PROS AND CONS OF PERFORMANCE PAYAlexandra Holter

amp

Gera (Roberson) Worthington

PERFORMANCE PAY AKA merit pay pay for performance

incentive plans differentiated compensation teacher bonuses knowledge-and-skill-based pay performance based compensation

Can be teacher-level or site-level Generally used a district reform plans to

improve teacherschool quality Often based on student achievement

(standardized test scores)

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

Brief History of Merit-Pay Pursuit of Federal Dollars

Teacher Incentive Fund Teacher Quality Successful Merit-Pay Programs Unsuccessful Merit-Pay Programs Considerations for Oklahoma

Alternative to Merit-Pay ProgramsQuestions for Legislators

BRIEF HISTORY OF MERIT-PAY

TEACHER PAY SCALES

Single Salary Schedule Created in 1921Developed to mitigate

unfair pay practices Dominant method for

teacher compensation96 of districts use this pay scale

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

PERFORMANCE PAY AKA merit pay pay for performance

incentive plans differentiated compensation teacher bonuses knowledge-and-skill-based pay performance based compensation

Can be teacher-level or site-level Generally used a district reform plans to

improve teacherschool quality Often based on student achievement

(standardized test scores)

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

Brief History of Merit-Pay Pursuit of Federal Dollars

Teacher Incentive Fund Teacher Quality Successful Merit-Pay Programs Unsuccessful Merit-Pay Programs Considerations for Oklahoma

Alternative to Merit-Pay ProgramsQuestions for Legislators

BRIEF HISTORY OF MERIT-PAY

TEACHER PAY SCALES

Single Salary Schedule Created in 1921Developed to mitigate

unfair pay practices Dominant method for

teacher compensation96 of districts use this pay scale

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

Brief History of Merit-Pay Pursuit of Federal Dollars

Teacher Incentive Fund Teacher Quality Successful Merit-Pay Programs Unsuccessful Merit-Pay Programs Considerations for Oklahoma

Alternative to Merit-Pay ProgramsQuestions for Legislators

BRIEF HISTORY OF MERIT-PAY

TEACHER PAY SCALES

Single Salary Schedule Created in 1921Developed to mitigate

unfair pay practices Dominant method for

teacher compensation96 of districts use this pay scale

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

BRIEF HISTORY OF MERIT-PAY

TEACHER PAY SCALES

Single Salary Schedule Created in 1921Developed to mitigate

unfair pay practices Dominant method for

teacher compensation96 of districts use this pay scale

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

TEACHER PAY SCALES

Single Salary Schedule Created in 1921Developed to mitigate

unfair pay practices Dominant method for

teacher compensation96 of districts use this pay scale

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

Mid-1800rsquos British schoolsteachers paid on basis of student examinations Ended after thirty years due toExtensive cheatingLots of crammingTesting Bureaucracy

(Gratz 2009)

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

1870 CanadaDropped due to public out cryTeaching to test

US 1918 48 school use merit based pay

Merit based on color and genderUS 1950

4 of districts merit basedOther attempts

1960s SputnikNixon ldquoperformance contractingrdquo

Cheating scandals(Gratz 2009 Leigh 2012)

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

1980 A nation at riskReform teacher pay

Competitive with other professions

Sensitive to market demands

Based on teacher performance

Regan experiments with merit payNegative resultsTeacher pay tied to principal evaluations

(Roland amp Potemski 2009)

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

INCREASING POPULARITY THE PURSUIT OF FEDERAL DOLLARS Race to the Top Federal Grant of 4 billion

dollars (as of 2010) As a result of rushed grant application many

states implemented legislation addressing how teachers are

Evaluated Compensated Promoted Granted tenure or Dismissed (National Council on Teacher Quality 2011)

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

TEACHER INCENTIVE FUND (TIF)

US Department of Education Grant Program 2009- HB 3683 amended the Elementary and

Secondary Education Act to include the Teacher Incentive Fund

2009- Funds from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are to be used to support Teacher Incentive Fund

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

GOALS OF TIF

Improving student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness

Reforming teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement

Increasing the number of effective teachers teaching poor minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects and

Creating sustainable performance-based compensation systems

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

TEACHER QUALITY

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

SUCCESS IN DChellipMAYBEDC- Uses Impact Plus Plan

Funded through TIF (62 million dollars)

Career ladder still in placeTo get reward recipients must sign away some job security provisions as a result some choose not to receive the reward (Dillion 2011)

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

INDIVIDUAL VALUE-ADDED (IVA)

ldquoThe term lsquovalue addedrsquo refers to the contributions teachers and schools make to student achievement Value added methods provide a way to measure this contribution (William L Sanders 2006)rdquoOnly counts for math or EnglishHas to be assessed and interpreted by

Mathematics Policy Research (also funded through TIF)

Oklahoma

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

Incentives program allows teachers to earn up to $25000 in one-time bonuses for high performance two consecutive years could see base pay raises of up

to $26000 annually Bonus offer amounts can vary based on factors like a

schools socioeconomic layout or course subject (Huffington Post 1182011)

Problems at low SES schools teachers not receiving high scores

Needed to attract and retain talented and qualified professionals (Dillion 2011)

