislature made it easier to get rid of bad teachers, and it is working.  But that's not good enough because they want the whole system gone.  You don't get rid of a quality workforce unless that is your intent.  Fire teachers, close public schools, and replace them with privately operated, for-profit charter schools.  Oh, and let's not forget - charter teachers are not held accountable by these same "teacher evaluations."  And their financial accounts are not examined thoroughly as are our public school accounts.

What our governor bribed his way to with our democratically elected legislature, is that our NYS teachers now have to fight their way through tests every year to keep their job.  Oh, you're buying the soundbyte that there will be no evaluation percentage tied to a test?  Yes, that's true.  No percentage.  In the new matrix that is proposed, score TRUMPS everything. You have a bad class or teach to a population that can't show growth on testing (special education teachers, English as second language teachers, gifted teachers, teachers in impoverished communities) and you are gone after two years.  Gone.  It doesn't matter how loudly you are extolled in observations or how well you serve your students.  You.  Are.  Gone.

And for new teachers - even worse.  You have to, as Peter Greene stated, "Get snake eyes on the VAM dice" every year for three years out of the four.  If those numbers don't line up for you - you are gone after four years.  If you somehow miraculously get effectives the first three years and then have a rough class the fourth year and get a developing - well as Assemblywoman Nolan said, "you get another bite at the apple" for a fifth year.  But if that is not effective, you are gone.  No recourse. All the years and expense to get a master's degree so you can put your passion for helping children into a teaching career?  ALL HOPE GONE! You will never teach in NY again. But you will still be saddled with school debt. Enrollment in NY teacher prep programs is already down 20-50%.  What will happen when we can't find teachers to teach our kids?

All this WILL double down on test prep and hurt our children. Kids are already pulling out their hair or eyelashes, deliberately scratching themselves, shaking, crying, and vomiting during tests.  Students with identified disabilities, some of whom are tested at grade level, no matter what their intellectual ability sometimes cry through the test. I personally witnessed it. Enough.

This is child abuse.  This is teacher abuse.  This is war against those who see our children as a profit market.  No we will not give up.  We cannot.  REFUSE THE TESTS.

Sad Day for Schools in NY

Today was a very sad day for public schools in NY.  The legislature went along with most of what Governor Cuomo advocated as his "education reforms," really his thinly disguised plan to "break public schools" and fire teachers.

Most of us who care about our schools, our teachers, and our students are grieving today. We are having a hard time understanding how legislators could ignore the public outpouring of thousands of people marching and chanting against these reforms.  We are having a hard time understanding how money can buy a government, how corruption can win over democracy.  We will continue to fight.  I posted the following email, which was sent to my State legislators, Senator George Amedore and Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, today. It received a lot of attention in some of the facebook groups in which it was posted, so I am including it here in my blog.  Feel free to share, use or adapt however it suits you.  If I sound angry, I am.  But we can't get so angry that we stop working.  Keep fighting.  We have no other choice.

"I am asking as your constituent that you vote no on the proposed budget that is coupled with Cuomo's education 'reforms,' that will surely destroy public education in our state. Local control of our schools is NOT for sale and we expect you, as our representatives, to make sure of that.

A supermajority of NY voters have rejected Cuomo's plan for our schools. The deal that has been announced this morning, is simply unacceptable. Tying teacher evaluations to tests, instead of meaningful assessment and feedback, will lead to the firing of quality teachers. A plan to fire them after two years of unsatisfactory test ratings, based on an INVALID TEST and VAM that has been thoroughly debunked and called 'junk science,' by professional statisticians, education researchers, and professionals is nothing short of 'CRAZY.' Cuomo's disdain for teachers is palpable and his tirade makes no sense unless he wants the destruction of our public schools, firing of all union teachers, and replacement by nonunion lower quality workers. As a retired teacher, and a grandparent, I will not stand for this and thousands upon thousands of New Yorkers agree with me.

Those teachers most at risk are the ones we need the most. Special education teachers selflessly give to our neediest students. Because these students are often tested at grade level (regardless of their intellectual age) these teachers will never show progress on test evaluations. Their students show progress in a thousand different ways, but these ways are not going to show on a grade-level test. Also at risk, teachers of English Language Learners. Only 3% of these students show proficiency on the test because - duh - they do not speak the language yet. And gifted teachers or teachers of highly able students in excellent districts that have won national awards - these students often max out the tests and so do not show growth. Teachers in high-poverty communities, where psychological and social problems abound - these students are not going to show growth unless they have the resources of well-funded, well-staffed community schools where they receive social services as well as instruction.

