Obama Repeats Call For Merit Pay In Front Of Powerful Teachers Union

The Hill:

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Saturday thanked the National Education Association for its endorsement but also made it clear that he continues to support merit pay for teachers.

His position is a controversial one with the 3.2 million member group and it has earned him criticism when he addressed the NEA in 2007.

Read the whole story: The Hill

Comments

[laire]

Its so unfortunate, that people think you are going to agree with someone 100% of the time. To those people who keep asking how are you going to put in place a merit pay and developmental program. Stop being so lazy and look at his widsite and read his postion papers on this subject.

[pupbayer]

From his website, "Reward Teachers: Obama will promote new and innovative ways to increase teacher pay that are developed with teachers, not imposed on them. Districts will be able to design programs that reward accomplished educators who serve as a mentor to new teachers with a salary increase. Districts can reward teachers who work in underserved places like rural areas and inner cities. And if teachers consistently excel in the classroom, that work can be valued and rewarded as well."

1. Innovate ways developed with teachers...so he really doesn't know how he is going to do this
2. Schools already have mentoring programs. This is extra pay for extra work, not merit pay.
3. Teachers working in rural areas and inner cities will automatically be rewarded no matter what students achieve? Interesting.
4. And we're back to teachers who excel wil be rewarded...based on what criteria and who decides who deserves it?

You said I was lazy for not reading his website on this. I've read it. Now what? I know no more than I did before. That's the problem...when you actually read what he says on issues, very often he doesn't say much of anything. You have to THINK, too.

What do you suggest next, laire?

[akryan]

I actually like the fact that he isn't giving a blanket plan. Districts should be given some discretion in how they award teachers. Personally, I'd like to see teachers rewarded through addemdums. Extra-curricular activities have them. I'd also like to see it for teachers that start academic clubs that may meet during lunch. "Dead Poets Society" pay if you will. I think that public service clubs would be awesome. There should also be serious continued education for teachers like there is for employees in other professions. Right now continuing ed mainly consist of joke week long courses about nothing. Sending teachers through real master's programs would insure excellence. I'm sure there are thousands of good ideas out there and Barack doesn't have to come up with all of them. Outling a vision and a direction is what a CEO does and that's what he's doing.

[harriscrl3]

I just find it laughable that some of these same people were cheering when Obama said I'm not going to always tell you what you want to hear I will tell you what you need to hear and now they hear something that they dont like they skulk and cry you decieved us. I dont know what the big deal is with this. Its nothing new it the same thing Obama has been doing he went in front of a major union and started out a speech saying that everyone in this room supports free trade which they did since they were all wearing something bought from Walmart or made in China. It just goes to show that some dont understand the dynamics of how things work. If you want to revamp education you must not just change the way teachers are paid you also need to get parents involved which he talks about. Obama believes in a wholistic approach to solving problems an approach that is not biased by ideology. I listened to him and thats who I saw and thats who I supported. Thats why things dont get done this ideology try this approach and the other ideology try another approach and to solve it you need BOTH apporaches at the same time.

Carol

[pupbayer]

On the contrary, Carol. I don't think he understands how things work. He just throws out "I believe in this" or "I'm going to do that" but he never says how. That's a problem for me. He wants to tell us what is wrong with McCain's plans, which is fine, but he doesn't tell us his plans A wholistic approach is fine but he needs to give more details, not just general visions or ideas.

[RonnieDebb]

Instill excellence in our children AND teachers.

[pupbayer]

This idea goes back to 1710 in England. And, guess what. It didn't work then or in the 1960's and the 1980's when it was such a popular idea. Those states, Oregon in particular, that instituted it no longer use it because it doesn't work. It is very expensive and never accomplishes what they think it will. They should just put the money into needed educational programs.

Richard Nixon was a big proponent of merit pay for teachers as was Mitt Romney a few years back. Now Obama. Geez.

[Liberal2]

i consider O'theBuma a failure even before he's been elected. And, btw, he's promoting an idea supported by Nixon and Romney???? Hello, does that suggest anything????

[hawkseye]

It goes back farther than that. And name-calling doesn't help any discussion that requires intelligence.

[buckbuck11]

Keep talking, O-man - after the telecom immunity cave-in, you keep giving folks more and more reasons not to vote for you - or even worse, TO vote for Nader. At least, he's showing his true colors now so we won't be heartbroken and disillusioned after the election...that, I'm afraid has already happened.

Thank goodness for some excellent down-ticket races to get excited about....I'm no longer interested in what the O-man has to say and I'm turning my attention to Congress. I plan on writing my Senators and (hopefully) future Representative in Congress a long letter about the folly of NCLB (which the Black community supports whole heartedly, btw) and this silly "merit pay" pandering.

Next, he's going to say that he wants to put the Insurance Companies and Big Pharma in charge of writing his health care plan....

[AdamND]

dont you have a PUMA meeting to go to?

[buckbuck11]

No PUMA here....not in the least. I know what 4 years of Grampy will do. I'll still pull the lever for the O-man....but my money and energy will go down ticket.

[Jaybot]

Seems every other day, it's another slap in the face. There was at least a hope that Obama would be better than Clinton, he wasn't associated with the DLC after all. Unfortunately, he's turning out to be worse than I ever though either of them could be.

