The new school year has gotten under way, and while parents are still learning the names of their children’s teachers, discussions abound about which teachers are good and why others are not.
Such conversations often end up focusing on tenure. That one word can evoke very strong feelings in parents who think they know what it really means for a teacher to hold tenure in a school district. But do they?
Tenure is one of the most misunderstood provisions of New York state’s education law, said Carl Korn, spokesman for the New York State United Teachers union (NYSUT). `The biggest myth out there is that it provides teachers with a job for life. That simply is not true.`
Korn said teachers without tenure `can be dismissed for virtually any reason as long as it is not a violation of civil rights,` but that tenure provides protection for the teachers by mandating a `formal legal proceeding in which an impartial hearing officer weighs evidence on both sides and makes a ruling` before a teacher can be dismissed.
Opponents of tenure say its provisions are excessive.
`The laws of New York state contain multiple layers of protection for people in the public sector,` said David Ernst, director of communications and research with the New York State School Board Association (NYSSBA). `The whole rationale for tenure is faulty in our view.`
The process of tenure, Ernst said, can be enormously expensive and time-consuming. NYSSBA attempted to reform tenure in the early ’90s and was unsuccessful. The group currently supports a five-year probationary period, rather than the existing three, before a teacher can be recommended for tenure.
`You learn a lot on the job that you aren’t getting when you graduate,` said Ernst of teachers. `With some, it’s immediately apparent that they are not suited for teaching. With others, it’s not immediately apparent. You’re affecting kids’ lives, and there ought to be a stronger, tougher standard.`
Korn countered that New York’s three-year probation is one of the longest among states. He said that many of the prospective candidates for tenure do not measure up and are not recommended.
Interim Superintendent for Ballston Spa Central School District, Ray Colucciello agreed that districts should weed out unqualified staff long before the recommendation for tenure even begins.
`The only people who should go into year three should be those teachers you are sure would be appropriate,` said Colucciello. `A lot of districts separate staff after year one or two. Typically, you can tell.`
Ernst said that problems can crop up even after weeding out unqualified teachers before tenure recommendations.
`In year three, the person is a good, motivated teacher. It does not mean at year eight or year 28 they are going to be a good, motivated teacher, yet your flexibility is very, very limited,` said Ernst, who added that NYSSBA is in favor of abolishing tenure in favor of renewable contracts.
`Renewable tenure is no tenure at all,` said Korn, who equates renewable contracts to a permanent probation period. `A system without tenure would be a breeding ground for mediocrity.`
Proponents say tenured teachers are more apt to seek new ways to help kids learn by trying various instructional methods. Another benefit, Colucciello said, is that having job security removes teachers from the worry about what unhappy individuals could do to their livelihood.
`There are so many variables in learning,` said Colucciello.
He said charges of incompetence are often difficult to trace back to the teacher. The roles of the parent and the student, as well as the available resources, must be taken into account. In such cases, it becomes `hard to extract` a single reason ` such as teacher’s instructional methods being faulty ` for failure.
`Teaching is not an exact science. It is an art,` said Colucciello. He said that standards and practices are different between districts, and teachers who are viewed as average in one area may be considered above average in another.
`Cases in which teachers are accused of incompetence are not as cut and dry,` said Korn. He said it is not uncommon for one parent to be unhappy with a teacher while another parent thinks that same teacher is exceptional.
Ernst agreed that those cases involving accusations of incompetence are hardest to prove, but said `provisions for dismissing a tenured teacher should be less onerous.`
Ernst said the tenure dismissal proceeding, known as 1020-A, is especially redundant in criminal cases, when the teacher has been convicted of a crime and cannot be immediately terminated. He said NYSSBA is looking for a more realistic process to be put in place.
`The vast majority of teachers are hard-working, dedicated, responsible people,` said Ernst. `At the end of the day there are too many teachers who are not meeting the obligations.`
Korn said the lack of support among many school boards for the tenure law stems from their failure to demand accountability from the supervisors who are responsible for reviewing the job performances of teachers.
`The job of the administration is to evaluate the teacher, supervise the teacher, offer help to improve the teacher and then, if he or she doesn’t improve, use the law to remove them,` said Korn.
Colucciello agreed that administrators have a responsibility to select appropriate candidates for tenure.
`We really must do our job and look carefully,` said Colucciello.
Ernst agreed that administration plays a vital role in the nation’s public education system but said budget cuts in recent years have limited their effectiveness.
`It’s an important factor that administration in public education is very thin, and there is an enormous amount required of them,` he said. Ernst said the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers indicate public education has the lowest manager-to-staff ratio.
Colucciello and Korn cite several improvements in recent years that increase teacher knowledge and performance. Districts receive grant money for providing mentor programs, where a new teacher is paired with an experienced teacher with whom they can compare lessons, collaborate, ask questions, work with and observe.
Colucciello and Korn also point to legislation changes that have made New York one of only seven states to require a master’s degree for teachers in elementary and secondary education. In addition to the advanced degree, the state has instituted a requirement for teachers to participate in 175 hours of in-service credits to maintain their certification every five years, amounting to about 35 hours of training each year.
The continuing education legislation is being phased in, and, ultimately, every teacher will have to meet that requirement.
While Korn believes significant changes made in 1994 to the state tenure law has resulted in a fairer and faster process, Ernst disagrees.
`The changes set a series of stated timelines and deadlines,` said Ernst. `While there were some initial improvements, they have not been sustained.` He said more cases are being settled before reaching the tenure process.
Korn said arbitration occurs in more than 90 percent of the cases.
NYSSBA does not believe that is a positive step.
Said Ernst, `Arbitration requires compromises. An arbitrator views this as a labor dispute and tries to find middle ground.` That middle ground is often a `settlement for punishment that is typically less than what the district would prefer,` added Ernst, noting that the need of the district usually is for the dismissal of the teacher.
`Teachers certainly are entitled to due process,` said Ernst, but added that the tenure grievance process can get expensive. Citing a survey NYSSBA did of cases resolved between 1997 and now, excluding those in New York City, Ernst said the average time to resolve all cases was 520 days, with pedagogical cases lasting 832 days. The average cost for each case was listed as $128,000, with the pedagogical cases averaging $243,000. The average costs for cases that resulted in a decision came in at $144,000, and the average cost for a pedagogical case resulting in a decision is $313,000.
`It certainly shouldn’t be done lightly, but we think these figures are just excessive,` said Ernst.
Korn said that the number of people who actually go through the tenure grievance process may seem small, `but in fact many teachers resign or are counseled out of the profession.`
`I’ve been in this business 47 years,` said Colucciello. `I’ve only seen a handful or less that shouldn’t be in the business. You can’t give tenure and predict what’s going to happen. You’ve got to get the right people, keep an eye on them, give them the resources and make sure they don’t burn out.` “