A plan for 'drive-by' evaluators who do not understand the community in which a teacher works, and are at the control of our New York State gestapo-like State Ed Department which is filled with right-wing privatizers, is not acceptable. Your vote for this is not acceptable. My tax dollars being spent on evaluators who will demolish our teaching force is not acceptable.

If I sound outraged, it's because I am. Outraged and just plain flabbergasted that an unethical, corrupt, bully of a politician who has allowed hedge fund billionaires to buy his platform - that he can get his way with our own elected representatives is maddening. I am outraged that you have not stood up against this in a louder way, and so I am asking you to Vote No! on the budget with these "reforms." A good budget that is late is a million times better than a bad budget on time.

I have phoned to request a meeting with your office and I hope to hear from your scheduler in the near future."

Cuomo's Fallacies and Follies Part One

There is a heck of a lot of hot air coming from the Governor's office lately.  I thought it would be a fun exercise to look at his arguments, repeated over and over in soundbytes nearly word for word, as if he is afraid to depart from the script.  Here are just a few of his claims, refuted by solid evidence.

1.  "New York State schools are failing."  This is an outrageous generalization.There are a number of studies that came out recently that prove this assertion false.  Education Week consistently ranks New York education at the top compared to other states, year after year. Their most recent ranking pegged us at 17th, but after adjustment for regional costs, 4th.  Not too shabby.  The most recent SmartAsset study ranked us 4th.  According to that study, we have the sixth-highest college attendance rate, with 71% of graduates attending college within twelve months of their graduation.  Graduation rates are steadily improving.  NY students excel in prestigious academic competitions like the Siemens and Intel science competitions.  By every measure NY schools are schools of excellence.  Those schools that are struggling, do so because of impoverished communities and a funding inequity that is the fault of the state, not the schools.

2.  "250,000 NY students went through failing schools in the last ten years."  Cuomo's assertion is not in comparison to the number of students who were enrolled in NY schools during that time period, and therefore is a meaningless statistic.  When you add the yearly totals, 26,853,740 students were enrolled in NY schools from 2003-2004 up to and including 2012-2013.  Working from Cuomo's figure of 250,000, that means that .93% - less than one percent - of students went through "failing schools."  And to put the ball back in Cuomo's court, those "failing schools," were underfunded by the state.  According to the Alliance for Quality Education, under Cuomo's leadership funding inequality among schools has risen to historic proportions.  If Cuomo were really concerned about failing schools and the students who attend them, he would work out an aid formula that gives additional funding where it is needed the most. Though several rulings in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity lawsuit ordered the state to fairly fund the neediest schools, funding cuts have brought the financing back to pre-lawsuit levels. 

3.  "Only 38% of NY students are ready for college or careers."  Cuomo pulled this little factoid from the College Board benchmark, using SAT results.  Only one problem:  The College Board recently responded to enormous criticism that the test was not an accurate indicator of academic performance.  They have announced a change in the test to make it "more representative of high school curricula."  A measure is only as good as the validity of the tool which is used.  Using an SAT benchmark that is based on a faulty test, invalidates all claims based on that benchmark. The SmartAsset statistic that NY has the sixth-highest college attendance rate also refutes the claim.  And on a personal note, standardized tests don't fully show what students are capable of in college.  I did poorly on an ACT myself, yet graduated as valedictorian of my college, and had a 23-year career as a teacher.  Hmm.

4.  "99 percent of teachers were rated effective while only 38% of high school graduates are ready for college or careers.  How can that be?"  First of all, refer to #3 above for information on the "ready for college or careers" statistic.  Secondly, why wouldn't New York have 99 percent of their teachers effective?  We rank 11th in the nation for teachers who have gone through the rigorous national certification process.  NY teachers complete some of the toughest licensing requirements.  To achieve permanent certification, teachers must have a master's degree, pass professional exams, and have a portfolio review.  To get a tenure in a school district, they have to go through three years of probation with frequent observations.  All NY teachers must participate in ongoing professional development. 