[brighterside]

Everyday a slap in the face? O-bama is trying to slowly fix this country. You may disagree with some things his saying but overall, his not pandering and has a genuine philosophy on what needs to get done. A slap in the face is Mcnutty flip flopping on issues and issues which panders. O-bama has at least stayed steady with his course and his bringing up topics and subjects which really get to the heart of the matter in fixing our country.

If you want a slap in a face, just take a look at the biased view on O-bama compared to McNutty. It's the mainstream media thats failing to give us an overall picture on what's really going on with our country.

[FebM]

This was Obama's position since he started campaigning last year. Its surprising you appear to have thought there has been a change in his message. But he is steady and thats why there will be no surprises in his administration, he has stated his positions with or without consensus from his supporters. In that there is only respect for BHO

[ThirdSection]

Good teachers should be rewarded for being good teachers. They play a crucial role in society and they should be rewarded for it. I have a hard time seeing what the controversy is about.

[pupbayer]

What criteria are you going to use to determine this and who will make the decision on how to apply the criteria?

[cpscscs]

Whomever can teach to the test the best gets the big bucks.

[mxxmo]

this is so ludicrous. first of all, all students are not created equal. you have ones who come from homes where education is not encouraged, ones who have been abused, ones whose parents don't instill discipline or manners in them, ones who have been abandoned, ones who are learning disabled, and frankly, some who just don't give a damn. the list goes on and on. teaching is not a business and contrary to what others are saying, it can't be run like a business. students are not assembly line products, but are unique individuals. all of you who have an opinion about what is good for students and the education profession, i ask you to spend some quality time, say maybe a month in an actual classroom with the kinds of students previously mentioned. i'll bet your attitude would change. it's always easy to criticize what you don't know .

[RedEyes]

The controversy is that this stance is at odds with liberal ideology. The effective teachers shouldn't be unfairly paid higher wages than inneffective teachers, because that's not fair to the inneffective teachers. It's not fair that just because some teachers don't have the skills or talent other teachers have, that they should suffer for it. "From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need"...or something like that.

[RonnieDebb]

When excellence is not rewarded one will not try to achieve it.

[Jahmekyah]

So far Obama show's he'll not pander to left, right, center or any group.

A) He has announced his plan to vote for FISA, breaking from the left. And, he has had the decency to give a nuanced explanation for why he supports the broader idea of the bill.

B) He's announced that he doesn't agree that mental stress is a exception for late-term abortion, though he supports, on a whole, a woman's right to choose. This is a slight break from the pro-choice movement that has backed him.

C) He announced his plan to reform Bush's faith based initiative to make it more effective and to encompass community groups. This is a break from many leftist supporters who claim it goes against separation of church and state. He believes local church and community groups can really change lives, as he did as a community organizer.

D) He has reiterated his pledge to withdraw from Iraq in 16 months. This in spite of the attempts of the McBush campaign and a shameful and despicable MSM to distort his position. Since when has "refining" come to mean "reversing"? I thought refining meant to make better and more specific. Frankly I'm disgusted with the media for completely falling for this trick.

E) And finally now he has reiterated his stance on merit based pay for teachers, despite the endorsement of the largest teachers union in the country.

[UCFJayBird]

And people say Obama only says what's popular. And yet another issue I agree with Obama on. The more I learn about the man's policies the more I find that I agree with him. It really is starting to shock me how often I agree with his views (not to say there aren't positions I disagree with him on, and not to say there aren't issues I agree with McCain on).

Obama in 2008.

[uheardme]

The man is right. You should be paid for results, not for showing up to work.

[pupbayer]

And just how do you determine that? Do you hold a teacher responsible for students who are malnourished, parents who can't even read or write in English, haven't slept in days, have no heat, aren't even in school, don't have much ability? What about schools who don't have money for textbooks, library books, other resources? How do you hold a teacher for results when there are so many factors that they cannot control?

This is a glib remark from him and from you. It sounds good in theory but ...

[MissT]

Merit pay is but one part of what is going what will need to be a multipronged solution to the problems with failing schools. But it certainly is a good start. Let's be honest, many of the teachers in some of those schools, need to go back to school. I would not want many of them teaching my children. They would not be able to get jobs teaching in the better schools, they simply would not be accepted nor should they be.

We can start with some basic testing of their grasp of the subject matter which they will be expected to teach. I'm in favor of standardized testing for teachers. Then we need to look at results. If students consistantly wind in the next grade level and are unprepared to do the work...a teacher's skills should come under question.

A teacher teaching in any school should be qualified to teach in all schools in the public school system. And if they are afraid of being held accountable, how then can they hold students accountable?

I welcome O's stance on this issue. It's about time liberals stop protecting unqualified teachers to the detriment of students who already have many other obstacles.

[riverhouse]

There you go. The authentic nominee is back.

[pupbayer]

Therein lies the problem.

[Peteyman]

So why are you talking? You don't like the authentic Obama, you don't like the more centrist Obama, so you don't even like him

[AdamND]

He made this statement before and I bet the media will try to spin it as some sort of flip flop centerist move.

[theone718]

lol just wait for it, it will come soon enough.......

[ema]

I remember him talking about this at one of the debates. It's not a flip flop, but i think it's a bad idea. I think one of the problems with education in this country is NO CHILD BS. It should be ended. Low teacher salaries are a problem across the board.

[NeoStar9]

Of course it isn't a flip. However the media will attempt to make it into one. They are trying to do that with Iraq when in truth his stance and desire to get troops out hasn't changed. That's the problem. The media are pretty much scum in the end.