Merit Based Pay for Teachers

Any Simpsons fans out there?  The movie is on the horizon and as a fan, I know I am excited to see this nearly 20 year series come to the big screen…it should be a hoot.

I bring it up because, if you are a fan, you know that the twin sisters of Marge, Patty and Selma, work at the DMV.  You also know that as employees of the DMV, they are lazy, incompetent, and frankly could care less if people get through the line to get their license or not.  Does that sound like the real life DMV to you?  Hard to say.

I bring this image to your minds because I want you to think about the monotonous, unrewarding function of government work.  The DMV carries this stigma of incompetence because there is no reward for these employees to make that line go any faster.  They are not motivated by the job they do and will not receive any more money if they process 100 people an hour or 10 people an hour.  The same is true with the post office, the county clerk’s office, and our judicial system.  Government employees simply don’t care.

What about teachers?  Aren’t we government employees too?  Our paychecks are financed by public tax dollars as are the employees of the above mentioned government jobs. Do we teachers work with the same monotnonous fervor as our fellow governmental counterparts? Well, I guess that depends on the teacher.

Nonetheless, there is a contingency of individuals who would like implement for teachers a merit based pay system. Now, on the surface, it sounds great…I get more money for doing a better job than I am doing right now. Money is a powerful motivator.

But, what if I told you that the pay you receive is going to be tied to the TAKS test?  A recent article in the Austin-American Statesman sums up both sides of the argument as our government leaders (note the irony) begin to look for ways to motivate our teachers and attract others to the profession. The U.S. Congress is even considering building a merit based pay measure into the No Child Left Behind renewal bill.

Again, money is a powerful motivator but tying it to the test?  Is that fair?  Would that persuade a teacher to do a better job in the classroom? Would this merit pay make a teacher do any better of a job that they are doing right now?

I have fundamental problems with the suggestion of merit based pay.

1) The money has to come from somewhere in order for there be something to reward. Why are we investing it into a merit system when there are so many other uses for this money? Perhaps we should investigate spending the money on better curriculum, improved leadership, technology, or how about new desks, books, and supplies for our students?

2) Tying it to the test is truly unfair for a variety of reasons. For example, there is no 9th grade social studies TAKS test. Do those teacher no receive any pay for their efforts? Also, the 10th grade social studies test essentially does not count as it is not necessary for graduation.  Would that teacher be reprimanded for poor scores when the test is essentially moot? Also, teachers who teacher the students who take the exit level test are being placed under the ultimate pressure as students must pass that test for graduation.  Is that worth more merit?

3) How can you prove that what I taught the student during their 10th grade year was what propelled and motivated them pass the test? What if there was something on the test that they student learned in 8th grade from another teacher?  Does that teacher get the merit pay for that question?

4) What about teacher who are not tied to the TAKS test like band, choir, and other extracurriular teachers who are essential to our schools?

The last thing we want in our school is mediocrity but I believe that a merit based system is not going solve this TAKS problem nor it is going to motivate everyone to perform at their highest levels. If anything, teachers should be motivated by the fear that they could be non-renewed and asked to not return next year.

The bottom line for educational leaders is to motivate, collaborate, and reach out to the faculties of your campuses to reach the goals and vision you have for your school community. Only this will achive the goals you have set for your school and render this merit based issue a moot point.

I would like to know what you think.  Obviously, this is a controversial issue and many people have opinions on this that may be deeper than my own here today. I would love to create some dialouge on this topic.  Perhaps we can educate the world.