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The combination of poor student performance and limited teacher experience makes it especially difficult for majority low-income schools across the country to fulfill strict guidelines under NCLB, writes educator Paul Barnwell in The Atlantic. Barnwell himself was a novice teacher in 2004 in the Teach Kentucky program, which put him in a classroom with minimal training. He quit his assignment by Christmas. Although some educators hit their stride early in their careers, recent studies suggest it takes many a decade or longer to become truly effective in their craft: to efficiently deal with distractions and disruptions, create and implement engaging curricula, and provide meaningful feedback to students. One of the most pressing policy challenges facing today's schools is therefore creating equitable teaching and learning conditions not just for students but educators. Barnwell asked several public-school teaching colleagues from around the country what it would take for them to voluntarily switch to the neediest schools in their regions. Julie Hiltz, an educator in Hillsborough County, Florida with nearly 13 years of teaching experience, told him that she would require the ability to make local decisions, professional development designed and led in-house, more time for collaboration, and smaller class size. In contrast, current guidelines for struggling schools under NCLB generally disenfranchise administrators and staff. More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

Published by LEAP

Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.