by Stuart Singer

Part 1: Defining the Problem

In his post “Gates: It’s the Teachers”, Mel Riddile firmly aligns himself with the views expressed by Melinda Gates in her recent Washington Post op-ed “Just Get the Best Teachers”.  Gates, Riddile and many other leaders of the educational community find that the equation for classroom success is quite simple:

The quality of the teacher = the level of student performance

Unfortunately, the solution of this problem is both difficult and complex.  Riddile formulates the overall answer—school leaders must do everything possible to create not only effective teachers but also individuals who are committed to their students and their profession.  Today I will offer the first of a three-part posting to address one critical portion of the teaching community where I believe such changes must be implemented. 

The task of making the American public school system more effective is much like the story of the little boy trying to plug all of the holes in the dike.  There is no simple fix or singular course correction available.  But there is a logical place to start.  Studies clearly indicate that good teaching can overcome a multitude of educational problems.  Likewise, poor instruction can undermine even the best of educational environments.  Consequently, the initial focus for improvement should be on the area that would be the most beneficial and critical—the classroom teacher.

The challenge is easily defined.  A plan must be created that would place excellent instructors in every classroom.  But while this may be a relatively easy goal to articulate it is virtually impossible to accomplish until one crucial trend is reversed.  Some data show that one-third of all new teachers leave the profession within their first three years and half by the fifth year.  For a comprehensive discussion of teacher retention refer to ‘Teacher Turnover and Teacher Shortages: An Organizational Analysis” by Richard Ingersoll (Richard Ingersoll, Fall 2001 issue of the American Educational Research Journal).  In a profession where experience is a critical component for success this constant riptide of disappearing talent is crippling.  When confronted with this statistic too many educational leaders simply propose raising teacher salaries.  Of course raising salaries is certainly not a bad thing but in this case it is not the fix.  Rather than money, the underlying reason for the failure of new teachers to grow into seasoned career professionals is the manner in which they are nurtured - or more accurately, not nurtured - in the majority of school systems.

I began my teaching career in 1968.  While many things have changed over the past four plus decades one constant has remained.  Every educational group on the planet refers to teaching as a “profession” correctly placing it in the same category as lawyers, doctors, and certified public accountants.  The comparison is apt.  College degrees are required and advanced degrees are encouraged in all of these vocations.  In order to be employed a license is needs to be obtained. 

The great divide between these occupations occurs in the initial years of a career.  No law, doctor or accounting office would give a first-year employee a job description equivalent to that of a senior partner.  They would certainly never place their most at-risk clients in the hands of their least experienced workers.  And yet, year in and year out, that precise scenario is played out in schools all over the country.

Democracy lives large when assigning tasks in education. Every teacher in a building, whether on their first day or twentieth year is assigned the same number of classes with a similar number of preparations and equally large class sizes. In truth a new teacher’s treatment is often less than equal in many circumstances. In a misguided attempt to reward seniority, schools give new teachers entry-level classes that many times are among the most difficult in a building while reserving the higher levels for long-term staff members.  

Imagine if recent law school graduates were told that on the first day at the office their initial case will be a high profile criminal case before the U.S. District Court—in one week.  But far too many first-year teachers face a comparable situation.  If classrooms are in short supply—not an uncommon situation at most schools–it is almost always the new guy who gets to roam the halls from class to class.  One person in this exact situation referred to his life as “Have wheels, will travel”. 

Inexperience in the classroom is a heavy burden; inexperience in multiple locations is down right oppressive.  Thus, is it any wonder why so many new teachers decide all too quickly that teaching is not for them?  On my first day as a high school math teacher (age 21 with the face of a twelve-year-old) I discovered that the majority of my Algebra 1 students, typically a ninth-grade course, were eleventh and twelfth graders.  The explanation was simple—the school did not like to have students who had previously failed a course to have the same teacher for the encore performance. Since I was the new kid (literally) on the block, it was very convenient for the counselors to place every student who had failed Algebra 1 onto my rosters.  No danger of repetition in that plan.   My classroom was the only academic classroom located across from the industrial arts wing so I was occasionally interrupted by the sound of a lathe, lawnmower engine or jackhammer.  Looking back on my initial teaching assignment, it was amazing I lasted three days let alone three years.

Over the years problems have diminished somewhat.  Colleges are doing a better job of preparing graduates to succeed. Some locales give new teachers an extra day or two of meetings prior to the beginning of the year.   Often young teachers are assigned to an experienced mentor who is expected to answer questions and give advice.  Unfortunately, little or no time is dedicated to this interaction.  The selection process of mentors in many cases is at best weak and at its worst terrifying. It is critical to remember that even the most conscientious individuals in this position still have to deal with a full time teaching job of their own as the school year is about to begin.  Obviously, this issue is far from ideal.

The continuous loss of young talent in education cannot be sustained.  Band-aid solutions will not cure the root cause of the exodus.  Answers are available but can only be found a good deal outside of the traditional box.  Many of the ways we have done school business will have to undergo serious changes.  And be assured the best of these alterations will cost money in the short term.  But the gains to our overall educational system will be well worth the cost and effort. 

(Next:  Three solutions, one is free; one will be costly; the third is expensive.

But all will help retain our youngest and brightest)