August2013teach

School Systems to Submit Differentiated Pay Plans Published by the TENNESSEE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION August 2013 y Vol. 45, No. 1 y www.teateachers.org Special Membership Edition

The Tennessee Department of Education (TDE) is requiring all school systems to submit differentiated pay plans this fall, and has tried to reset expectations on what will constitute an acceptable plan. A state law passed in 2007 requires every system to have a differentiated pay plan to aid in staffing hard-to-staff subject areas and schools, and to hire and retain Continued on page 13 highly qualified teachers.

TEA Urges Caution About Ramping up Testing

The stakes on testing have rocketed skyward in recent years.

Test scores are now the foundation of teacher evaluation. Poor test scores can prompt a state takeover of a school. Jobs can be lost and professional standing jeopardized by low test scores.

Judging by what state officials are planning, there is a real possibility testing stakes will keep rising.

Recently proposed changes to teacher license renewal are rooted in test scores. New local pay plans demanded by the state could be based on test scores. A proposal to allow state officials to override local school boards on charters based on test scores is also in the works.

Licensure Based on Test Scores?

For the first time in state history, Tennessee education officials are proposing to tie teaching licenses to student test scores.

The Tennessee Department of Education is proposing to put teaching careers at risk as student test scores are expected to drop due to recently implemented and newly anticipated changes in state and national testing standards.

According to the Tennessee Department of Education, “Using performance data collected through teacher evaluations, the department will ensure that all educators meet and maintain minimum standards of performance.”

Does this mean licensure based on test scores? It will if Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman gets his way.

Tennessee has 20 types of teaching licenses at present. They are granted after a candidate passes one or more Praxis tests, and remain valid for 10 years. Huffman has proposed to increase the acceptable Praxis scores, reduce the number of license types and cut the number of years a professional license will be valid to six years. Under Huffman’s proposal, the initial license will be valid for three years.

“We oppose any further penalty on the teaching profession,” said TEA President Gera Summerford. “Tennessee’s teachers are working as hard as they ever have, adapting to the everContinued on page 13 intensifying reforms.”

page 3

State officials are ramping up the consequences for teachers based on a few days of student testing in the spring of each year, just when these scores could plummet due to upcoming changes in curriculum.

Tennessee is implementing Common Core State Standards next year, the greatest shift in standards and curriculum ever attempted.

Fundamental to the Common Core is a change in testing. The state will no longer use TCAP, moving instead to a new test that measures the new Common Core standards.

The problem with that is when you change the test, scores drop due to changes in format. Add to that massive upheavals in curriculum and teaching practice demanded by Common Core, and historic drops in test scores seem likely.

Continued on page 4

How Good Is Tennessee?

Questions grow about Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman’s policies Last January, Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman made a presentation to the Senate Education Committee with the theme that Tennessee schools are at the bottom of the barrel, implying that the quality of teaching and learning in our state needed a drastic overhaul. Huffman used fourth-grade reading and math NAEP scores—a national test that does not line up well with state curriculum—as a foundation for his presentation. The conclusion? Huffman’s reform efforts should get Tennessee out of the proverbial barrel.

The problem, according to political observers and education experts, is that Huffman’s use of statistics showing Tennessee at the bottom doesn’t really measure up.

Continued on page 11

Gera Summerford, President

THE LARGEST AND STRONGEST

VOICE FOR EDUCATION! HB190 SB196

HB702 SB830

HB362 SB302

HB6 SB570

HB539 SB989

HB1112 SB1149

2013 LEGISLATIVE REPORT CARD PRIVATIZING VOUCHERS STOPPED OVERRIDING LOCAL CONTROL WITH STATE

STOPPED

GUARANTEED INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR

ASSAULTED TEACHERS PASSED IMPROVEMENTS AND OPTIONS IN

SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY

PASSED

TAKING AWAY TEACHERS’ RIGHTS TO VOTE ON

HEALTH INSURANCE DEFEATED

TEACHER’S CHOICE

ON REASSIGNMENT AFTER A “REDUCTION IN FORCE”

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE ISSUES GO TO

teach (USPS 742-450, ISSN 15382907) is published in August, September,October,Nov/Dec,Jan/Feb,March/April,andMay by the Tennessee Education Association, 801 Second Avenue North, Nashville TN 37201-1099. Periodical postage paid at Nashville, TN. The subscription price of $3.65 is allocated from annual membership dues of $258.00 for active members; $129.00 for associate, education support and staff members; $16.00 for retired members; and $10.00 for student members. Member of State Education Editors (SEE).

Postmaster: Send address changes to teach, 801 Second Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37201-1099.

MANAGING EDITOR: Alexei Smirnov asmirnov@tea.nea.org ASSISTANT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Carol K. Schmoock INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & PUBLISHER: Mitchell Johnson

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WWW.TEATEACHERS.ORG Tennessee Education Association 801 Second Avenue North Nashville, TN 37201-1099 Telephone: (615)242-8392, Toll Free: (800)342-8367, (800)342-8262 Fax: (615)259-4581 Website: www.teateachers.org

BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT: Gera Summerford* (800)342-8367 VICE PRESIDENT: Barbara Gray* (901)353-8590 SECRETARY-TREASURER: Mitchell Johnson (615)242-8392 DISTRICT 1 Leisa Lusk* (423)794-6247 DISTRICT 2 Lauren McCarty (865)385-5220 DISTRICT 3 Michael Carvella (865)425-9501 DISTRICT 4 Anthony Hancock (865)539-7839 DISTRICT 5 Vacancy DISTRICT 6 Scott Price (931)455-7198

August 2013 Special Membership Edition

DISTRICT 7 Ashley Evett (847)338-0580 DISTRICT 8 Kawanda Braxton (615)554-6286 DISTRICT 9 Theresa L. Wagner (270)776-1467 DISTRICT 10 Larry Proffitt (615)643-7823 DISTRICT 11 Wendy R. Bowers (731)645-8595 DISTRICT 12 Suzie May (731)779-9329 DISTRICT 13 Ernestine King (901)590-8188 DISTRICT 14 Tiffany Reed (901)416-2530 DISTRICT 15 Tom Emens (901)277-0578 ADMINISTRATOR EAST Johnny Henry (865)712-3199 ADMINISTRATOR MIDDLE Julie Hopkins (615)822-5742 ADMINISTRATOR WEST Jimmy Bailey (731)217-0413 HIGHER EDUCATION Clinton Smith (901)230-4914 BLACK CLASSROOM TEACHER EAST Paula Hancock (865)694-1691

Back to School, Back to the Fight for Public Education Back to school! As children across Tennessee begin a new school year, educators embrace the opportunity to provide the best possible learning environments for our students. Like the kids, we enter the schools and classrooms full of hope and expectation. We know there will be challenges and successes, victories and defeats, proud moments and sometimes disappointing ones. But whatever the new school year brings, teachers, administrators and support professionals remain committed to developing the potential for success in every child.

