A Reader Submits... TPM - P.S.

The author of last Friday's submission submits his/her P.S.

“Just to be clear, I am all for a system that takes student growth and improvement into account, however both the student and the school should benefit from such a system.”

SC Response

Since we are clarifying, here again is my rock solid position on accountability and school rankings:

1. School accountability is good for students, especially the hard to teach and the hard to reach. Want proof? If you work in Texas, did you have any Katrina kids enroll in your school? Was it criminal how noticeably far behind they were? Did those students catch up within two years? Those last two “yes” answers are due to a functioning accountability system.

2. I am an advocate for a system that objectively measures both the performance of the campus and the degree of difficulty faced by that campus. Currently, this is something that the Texas system does not do. Want proof? Take two schools. One school is 85% poor, one 85% rich. Both are Exemplary (without TPM). Which school had the tougher row to hoe? Which result is the greater accomplishment? Does the current raking accountability system answer the previous two questions?

3. The truly great educators, schools and districts hold themselves accountable to internal standards. If you and your system define success by what outsiders dictate, you are leaving student success on the table.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...