Today the House passed HB 5223 and 5224 a package of bills that tie teacher evaluations to student growth. This tweet from StudentsFirstMI says it all,
Our StudentsFirst members got to thank Rep. Margaret O’Brien for her work on teacher evaluations. #MiLeg #edchat pic.twitter.com/fFmRtreK2o
— StudentsFirst MI (@StudentsFirstMI) May 14, 2014
Teacher evaluations tied to “student growth” are integral to the Common Core. O’Brien is one of the co-sponsors for HB 5223 and HB 5224. Students First is the lobby group headed by Michelle Rhee. Teacher evaluations are one of Rhee’s goals,
“Rhee wants all teachers to be evaluated in large measure by how much they can boost their students’ scores on standardized tests. Scores are fed into a formula that rates how much “value” a teacher has added to each student over the year. Rhee says teachers who consistently don’t add value should be fired; those who do well should be rewarded with six-figure salaries.
She has also successfully pushed legislation in several states, including Florida, Michigan, Nevada and Tennessee, to abolish seniority systems that protect veteran teachers and put rookies first in line for layoffs without regard to job performance.
In the past, Students First has poured big money into the Republican coffers to get her way. No doubt some Michigan lawmakers hope to cash in on their votes, if they haven’t benefited already.
Sadly, once again, parents and students are the losers as politicians appear to chase the money and do the bidding of special interests. The bills now move on to the Senate. Contact your state senators and tell them photo-ops with lobbyists are not a successful re-election strategy and to vote no on HB 5223/5224.