While you focus on helping your students achieve their goals, TEA is committed to supporting educators and improving our schools. TEA members and staff believe that quality public education is a basic right for every child, providing the best hope for equal opportunities and future successes. As we kick off the 2013-14 school year, we recognize the value of our collective efforts in opening the doors of opportunity for future generations. We take pride in our role as professional members of the education community, aware that none of us can do it alone, and no one can do it better than us.

We embrace the challenge for improving public education in Tennessee, knowing that together we are more prepared, more prosperous, more powerful than any one individual. With the help of NEA, TEA and local Associations, we collectively raise our hands in support of authentic school improvement.

Raise your hand for your students, for your profession, and for quality public schools!

Working together, we can make this a great school year in Tennessee.

BLACK CLASSROOM TEACHER MIDDLE Kenneth Martin (615)876-1948 BLACK CLASSROOM TEACHER WEST Sarah Kennedy-Harper (901)416-4582 STATE SPECIAL SCHOOLS Vacancy NEW TEACHER CandraClariette (615)298-8053 ESP Stephanie Bea (901)873-8175 TN NEA DIRECTOR Melanie Buchanan (615)305-2214 TN NEA DIRECTOR Diccie Smith (901)482-0627 TN NEA DIRECTOR Diane Lillard* (423)478-8827 STEA MEMBER Parris Malone (901)406-9188 TN RETIRED Gerald Lillard (423)473-9400 * Executive Committee

TEA HEADQUARTERS STAFF INTERIMEXECUTIVEDIRECTOR:MitchellJohnson;ASST.EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS,TerranceGibson;CarolK.Schmoock;DuranWilliams; MANAGEROFBUSINESS AFFAIRS:StephanieFaulkner;INFORMATION

TECHNOLOGY&SYSTEMSMANAGER,Galen Riggs;MANAGEROF LEGALSERVICES:Steve McCloud;STAFFATTORNEYS:JohnAllen, VirginiaA. McCoy;MANAGEROFGOVERNMENTRELATIONS:JimWrye; GOVERNMENTRELATIONSCOORDINATOR:AntoinetteLee;WEBMASTER &COMMUNICATIONSCOORDINATOR:AmandaChaney;MANAGING EDITOR&COMMUNICATIONSCOORDINATOR:AlexeiSmirnov; INSTRUCTION&PROFESSIONALDEVELOPMENTCOORDINATORS: SusanDalton,ChelseaMcKissack;COORDINATOROFMEMBERSHIP& AFFILIATERELATIONS:ShannonBain.

UniServ Staff contact information can be found on page 16 or by scannig the Quick Response code below.

Mitchell Johnson, Interim Executive Director Your Membership Matters: Educators Cannot Afford to Not be Organized at the local level is paramount.

The past year in the life of the TEA can best be Advocacy – Whether it’s protecting employee described as unparalleled and unprecedented—a rights (TEA opened 243 new legal cases last year filled with anxiety, long hours, hard work year), lobbying for positive or against harmful and tenacity. It was a year, considering all the education reform initiatives, or gathering data circumstances encountered, that ended with used by local, state and national education unbelievable success for TEA and created high leaders, TEA remains the foremost advocate potential for significant for Tennessee educators. TEA averages 20,000 change and success for unique website visitors per month and averages the upcoming school year.

75,000 page views. TEA Facebook posts reach an Despite continuing efforts average of 6,000 people per post and our weekly to weaken and destroy e-newsletter goes out to 33,000 email addresses.

TEA, the events of last year Our presence and presentations at meetings of the actually resulted in a more State Board of Education, Tennessee Consolidated cohesive, more focused Retirement System Board of Trustees, State Local and more determined state Insurance Committee and various other agencies association. are important venues used by TEA to advocate for Of course, practically everyone is aware of our the needs of educators. endeavors in the halls of the legislature. As you Our profession has been attacked and can see in the poster on page 2, this arena has criticized like never before. The state of been and will continue to be a primary activity Tennessee is the focal for TEA. As we point of the current move forward, it national education will be covered in “We exist to advocate for your reform movement. great detail over profession so you can make a Every for-profit the next several education entity has months. During difference in student lives.” descended on this all of last year, Mitchell Johnson state to promote the continuing charters, vouchers educational and other educationreform movement related money-making schemes. There is a lesson preoccupied and dominated many association to be learned from the last year. Educators activities. The magnitude of these reforms and cannot afford not to be organized. TEA, with its their consequences required such attention. statewide membership, is the only organization But legislative activity was not the only arena in which the association was active. Many of you may with the capacity to counter these attacks. More be amazed to learn that the association was busily than ever before in history, Tennessee educators have the best reason for standing together as and effectively carrying out an ongoing array of a viable, tenacious, capable force. Imagine activities within the following focus areas: what could be accomplished if every educator Professional Growth - TEA continues its renowned emphasis on professional development. in Tennessee joined together to make TEA even stronger, more powerful and more effective.

Last year, thousands of educators participated Promoting and building membership is the in 113 TEA workshops, professional development responsibility of every member. Every nonactivities and conferences. Additionally, the member should be strongly urged to become association produced materials for educators, part of this organization because each person parents and others to assist in helping children who does not join weakens the collective efforts study and learn. of those who do. Because of the changes being Local Association Development – Nineteen promoted by those who would profit from public TEA field organizers make up the largest education, it is important that we concentrate segment of employees of the association and, on making every educator an active, involved, along with other TEA staff members, lend their supportive member of this dynamic professional expertise to local associations and members. association—an association steadfastly Promoting leadership skill development, committed to providing Tennessee’s children with membership engagement, member benefits, real reformed quality education. effective communications and collaborative Your TEA membership matters. conferencing to cultivate strong organizations

TEA members visit legislators during TEA Educators’ Days on the Hill in March and April 2013.