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS AT MERIT PAY

Merit pay can be traced back to England in the 1860s After a 30 year try British schools abandoned merit pay because of cheating scandals the growing influence of the testing bureaucracy and a warped educational system due to teacher concern over financial rewards and punishments

Canada instituted a merit pay system in the 1870s but dropped it due to public outcry Teachers were teaching to the test and giving more help to students most likely to do well on the test

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES

In 2011 after a two year investigation into test scores dating back to 2005 a grand jury indicted 35 Atlanta educators including former superintendent Beverly Hall in a cheating conspiracy stretching to 58 schools In this case the superintendent was awarded an increase in pay with rising test scores

There have been multiple cheating scandals across the country including Philadelphia Baltimore and Washington DC Investigators are using forensic evidence ndash such as erasure markings ndash to make their cases against teachers and administrators Many of these cases can be tied back to merit pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

New York City spent $75 million in teacher incentive pay during the 2007-2008 amp 2009-2010 school years The program based bonuses on teacher amp school results and the cityrsquos progress report card ndash which were based primarily on improving state test scores Qualifying teachers received an average bonus of $3000 A new study headed by a Harvard economist concluded that NYCrsquos merit pay experiment did not increase student achievement at all ldquoIf anything student achievement declinedrdquo

(Green 2011)

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

PROBLEMS WITH MERIT PAY There is absolutely no evidence that merit pay

actually works Several studies have been done ndash Tennessee New Your City schools and the RAND Corp are a few high profile studies In each study researchers found no difference in student achievement among children in classes where the teacher was receiving merit pay and where they were not

Teacher behavior is complex Some behavior experts find that (among teachers especially) the sense of purpose is a better motivator than monetary bonuses Most teachers want to improve student achievement regardless of cash incentives Researchers found that working conditions and other factors were ldquosignificantly more important to most teachersrdquo than monetary incentives This kind of behavior is not typical of what was found in the corporate setting

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

There is no clear definition of what makes a ldquogood teacherrdquo Qualities of a good teacher could include things such as dedication ongoing professional development patience motivates and interests students hard working good communication skills student achievement being responsible or a caring and respectful attitude towards parents and students Is it really possible to identify the most important qualities of a teacher and assign a monetary value

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

Funding is hard to sustain Long term sustainability of award systems is problematic Teachers could be awarded one year for their performance and receive nothing the next due to lack of funding ndash even if their performance level stays the same or improves What would that do to teacher morale

Basing teacher pay on student test scores is NOT fair Test scores are influenced by many factors ndash student motivation the home life amp parental support of the student socioeconomic statushellipthe list goes on and on It is difficult if not impossible to measure ldquoteacher effectsrdquo separate from all other factors that affect student learning

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

High stakes merit pay systems can encourage dishonesty and corruption Add merit pay on top of a teacherrsquos already taxing work environment and you have a perfect storm for stressed over-worked teachers pushed to the extreme and fighting for their jobs Right now in the US there are hundreds of teachers under investigation for cheating on standardized testing (Wisconsin Education Association Council 2011)

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

DEAREST OKLAHOMA PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWINGhellip

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

ALTERNATIVES TO MERIT PAY

Quality might be improved by substantially increasing starting salaries and increasing entry level standards for the teaching profession

Use career ladders with progressive levels of responsibilities and demonstrated skills instead of basing pay on student test scores

Mentoring for new andor struggling teachers and on-going professional development to improve teacher quality

Offering bonuses to teachers with more professional development ndash Masterrsquos degrees National Board Certification etc Use those funds to reward teachers who consistently strive to learn more themselves and become better teachers

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS Any district considering a merit pay system should ask the following questions Is there adequate funding for the new pay system and is

it sustainable Have administrative and implementation costs been

considered Is it easily understood and transparent to all

stakeholders Are evaluations subjective or objective Are the sizes of incentives large enough to change

behavior What does the adoption of merit pay mean for other

areas of schools reform such as hiring and firing policies and the amount of flexibility in the curriculum

(Leigh 2012 Rosales 2013)

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

Questions

Thank You

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay

REFERENCES Dillion S (2011 12 31) In Washington large rewards in teacher pay The

New York Times Retrieved from httpwwwnytimescom20120101educationbig-pay-days-in-washington-dc-schools-merit-systemhtmlpagewanted=allamp_r=0

Gratz DB (2009) Special Topic The problem with performance pay Educational Leadership 67(3)76-79

Green E (2011) Study $75M teacher pay initiative did not improve achievement Retrieved from httpgothamschoolsorg

Hanushek EA (2011) The economic value of higher teacher quality Economics of Education Review 30 doi101016jeconedurev201012006

Leigh A (2012) The economics and politics of teacher merit pay Economic Studies 59 doi101093cesifoifs007

National Council on Teacher Quality (2011) State of the States Trends and early lessons on teacher evaluation and effectiveness policies

Rosales J (2013) National Education Association Pay Based on Test Scores Rowland C amp Potemski A (2009) Alternative compensation terminology

Considerations for education stakeholders policymakers and the media Center For Educator Compensation Reform

Sanders WL (2006) SAS Comparisons Among Various Educational Assessment Retrieved from wwwsascomhttpwwwsascomresourcesassetvaconferencepaperpdf

Wisconsin Education Association Council (2011) Research Briefs Brief 20 What Do We Know About Merit Pay