Schools Roundup: Best of the Best Edition
DCPS is now home to 23 new teachers with certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, more than doubling their ranks since 2007. This is a big deal, and good news for the District, where, according to a NBPTS release, only 47 teachers have ever received the honor.
National Board certification, unlike generic teaching certification, is the closest thing the teaching profession has to a bar exam – it’s an advanced teaching credential with an application process that can take years to complete, and even high-performing teachers sometimes require two or three tries before being granted the designation. The more NBCTs we have in District schools, the better, as studies have demonstrated that National Board certification improves both student achievement and teacher retention.
D.C. has been a frustrating place for teachers to apply for National Board certification. It can be an expensive process, and while the majority of states and districts offer extensive financial and professional incentives for earning the certification, in 2007 DCPS offered only a one-time, $4,000 stipend. Compare that to a NBCT in Fairfax County, who receives a one-time stipend of $1750 (plus an additional $1750 if they teach in a “high-risk school), in addition to an initial bonus of $5000 for the first year and $2500 annually for the next nine years from the state of Virginia.
DCPS needs to do more to support other teachers interested in applying, and offer more to recognize those who are successful, especially if, as Chancellor Michelle Rhee has said, DCPS is going to be among the “best of the best” in the next five years.
Council and Boards Bicker Over Suspensions: The Post reports this morning that in the wake of a series of fights and suspensions in local schools, D.C. Council members Marion Barry (Ward 8) and Harry Thomas Jr. (Ward 5) introduced legislation that would standardize the process of suspending students and notifying parents. The legislation would also seek to limit suspensions for “frivolous reasons,” hold principals accountable, and empower parents to file grievances.
Sounds good so far, but Ted Trabue, the newly-elected member-at-large of the State Board of Education, argues that this is a Board of Ed, not a Council issue, as the Board oversees policies of parental involvement and attendance. And Trabue’s comments prompted Kwame Brown (At-large) to question, basically, whether anyone would bother listening to any policies developed by the State Board. Ouch. And then there’s the D.C. Public Charter School Board, which points out that any uniform standard for discipline would be ineffective, as charter schools are run independently.
While the Council and school boards work all that out, we’d like to suggest that some of the talk be focused on a move toward in-school suspensions, instead of the kind where the kid sits at home and watches TV for ten days. Not only are in-school suspensions easier on parents (particularly of young students), but they keep the kid at school, where teachers can still give them work and supervisors can make sure they’re doing it. That way, when the student returns to the classroom, they aren’t hopelessly behind the rest of the class.
Contract Watch: According to a release from the Washington Teachers’ Union, the WTU has decided to start playing hardball and partnered with their parent union, the American Federation of Teachers, to address the stalled contract negotiations. WTU president George Parker said, “We will draw on the national expertise and resources of the AFT to assist us in our efforts to ensure that our contract proposal provides a sound economic package for our teachers and radically improves teaching and learning in Washington, D.C.” It also seems that Parker and WTU vice-president Nathan Saunders temporarily set aside their feud for the deal, which was passed unanimously by the WTU board members present.
Schools Notes: Attorney General Peter J. Nickles announced that the District will sue a local lawyer for costs to DCPS associated with battling the lawyer's “meritless” special education lawsuits (Via City Desk) … The Post ranks the ten best DCPS schools according to test scores, with Janyey, Lafayette and Key Elementaries taking top honors … and speaking of Key, it also happens to be a “toxic hot spot,” in the 6th percentile nationally for toxicity ... Props to the DC Education Blog for spying “Short Bus Chronicles,” a great local blog written by a DCPS bus driver ... And Ballou High School's marching band really really wants to play in the inaugural day parade. (We want them to, too!)