Students at Warner Elementary and Ross Elementary in Nashville greet the Cat in the Hat in February 2013. TEA members coordinate Read Across America celebrations in classrooms across the state every spring.

Rutherford EA President-Elect Emily Mitchell (standing) addresses legislators at TEA Legislative Forum in January.

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Ramping up Testing,

continued from page 1 That is exactly what happened to our neighbors in Kentucky last year.

The state was the first in the nation to adopt a new test explicitly tied to the Common Core, and the results were shocking: the share of students scoring “proficient” or better in reading and math dropped by roughly a third or more in both elementary and middle school. Common Core proponents and experts fully expect Kentucky’s experience of massive test score decreases to happen in other states as new tests are administered.

To put that in perspective, a test score drop of one-third would push a majority of Tennessee schools below the current threshold for “priority” schools.

“Raising testing stakes for teachers, schools and students now is like building a skyscraper on shifting sands,” said TEA Interim Executive Director Mitchell Johnson. “There is huge probability that scores are about to drop, and implementing a system where careers and students are put at risk based on test scores is a bad idea. From pay-for-test score schemes to licensure sanctions, TEA will push back on the headlong rush to ramp up testing stakes, especially in light of Common Core implementation.

There is a legitimate question about the wisdom of high-stakes testing in general. Raising the stakes while changing the test is a recipe for disaster.”

If Tennessee suffers a drop in scores as seen in Kentucky and other states, it could threaten all teachers regardless of previous evaluations. Some estimate up to a four-fold increase in failing teacher evaluations if scores fall to such an extent. Failing evaluations are a growing concern in light of proposed licensure changes being considered by the State Board of Education, where failing evaluations over a certain period would prevent licensure renewal.

Significant drops in test scores may also have many more negative unintended consequences for students, such as an increase in students being held back.

It is important to note that plummeting scores are not because new tests are more rigorous. Simply changing formats triggers a decrease. Common Core requires skills not demanded by the current fill-in-the-bubble TCAP, and will require a more advanced use of technology as the state pushes to move all tests for Common Core online. There are problems aligning the new tests with curriculum that also lead to losses.

“Changing test content and format is a huge problem moving forward,” said Terrance Gibson, TEA assistant executive director for professional growth. “It is a big logistical shift for students to take high-stakes tests on a computer, where technology proficiency could have as much impact on scores as academic knowledge. Measuring higher-order thinking skills through a standardized test has always been a challenge. There is little mystery on why scores would drop as we’ve seen in other states.”

In light of the upcoming changes, TEA understands raising testing stakes is bad policy and will hurt good teachers, schools, and students. The Association is not alone.

Across Tennessee and throughout the country, opposition is growing to test-based “reform” among parents, teachers, principals, superintendents, students and concerned citizens. The state would do well to proceed with caution when the future of our children is at stake.

“Raising the stakes while changing the test is a recipe for disaster.”

Mitchell Johnson

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August 2013 Special Membership Edition

Common Sense About C Top 10 Common Core Facts 1. Why do we need new standards? Not every student in the United States has access to a great public school. Not every school is offering its students the rigorous coursework necessary to transition smoothly to postsecondary educational options without remediation.

Graduation rates are improving incrementally, but it is clear that gaps that fall along ethnic and racial lines still persist. The enduring dropout rates cannot persist if this country is going to be globally competitive in the future.

2. Who? States developed the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) together and most voluntarily adopted them.

3. How many? To date, 45 states plus the District of Columbia have adopted the CCSSS. 4. What’s covered? Mathematics and English language arts and literacy (ELA), with science coming soon.

5. When? States must implement the mathematics and ELA common core standards by 2013-14 school year.

6. What’s different about these standards? They are fewer in number, clearer, encompass broad academic goals, and are designed to prepare

students for a variety of postsecondary experiences. The CCSS also are more challenging than most of the current state standards and provide clarity and consistency about what is expected of students.

7. Will there be new tests?

Yes, states must use the related mathematics and ELA assessments by the 2014-2015 school year.

8. Will these tests be different?

Yes, the ‘next generation assessments’ will provide better and more timely and useable feedback to students, parents, and educators.

9. Will these standards tell teachers how to teach? No, they will provide teachers flexibility to use professional judgment to design instruction for student success.

10. What about students with disabilities and English language learners? The CCSS provide an historic opportunity to improve access to rigorous academic content standards for ALL students. For students with disabilities and English language learners to meet the standards and fully demonstrate their knowledge and skills, their instruction and assessments must incorporate necessary supports and accommodations.

Social Studies Teacher

Torian Hodges-Finch Rutherford EA Member since 2007

“Why I Belong”

t Common Core Common Core Plus Common Sense: Let’s Get This Right DEMAND A PLAN: Forty-five states have adopted common standards for reading and math. These standards have the potential to offer every student in America access to the same high standards that promote deep thinking and will help our students graduate prepared for college and careers. But the implementation of these standards and the assessments that are tied to them has to be done right!

NEA encourages parents and community leaders to collaborate with NEA and be informed advocates so all kids can benefit from the opportunity presented by the Common Core State Standards.

We call on parents, students, educators, and community members to make sure policymakers and elected officials: FOCUS ON SOLUTIONS FOR KIDS 1. Students should be assessed based on what they are actually taught in class.

2. Assessments must be used to improve instruction and provide meaningful feedback for students, parents and educators.

3. All kids must have access to great public schools that offer well-rounded coursework, high expectations of all students, 21st century standards, needed technology, safe environments, and class sizes that allow every student individualized attention.

ENSURE HIGH STANDARDS WITH COMMON-SENSE ACCOUNTABILITY 4. We need to develop implementation plans

to transition to CCSS and better assessments. These plans must be fair to students and understandable to families.