Cuomo, your assertions are faulty and illogical, based on poor evidence, generalization, and vague suppositions.  It's almost too easy...given that you have a law degree and all, and I'm just an old retired teacher.

Open Letter to NYS Legislators

Dear Legislator:

I am writing to express my concern about the Governor’s plan for teacher evaluation and to share some information with you.  I retired last year after 23 years of teaching in Guilderland, NY, and now spend my time as an education activist.  I truly believe reforms like those the Governor proposes will destroy our public schools, dismantle our present high-quality teaching force, and keep prospective candidates from entering the career path.

Teachers are not against evaluation processes that are fair and that help them to inform their teaching, set goals for improvement, and hone their skills.  This process was continually refined BEFORE Cuomo decided to base a large chunk of the evaluation on test scores.  A couple of years before I left the field, our district (and most others in NY) started using the Danielson Rubric for observations and evaluation.  It is available online here:  http://erhsnyc.entest.org/ourpages/Danielson%20Rubric.pdf.

This thorough evaluation tool has 58 pages of domains and components for assessment.  Observations are done throughout the year by administrators who then meet one-to-one with the teacher and spend much time going over the feedback and setting goals for improvement.  Though I considered myself a master teacher, I always found inspiration in those meetings and I was thus able to continually make progress in my field.  I am attaching the pdf for this rubric so that you can see how extensive it is.  You would be hard-pressed to find another profession that cooperates with such an intense evaluation system, on an ongoing basis.

Here is my point:  if administrators already have the tool to properly assess their teachers, and to help them to improve – then if it is true that we have “ineffective” teachers – why are all teachers being held accountable?  It is the administrator’s JOB to assess, mentor, train and assist teachers wherever they are on their career path.  If there are issues, and I have seen this happen with burnout, teachers are counseled out by their administrators.  In severe cases NYSED can get involved and pull the license.  For new teachers, there is a three year probation time, during which assessments are even more crucial, and give a path to weeding out those who haven’t shown potential for teaching. 

I am also attaching a pdf of a brochure I created that highlights why Cuomo’s assertions about our teachers in NY are based on false logic.  First of all, if we go along with Cuomo’s thinking we have to believe that NY schools as a whole are failing – which is just NOT TRUE.  I am sure you know that Education Week ranked us as 17^th, and after adjustment for regional costs, 4^th.  SmartAsset just came out with a study that placed us 4^th in the nation, sixth for the number of students in college, with 71% attending college within 12 months of graduating.  How does Cuomo’s assertion that only 38% tested college ready even make sense?  I call foul on this nonsensical and skewed use of testing data.  As we well know, the tests themselves are designed for failure, which is why so many parents across the state are protesting and refusing the tests for their children.  

In contrast to the Danielson evaluation, the APPR is deeply flawed, with fully one-third of NY teachers moving from one category to another on that measure.  Teachers most affected by basing their performance on the tests include those we need the most – special education and teachers of English language learners (ELLs).  Only 3-5% of these populations pass the tests, and their teachers are held accountable.  It is infuriating that those who spend their lives selflessly giving to our neediest students are punished in this way.  Who will choose to work with these populations when their careers are on the line, and if Cuomo gets his way, lose their livelihood after only two years?  I could go on with the reasons it does not make sense to give a grade-level test to students who cannot approach grade-level ability, because it is akin to child abuse, but that is another whole letter.

I am proud to say that NYS teachers are some of the highest-qualified in the nation.  The extensive process that occurs to even become certified in NY is one of the toughest in comparison to other states.  That is why I am not surprised that “only” one percent of NY teachers were rated ineffective.  What I am surprised at, is why legislators and the public at large do not seem to know that little fact. 

The bottom line is that THE MAJORITY OF NY TEACHERS ARE NOT INEFFECTIVE.  The issue is the populations that they teach.  Poverty, homelessness, disabilities, and other factors have everything to do with a test score that does not favor teachers.  Even teachers of gifted students are at risk, because those students often “max out” the test and do not show growth.  The present evaluation system is faulty!

Please do the right thing for NYS students and reject Cuomo’s evaluation plan for teachers and his punitive and draconian measures that will surely dismantle our public schools.