Lately I have been reading about teachers and their performance in our public schools. The issue is how teachers should be evaluated on their merit and the performance of their students.
A good friend of mine was a first-grade teacher. Of the six first grades in the school, my friend's students had the highest scores on the Benchmark examinations given by the district. She started the school with 45 students and ended the school year with the same 45 students. Not one dropped out
Obviously, her students had performed well and the parents and students had supported the class. However, her contract was not renewed. Because the teacher did not have three years of teaching experience, she had no "rights" and could be dismissed without cause.
The parents wrote over forty letters in the teachers behalf. Two vice principals, a member of the school board and a former Utah member of the House also wrote in support of the teacher.
So far nothing has happened. No one wants to overturn the ruling of a principal. So this young teacher's career is being destroyed because of the power of a single principal. In this debate on education, I think we need to find a way to keep good teachers with less than three years of experience, and get rid of bad principals.
Drew Luke Jones
Salt Lake City