5. Implementation advisory committees must include the voices of students, parents and educators.

6. States and districts must provide flexibility during the two-year transition so students can focus on learning and educators can focus on real teaching rather than focusing on the high-stakes consequences of a test which may not be aligned to the standards.

7. States should modify their accountability systems to include multiple, appropriate and valid measures of student learning rather than focusing on high-stakes standardized tests.

ENSURE EQUITY OF OPPORTUNITY 8. Districts should provide students the support they need from school counselors, nurses, reading specialists, and quality afterschool programs instead of spending so much on test preparation.

9. All educators must have the time and tools they need to strengthen their instruction.

10. A single test score should never determine the future of any student, educator or school.

Scan this QR code to access more Common Core resources or visit

www.nea.org/commoncore

“Thanks to my TEA membership, I was fortunate to have combined auto insurance and homeowners insurance through California Casualty. Last year, I had two calamities happen in the same week. I was in a car accident and then my house flooded on my birthday, when I was in Washington, D.C., with 120 students. The hot water heater in my house exploded and rained all over the place. After I called California Casualty about my car wreck on Monday, the check arrived two days later and I had my car back the following week.

California Casualty was working to repair my house even before I returned from my trip to Washington, which turned out to be the highlight of my entire teaching career.

When I was president of Rutherford Education Association, I relied heavily on the expertise of TEA staff for communications, going to national trainings, like the local presidents training in Washington. The people I met there are still my closest friends.

I love all the discounts and offers I get through TEA Member Benefits and MyDeals app on my phone.

There are just so many reasons to join TEA.”

www.teateachers.org

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Tennessee’s Teachers Raise Their Hands for Public Education

Student success tops discussion during NEA Representative Assembly “You can’t imagine it until you see it,” said Darrick Bowman, member of Rutherford Education Association about the annual event that brought nearly 9,000 educators from every state, including 175 from Tennessee. Teachers, education support professionals and administrators from across the country came to Atlanta, Ga., in early July to address the pressing issues facing schools, students and the teaching profession during the National

Tennessee delegates vote during the 2013 NEA RA in Atlanta in July. Seated in the front row, from left: TEA Board Member Theresa Wagner of Metro Nashville EA, TEA President Gera Summerford and Interim Executive Director Mitchell Johnson.

Education Association’s 92nd Representative Assembly (RA).

The top decision-making body for the more than 3 million-member NEA, the RA sets Association policy for the coming year. Delegates adopt the strategic plan and budget, resolutions, the legislative program, and other policies of the Association, and they vote by secret ballot on proposed amendments to the NEA’s Constitution and Bylaws. NEA’s Representative Assembly is also the world’s largest democratic deliberative body.

Under the theme “NEA: We Educate America,” one idea resonated above the rest at the Georgia World Congress Center: When it comes to leading a movement for student success that is real and sustainable, no one is more equipped than educators.

“We must empower our members to create change,” NEA President Dennis Van Roekel told some 9,000 delegates who attended the gathering.

“Some [people] don’t like the Association’s focus

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August 2013 Special Membership Edition

on quality in the classroom and in schools,” Van Roekel said. “But if we don’t empower educators to take control of how to define quality, then who will? Congress?

Governors? State politicians?

Michelle Rhee? Maybe the Koch Brothers?” asked Van Roekel referring to the billionaire businessmen whose money has helped to fund scores of recent anti-worker efforts. “No,” he continued. “It must be us!”

Van Roekel’s words embodied the energy and spirit of this year’s RA gathering, which also included remarks from NEA Executive Director John Stocks, Teacher of the Year Jeff Charbonneau, and Education Support Professional of the Year Donna Schulze, and focused on providing educators with new programs, professional training and support, and collaboration with other educators.

“If we don’t empower educators to take control of how to define quality, then who will?

Congress? Governors? State politicians?”

Dennis Van Roekel To meet this goal, the Association has launched “Raise Your Hand for Public Education”—a campaign designed to help educators across the nation become leaders in a national movement for public education. An energetic and interactive kick-off for the campaign was held July 2, and included a host of dynamic and respected educators—from the classroom and from the research community.

They engaged the standing-room-only crowd in a day of professional rejuvenation and educator empowerment.

RA delegates displayed their commitment to “Raise Your Hand” by agreeing to increase annual membership dues by $3 per member—a move that will generate more than $6 million in funds

specifically to provide Great Public Schools Grants (GPS Grants) to NEA state and local affiliates.

Grants will support innovative projects and great ideas to boost student learning, such as successful implementation of Common Core Standards, school safety/anti-bullying programs training, and technology. They will be awarded using criteria from key elements of the Raise Your Hand campaign: successful students, accomplished professionals, dynamic collaboration, and empowered leaders.

In his July 5 remarks, Teacher of the Year Jeff Charbonneau urged delegates to turn away from the relentless negative portrayals of public schools in the media and redefine the message.

“Rather than succumb to the notion that we are failing, we must celebrate the quality education that we are providing while strengthening our resolve to further improve,” Charbonneau said.

“Despite what we read in the paper, students and teachers across the nation are achieving in countless ways. It is time for us to recognize that public education is succeeding.”

ESP of the Year Donna Schulze delivered a similar empowering call to action. “I think much of the public has a distorted picture of teachers, principals, and school support staff,” Schulze said.

“They’ve seen too many movies,” the Maryland paraeducator joked, adding that educators can clear up common misperceptions about educators’ daily workloads by becoming political activists.

“This is why we need to raise our hands and our voices and educate them to the truth,” said Schulze.

“And for this to succeed, we need to step up and step out of our comfort zones and get politically active. Get in the game!”

Working For You

You can count on TEA’s experienced staff to help meet all your professional needs. From outstanding professional development to support in the field. From legal services to communications assistance. From membership recruitment and records support to help with lobbying and legislative involvement. TEA staff are ready to assist you—helping you educate our children, engage our parents and empower our schools.

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From Memphis to Mountain City TEA’s Got You Covered.

