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  Performance pay for teachers

  As an educator I have a big problem with pay based on performance.  It shifts the burden to the teacher when really it's the child who needs to do the work.  As a human being, I do not have the right to force another human being to do something they do not want to do.  I also can not learn anything for anybody.  I can't even teach anybody anything.  People teach themselves.  All I can do is provide the tools necessary for the child to expand their skill set. It is up to the child to use the tools in order to teach themself.

  Performance pay does not consider many root causes of why education is lacking in this country.  It simply continues a faulty design, but now puts the burden on the teacher to make it work.  If a child is a year behind in math, it's the teacher's responsibility to catch that child up even though what they need is outside the curriculum.  If a child is going through a divorce, it is now the teacher's burden to push that child to focus on their work.  If a child's family member dies, the teacher's pay is dependent on how long the grieving process is for that particular child.  If the child cannot relate to Columbus being a hero because from his perspective Columbus was a rapist and murderer, the teacher is responsible for the child to accept that their opinion is not the right answer.  What ends up happening is that students are not seen as individuals with unique needs and skills, but as factory workers all needing to produce the same product.  At the end of the day, the product becomes test scores.  Those who cannot produce are sent out, and the rest are taught how to remember the right answers for the upcoming test.  Rote memorization takes the place of thinking and problem solving.

  I think the education system as a whole is based on false premises and I think performance pay for teachers only builds another weak layer on top of a faulty foundation that leads us away from better learning environments.

  Posted 11 Nov 07