Florida - An Exciting Step In Education Reform

OFF THE WIRE
An Exciting Step In
Education Reform
Today’s students will one day become tomorrow’s leaders, thinkers, and innovators. In our fast-paced and ever-changing global economy, our children must be prepared to face unprecedented competition. With this in mind we have taken an important step in that direction.
Senate Bill 736, which passed Wednesday and the Governor is expected to sign, rewards our hardest working teachers with better pay and eliminates life-time tenure for bad teachers. There will be fewer layoffs based on seniority and instead, when money is available, there will be real, monetary incentive for teachers who truly care about our children’s education and are able to help our students show outstanding annual progress. Senate Bill 736 also rewards teachers who work in high-poverty schools, those who teach subjects where there is a shortage, and individuals who seek additional certification or advanced degrees in the fields they teach.
The current proposal will affect new teachers only. Teachers hired before July 1 can choose to forego tenure and opt into the new plan including performance evaluations, a route many of our best and brightest teachers will undoubtedly find hard to refuse. They have always laid the foundation for our future generations, and now—finally—they will be compensated for it.
Ultimately, though, it is their students and our children who will benefit by this new plan to enhance education. So here’s to an exciting step forward in education reform!
Fred Costello,
District 26