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TEA UniServ Coordinators:

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Executive DirectorExecutive Director kefmea@isdn.netkefmea@isdn.net Ken Foster, ckson Susanne Jackson sjmea@isdn.net sjmea@isdn.net tjmea@isdn.net tjmea@isdn.net Terri Jones and Tom Marchand twmmea@isdn.net twmmea@isdn.net wyer Herman Sawyer hlsmea@isdn.net hlsmea@isdn.net Memphis Education Association

Executive Director kson

nd yer

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901.454.0966 kefmea@isdn.net sjmea@isdn.net tjmea@isdn.net twmmea@isdn.net hlsmea@isdn.net

August 2013 Special Membership Edition

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Information Technology & Membership

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Tennessee Constitution Article XI, Section 12

Tennessee Education Association 801 Second Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37201 615.242.8392 800.342.8367

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August 2013 Special Membership Edition

“The State of Tennessee recognizes the inherent value of education and encourages its support. The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance, support and eligibility standards of a system of free public schools. The General Assembly may establish and support such postsecondary educational institutions, including public institutions of higher learning, as it determines.”

Huffman,

continued from page 1 Take, for instance, the neighboring state of Kentucky, which, according to Huffman, ranked fifth in the nation for fourth-grade reading scores for free and reduced lunch students. Alabama ranked 20th, while Tennessee was way down at 41.

No disrespect to Kentucky, but the state does not have the fifth overall best school system in the country, nor is Alabama 20th, well ahead of states like California and Ohio. So why would Huffman focus on a limited data point that makes Tennessee look so bad?

“Relying on selective statistics is telling, and clearly not valid,” said Jim Wrye, TEA manager of government relations. “I’ve told legislators the only place Alabama ranks more than 20 slots ahead of Tennessee is in football, certainly not education.”

Wrye said the Volunteer fans in the House and Senate may not like that joke, but they know the truth of it: Tennessee schools are not behind their counterparts in Alabama or Kentucky.

Huffman’s sweeping reforms have caught the ire of Diane Ravitch, one of America’s leading education experts and a former President George W. Bush administration insider.

“Tennessee state superintendent Kevin Huffman expects to get great teachers by cutting the salaries of those with advanced degrees and experience,” Ravitch wrote on her blog, www.dianeravitch.net, in early July. “Wonder where he learned that formula? And of course, he will

evaluate teachers by test scores, There is a growing sense in the aka junk science. This is supposed to Tennessee House of Representatives improve education because the top that Huffman doesn’t think much graduates of the nation’s universities of Tennessee schools, and certainly will rush to teach in a state where disregards their history and success. advanced degrees and experience That was fully evident in his push to don’t matter. They will, won’t they?” have the State Board of Education To hear Wrye say it, the most gut the minimum salary schedule in important education metric for any June. TEA strongly opposed the plan, state is graduation rate. explaining to state board members As it turns out, the U.S. the important role the minimum Department of Education data shows salary schedule plays in maintaining Tennessee is in the top nine, with a equity in teacher pay among the most remarkable 86 percent graduation disadvantaged systems, and how it rate, well was a key part of ahead of all the small schools “Kevin Huffman expects neighboring lawsuit settled in states and to get great teachers 2002. leading To add insult by cutting the salaries the South to injury, two of those with advanced (Tennessee years ago the degrees and experience.” ranked 6, administration while Alabama presented a plan Diane Ravitch ranked 40, to the General Kentucky Assembly to didn’t publish its rate). The graduation eliminate the minimum salary rate looks even better in light of schedule entirely. It was a non-starter, the recently increased diploma and now House and Senate members requirements. Tennessee also boasts on both sides of the aisle suggest that one of the highest rates in the South Huffman did administratively what for passing the military entrance exam he could not do legislatively. TEA is known as the ASVAB. working with legislators to remedy the This amazing and positive data was situation in the legislative session, conspicuously absent from Huffman’s beginning January 2014. presentation.

There are similar grumblings in “There is an old adage that says the statehouse about the evaluation ‘to a hammer, everything looks like system, Common Core State a nail’,” said Wrye. “If you promote Standards, licensure changes, charters the idea that nothing is good about and other ideas Huffman is pushing.

Tennessee schools, the only thing to Some legislators question what will do is to reform them into oblivion.” happen long-term when problems

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arise with Common Core or the evaluation system.

Another criticism of the commissioner is that he only taught briefly through Teach for America, an organization he used to lead. He has no practical experience managing school systems and he certainly has never had to go before a county commission seeking approval of a school budget.

“You have to ask whether Tennessee schools are inherently good and we need to build upon strengths, or they are bad and need radical change,” Wrye said. “I know most Tennesseans and elected officials believe their schools are inherently good—and with good reason. We do more with less than any other state, and there are ample places for common-sense investments to improve outcomes.”

Everything the Department of Education has promoted and billed as “reform” has little or no research to support whether it will improve student outcomes. The recent changes certainly do not bring more resources to Tennessee classrooms and represent a radical departure from what has worked in the past. Licensure and pay based on test scores, private school vouchers, a state charter authorizer and other reform ideas are all unproven.

Only those who think Tennessee schools are at the bottom of the barrel would support such radical change.

As Ravitch observed on her blog in June, in Huffman’s “relentless effort to raise teacher quality in Tennessee,” he will cut the salaries of most new teachers and the ax will fall most heavily on teachers who get an advanced degree.

“You see, the way to improve teacher quality is to remove any incentive for additional education,” Ravitch wrote. “If it can’t raise test scores, why bother? Huffman got a law degree, but maybe that doesn’t count. He worked for Teach for America and was its communications director before becoming [education] commissioner in Tennessee. Maybe that’s what really counts.”

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Licensure, continued from page 1 If approved, the proposed changes will go into effect in July 2014, making licensure decisions based on overall evaluations and individual growth scores, if applicable, rather than additional degrees or professional development credits.

“Our education commissioner wants to shorten the term of a teaching license and raise the score which would qualify one for a license,” said Jimmy Bailey, principal of Northeast Middle School in Jackson and member of Jackson-Madison Co. EA. To Bailey and many of his colleagues in Tennessee, the issue of tying a test score to the teaching license is preposterous.

“We’d be the only profession in the state with such high-stakes licensure,” Bailey said. “It would be like telling the dentist, ‘We’re going to revoke your license if your patients have cavities, or revoke a plumber’s license if the drain stops up.”

