B-more school board¶

Last night B-more school board voted 6-3 to pass a policy that 99.4% of teachers oppose. We came out in a MASSIVE show of force to voice our many, MANY concerns, both logical and emotional, and they steamrolled over us anyway. (pt. 1) The policy gives principals the power to perform formal observations UNannounced. Essentially, at any time, an administrator can walk into a classroom, and based on how well we conform to the "instructional framework," determine our effectiveness as educators (pt. 2) Our opposition to the policy is not due to a desire to avoid accountability, but due to the flawed nature of the framework itself, and how its subjectivity and arbitrary structure can be used in a punitive way (pt. 3) Under this policy, an administrator can enter the classroom of a teacher they don't like, and use a strict interpretation of the evaluation rubric to rate the teacher "ineffective." This not only affects the progression of our careers, it's also a slap in the face. (pt. 4) There are so many subtle, intersecting reasons this is a problem. For one thing, research shows that black and male teachers are consistently rated lower, even when their student outcomes are the same, revealing underlying biases on the part of evaluators. (pt. 5) An important part of the instructional framework is classroom decorum, i.e. the ability to keep students in their seats, quiet, hands to themselves, etc. These are all things that students in impoverished communities have trouble with, meaning... (pt. 6) ... teachers at high-poverty schools consistently score lower on their evaluations. When a teacher moves to a "better" school, their evaluations IMMEDIATELY go up. So strict evaluations are a great way of telling teachers NOT to work at the very schools that need them. (pt. 7) Another issue is the disparity in culture btwn schools, with regard to the relationship btwn teachers and admin. In schools with supportive admin, this isn't as much of an issue, but in schools where the mgmt style is more confrontational, this gives admin a new weapon. (pt. 8) There are many, many more problems with the new policy, but all in all, it creates an atmosphere of stress and fear for teachers. That's why teachers oppose it. And unfortunately, that's why admin and the board support it. (pt. 9)