The plan to tie teacher licenses to student test

Differentiated Pay, continued from page 1 There has been a perception that state officials want differentiated pay to be based on test scores, either through evaluations or testing benchmarks. Several systems highlighted by TDE for differentiated pay use pay-for-test-score schemes.

TEA opposes pay for test scores, noting there is no basis in research that it improves teaching and learning. Additionally, paying

maintaining teacher pay equity and generating essential school funding.

One positive outcome was the admission by state officials that school systems need not to destroy existing salary schedules to implement differentiated pay. The policy change “in no way prevents a district from using the same salary schedule and structure it currently has in place.”

TEA does not oppose differentiated pay, provided there is teacher input and agreement.

According to state guidelines, differentiated pay shall not come at the expense of a competitive base salary. TEA will work with school systems to maintain existing salary schedules, and will work with the General Assembly to reinstate much of what the state board eliminated by its action.

“Local school systems don’t have to rebuild and redraw their salary schedules. That is important,” said TEA President Gera Summerford.

“Career teachers have made decisions based on the promise of those schedules, and differentiated pay does not and should not break that promise. Differentiated pay cannot come at the expense of

“Local school systems don’t have to rebuild and redraw their salary schedules. That is important.”

Gera Summerford for test scores may also have the perverse effect of making failing schools harder to staff.

The stakes on differentiated pay were raised when the state board of education voted to gut the minimum salary schedule on June 21. The stated goal is to increase local flexibility for differentiated pay plans. The vote was 6 to 3 after a lengthy debate.

TEA vigorously fought changes to the minimum salary schedule, pointing out its important role in

scores would make it tougher to obtain and keep licenses by requiring higher test scores on initial licensing tests and subsequent, more frequent renewals.

“What if your children’s family situation changes and after working hard all year they don’t score 3, 4, or 5 on a test?” Bailey said. “You can’t control what happens in a child’s life.”

Summerford urged TEA members to invite colleagues to join TEA and encourage state officials to do what’s right for the sake of Tennessee’s students.

“This is just another example of basing major decisions on evaluations and student test performance,” Summerford told The Tennessean.

“We are philosophically opposed to basing so much on those tests, especially during the time when we are attempting to move toward fostering high-order thinking skills in our students through Common Core State Standards.” making a salary to live on.”

Tennessee law is explicit in protecting the base salaries of teachers in local education entities.

Moreover, current law says any performance component shall be criterion-based so that everyone meeting a previously agreed-upon standard earns the additional compensation.

Still, Summerford said educators should be wary of efforts to take away additional compensation for years of experience, advanced degrees or additional duties.

“So many teachers work hard to get licensed and further their education at a huge cost to their family budgets,” Summerford said. “Our state would do well to recognize the value of continuing education and professional training for teachers. Everyone should understand the importance of having highly qualified professionals teaching our students.”

One of the key problems with differentiated pay is that more money will have to come from local sources.

“A local school system could plan bigger bonuses for test scores or increased salary for good evaluations. They could plan to shower money on teachers through differentiated pay,” said Summerford. “The bigger question becomes whether the local funding body would fund it.”

Special Ed. Assistant

Stephanie Bea

Shelby Co. EA Member since 2007

“Why I Belong”

“All educators should join because TEA supported teachers before collective bargaining and will continue to have our back. I joined because I wanted to make sure I had security.

As a special education assistant at Lucy Elementary School in Shelby Co., I do my job with pride and I want somebody to have my back in any situation.

More education support professionals should join and I encourage them to get in touch with me. I make sure I have information available to all of my colleagues. It helps to see what wealth of resources and benefits TEA offers.

I really love my job and I take my job seriously. Every day I walk into the school, it becomes easier and easier. I wanted to make a difference, a change.

I chose to be a member, a part of something bigger that represents the best in the teaching profession, so I got involved in my local and state Associations. I bring my vivaciousness.

I want everyone to know how much positive change we can bring if we put our hands and minds together.

Everyone should attend the professional development conferences, the state and national representative assembly. I always ask people, would you like to attend the RA? Once you see it, it consumes you.

People often ask, what would TEA do for them? Sometimes it helps to reach out and see what they can do for their colleagues in every part of Tennessee.”

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By Gene Cotton I was stunned to read recently that the Tennessee State Board of Education is ceasing to give teachers pay raises based on education, degrees, and years of service and that test scores will be a major player in deciding their pay scales in the future. Are these people crazy or what? Our state leaders, School Board Chairman Fielding Rolston and Executive Director Gary Nixon are about to catapult us back into the dark ages of education.

I was so upset when I read this that I called the Tennessee Department of Education and asked to speak with someone about this new policy. I was told that I would have to email my questions and they would be answered. “Surely there is someone in your office with whom I can have a real conversation, isn’t there?” I

Where would you suggest, Mr. Rolston, that she put “more responsibility” in her schedule?

My wife has been an exemplary teacher for almost 25 years. She was voted Teacher of the Year at Liberty Elementary School, and then she earned this title for the entire Franklin Special School District—twice. She taught one year before we were married and then retired for about 20 years before returning to teaching. Thirty years ago she founded the “Young Scholars Institute,” where tens of thousands of students over the years have had the opportunity to explore creative learning experiences, and for some, find their life’s passion. She has even been recognized by the Tennessee Legislature for this excellent summer program. But when the policy of a “highly qualified teacher” came along, she

“Enough is Enough”

Letter from a supportive husband

asked. I was told to “wait just a minute.” After putting me on hold for four or five minutes, the assistant returned to say she was transferring my call to someone who could help me.

Unfortunately, that person didn’t answer and I was unable to leave a message because the voice mail box was full.

My next call was to the Tennessee State Board of Education. After much conversation and debate with the lady who answered the phone, I was transferred to Executive Director Gary Nixon. Dr. Nixon was very cordial and gave me a fair amount of time on the phone. But our conversation went nowhere. “Can you name one place in the United States where merit pay for teachers has been successful?” I asked.

“No, I cannot,” Dr. Nixon replied.

This whole notion of teaching to the test is absurd, and the only thing more absurd is basing teachers’ salaries on the results of those tests. But, according to Mr. Rolston, the new policy directs districts to reward exemplary performance or for taking more responsibility.

Taking more responsibility? Let’s see.

My wife Marnie teaches third grade. Her

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Marnie and Gene Cotton.

August 2013 Special Membership Edition

“Can you name one place in the United States where merit pay for teachers has been successful?” I asked.

“No, I cannot,” Dr. Nixon replied. schedule is not unlike most teachers. She gets up every morning between 5:30 and 6:00 a.m.

She leaves for school around 7:00 a.m., unless she has bus duty, cafeteria duty, gym duty, or a faculty meeting, which call for an earlier departure. She teaches an extra half-hour each day (for which she is not paid) to help the district offset for snow days. Her planning periods are often occupied with team meetings or other “school business,” so the majority of her planning gets done at night. Marnie seldom comes home from school before 5:30 or 6:00 p.m. Almost every night she spends two to three hours grading papers, planning and calling parents. Most of her weekends are consumed with eight to 12 hours of schoolwork.

didn’t qualify. She hadn’t taken the Praxis test.

At the same time, a brand new college graduate was considered “highly qualified” because he or she had taken the test.

Can you see why I’m mad as hell?

My wife has taught all kinds of students over the years. Some were great, some were better, while others were the type that teachers dread. But she never complained and taught them all equally. Last year, during the TCAP testing, one of her students answered all but one of the practice questions. She put her first “real question” answer in the space designated for the last practice question. Her entire test was one question off, and my wife was not allowed to let her know. Another student’s father was dying that week of cancer. He died during the TCAP testing. The probability of that student doing well was very low. Several others were challenged because of their lack of knowledge of the English language. Those three or four students’ test scores can bring a 95 percentile down to a 73 percentile in a heartbeat. And you want to base my wife’s salary on those test scores? Not if I have anything to say about it!

I can’t think of a time when teachers were treated with more disrespect, lack of professionalism, and just pure insolence than today. Their ability to have representation at the collective bargaining table has been taken away, policies and procedures have been put in place that are dehumanizing and demoralizing, and everywhere you turn, you see another teacher with a target on his or her back.

It is time for all of us to stand up and say, “Enough is enough!” If we don’t do this now, it will be years before our educational system can recover to a point where it can compete on a global scale. Good teachers are leaving

“When we put so much emphasis on a single test, we not only lose sight of the purpose of education; we also lose sight of its possibilities.” the profession in droves across America and this is just wrong. Teaching is an honorable and good profession. No other profession has the ability to influence and change lives. What other profession would prompt a 40-year-old woman named Penny Blue to call my wife from Minneapolis to remind her that she was in her first third-grade class all those years ago? Now that she has a third-grader of her own, Penny pulled out all the papers and projects that she had kept all those years to share with her daughter. She just wanted to let my wife know how grateful she was for that year of teaching and how much it had impacted her life. She was hoping that her daughter’s teacher would have that same influence.

There are many reasons why we shouldn’t teach to the test, and even more reasons why teacher pay shouldn’t be based on those test results. I’m all for accountability and I agree that tests are a way of measuring what students have learned, but it’s not the only way. When we put so much emphasis on a single test, we not only lose sight of the purpose of education; we also lose sight of its possibilities.

But hey, what do I know? I’m just a husband of a third-grade elementary school teacher.

Gene Cotton is a songwriter in Franklin. His wife Marnie Cotton teaches at Liberty Elementary School and has been a TEA member since 2001.

Jimmy Bailey with wife Lisa and daughters Amber and Abby.

Jimmy Bailey, Principal Jackson-Madison Co. EA Member since 1979

“Why I Belong”

“TEA is your best voice when it comes to the things that are going on in the state. When you’re trying to manage a school, TEA is watching out for you.

TEA speaks for us at the State Board of Education, legislative and policy meetings in Nashville, Washington, D.C., and nationwide.

I became an educator because I thought this was the best thing to do in order to help children. I admired several teachers in my school and I dreamed about going into teaching. My college

professors taught me how to become a good teacher and it went from there.

Now I’ve been in education 34 years.

The last 15 years I’ve been a principal.

TEA offers great networking opportunities. You have access to so many educators across the state.

As a school administrator, I know how helpful TEA is in providing timely information and in our professional development.

You get your dues money back by using discounts through membership.

I financed my first house through NEA. You get vacation packages, magazine and travel discounts, plus savings on computers and different services you might need. My family and I just returned from Gulf Shores. Before we left, we went online and checked all the discounts that were available through TEA/NEA. We printed out the certificates and probably saved more than $150 in discounts during our trip.

The most valuable information I get about evaluation comes from TEA. To understand the two issues we’re facing now - the salary schedule and our battle with licensure issues - I will rely heavily on TEA resources.

You have to take a lot of things coming from the state with a grain of salt. TEA is an excellent source of information about what’s coming down the pike. I often hear from TEA first, before the State Department or the local school system.”

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Tennessee’s Teachers Celebrate Small Victories After State Board Vote Dressed in red, TEA members packed the State Board of Education meeting on Friday, June 21, as the board discussed and voted on proposed changes to the state minimum salary schedule (SMSS). While the board did approve Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman’s proposal, there were several victories to celebrate, thanks to the hundreds of calls, emails and presence of Tennessee’s teachers at the meeting.

TEA presented a petition to the board signed by more than 6,000 educators and supporters of public education.

What was expected to be a 9-0 vote became a 6-3 vote and occurred only after the board added a preamble indicating the intention to see salaries increased and to revisit the SMSS if that is not the result over time. This statement would not have occurred had teachers not rallied to defend the state salary schedule.

The base salary on the new minimum state salary schedule has been increased by 1.5 percent. The increments have likewise been increased by that amount. This is significant because it was not a part of the proposal Huffman presented to the board at the previous meeting in April.

The Department of Education acknowledged in its salary schedule fact sheet and in the meeting that local districts can continue to use their existing schedules, including the ability to continue to reward teachers for years of experience and advanced degrees.

“The schedule for Tennessee teachers was established by the General Assembly more than three decades ago to foster equity in teacher salaries among school districts and to require professional pay for our hardworking educators,” TEA Vice President Barbara Gray said during her statement on

behalf of Tennessee educators prior to the vote. “The law instructs the commissioner of education to draft, and you, the state board of education, to approve a salary schedule recognizing experience and training factors. For many years, the schedule has had 21 yearly steps averaging 1.4 percent per year. It also included five degree categories from bachelor’s to doctorate.

Under the current plan, local systems have always had the flexibility to develop their own schedules so long as they are above the state minimum.”

Gray (pictured above, far left, next to TEA UniServ Coordinator Jackie Pope) urged the state board to understand the impact of Huffman’s proposal before they voted to change a system that has served generations of Tennesee’s teachers well for nearly 40 years. She cautioned the board that the changes could seriously damage teaching careers and increase the inequities between rich and poor school systems.

Prior to the June state board meeting, TEA informed state officials and legislators that the effect of the proposed changes amounted to a lowering of state requirements for teacher salaries. In other words, for the first time in Tennessee history, the state minimum salary schedule was being lowered.

“In light of our recent victories, we urge every member to contact a colleague and ask them to join TEA,” Gray said. “This is the only way we can stand up to defend our profession.”

Stay on top of curriculum changes, professional development opportunities, deals and discounts via MyTEA app.

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August 2013 Special Membership Edition

Need information, services?

Tennessee Education Association 801 Second Avenue N., Nashville, TN 37201-1099 (615) 242-8392, (800) 342-8367, FAX (615) 259-4581

UniServ Coordinators

District 1 — Harry Farthing, P.O. Box 298, Elizabethton, TN 37644; phone: (423)262-8035, fax: (866)739-0949; Assns: Carter, Hancock, Hawkins, Rogersville, Johnson, Sullivan, Bristol, Elizabethton, Kingsport. District 2 — Jennifer Gaby, P.O. Box 70, Afton, TN 37616; (423)234-0700, fax: (423)234-0708; Assns: Cocke, Newport, Greene, Greeneville, Unicoi, Washington, Hamblen, Johnson City. District 3 — Tina Parlier, P.O. Box 70288, Knoxville, TN 37938-0288, (865)6881175, fax: (865)518-3104; Assns: Claiborne, Grainger, Jefferson, Sevier, Union, Scott, Campbell, Oneida (in Scott Co.). District 4 — Jim Petrie, Assns: Knox,TSD, District 5— Jason White, P.O. Box 5502, Oak Ridge, TN 37831; (615)521-1333, fax: (865)200-5254; Assns: Anderson, Clinton, Oak Ridge, Blount, Alcoa, Maryville, Lenoir City, Loudon. District 6 — Jim Jordan, P.O. Box 4878, Cleveland, TN 37320; phone: (423)472-3315, fax: (855)299-5674; Assns: Bradley, Cleveland, McMinn, Athens, Etowah, Meigs, Monroe, Sweetwater, Polk, Rhea-Dayton, Roane. District 7 — Theresa Turner,HCEA 4655 Shallowford Rd., Chattanooga, TN 37411; (423)485-9535, fax: (423)485-9512; Assns: Hamilton.

District 8 — Chris Brooks, P.O. Box 3629, Chattanooga, TN 37404; phone: (615)332-2636, fax: (866)483-2514; Assns: Clay, Cumberland, Fentress, Jackson, Morgan, Pickett, Putnam, Overton, York Institute, TN Tech.

Univ, Bledsoe, Sequatchie,Van Buren, White. District 9 — Jackie Pope, 2326 Valley Grove Dr., Murfreesboro, TN 37128;phone: (615)898-1060, fax: (615) 898-1099, Assns: Bedford, Moore, Cannon, DeKalb, Coffee, Franklin, Grundy, Manchester, Tullahoma, Marion, Warren. District 10 — Jeff Garrett, P.O. Box 1326, Lebanon, TN 37088-1326; (615)630-2605, fax (855)3208755—; Assns: Rutherford, Murfreesboro, Sumner, MTSU, Macon, Smith, Trousdale. District 11 — Cheryl Richardson-Bradley, P.O. Box 354, Goodlettsville, TN 37070; (615)630-2601, fax: (888)519-4879; Assns: Wilson, Lebanon, FSSD, Williamson. District 12 — Miley Durham, P.O. Box 10, Lawrenceburg, TN 38464; phone: (931)766-7874, fax: (913) 762-9391— Assns: Giles, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Fayetteville, Maury, Wayne, Marshall, Perry. District 13 — Forestine Cole, Ralph Smith, Metro Nashville, 531 Fairground Court, Nashville, TN 37211; (615)726-1499, fax: (855)299-5837 (Cole), (855)299-4968 (Smith); Assns: Metro Nashville, TN School For The Blind. District 14 — Rhonda Thompson, TEA 801 Second Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37201; phone: (615)354-3305, fax: (888)519-7331; Assns: Clarksville-Montgomery, Robertson. District 15 — Maria Uffelman, P.O. Box 99, Cumberland City, TN 37050; phone: (931)827-3333, fax: (855)299-4925; Assns: Benton, West Carroll, Central, Clarksburg, Huntingdon, McKenzie, Henry, Paris, Houston, Humphreys, Stewart, Cheatham, Dickson, Hickman.

District 16 — Lorrie Butler, P.O. Box 387, Henderson, TN 38340; (731)989-4860, fax: (855)299-4591; Assns: Chester, Hardeman, West TSD, Henderson, Lexington, Jackson-Madison, McNairy, Decatur, Hardin. District 17 — Karla Carpenter, P.O. Box 177, Brunswick, TN 38014; (901)590-2543, fax: (855)299-4892; —Assns: Crockett, Dyer, Dyersburg, Gibson, Humboldt, Milan, Trenton, Haywood, Lake, Lauderdale, Obion, Union City, Tipton Weakley. District 18 — Zandra Foster, 3897 Homewood Cove, Memphis, TN 38128; (901)377-9472, fax: (855)320-8737;—Assns:, Shelby, Fayette. District 19 — Assns: Memphis Education Association — Ken Foster, Executive Director; MEA UniServ Directors: Susanne Jackson, Terri Jones, Tom Marchand, Herman Sawyer, 126 South Flicker Street, Memphis, TN 38104; (901)454-0966, fax: (901)454-9979; Assn: Memphis.

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