Weekly Star Editorial for March 27, 1997

Teacher Testing And All That

Last week the House passed a new law which will require all new teachers to pass a standardized test for competency. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration and then to the Governor for his signature.

The bill is part of a somewhat comprehensive education reform package that the House Majority Caucus has made a priority. In my opinion, this is one of those good sounding government efforts that will accomplish little toward quality education and will probably have unfortunate and unintended negative impacts. I was one of two legislators who voted against it for the following reasons.

Teacher Quality is Not a Problem in Alaska

The quality of teachers in Alaska is high and, in Anchorage it is very high. Our problems are often found in administration. Teachers have become the social and emotional problem solvers. Along with an overload of administrative duties, it is often difficult for teachers to get past the extraneous and still have time to teach. The well-meaning legislature is attacking a largely non-existent problem.

Teaching is Mostly Art and Difficult to Measure and Test

Tests can generally only test knowledge, not the art of motivating and instructing children. The only real way to test a teacher is to monitor them in action and to measure the reaction and progress of their students.

We Are Attempting to Measure Inputs Instead of Properly Managing Outputs.

Inexperienced managers invariably attack the wrong end of the problem. Office managers start counting paper clips and sheets of paper instead of managing the end product of the institution. Managing for results means that administrators must work very hard to give their employees all of the resources to do their job well and eliminate impediments to excellence. Teacher testing attacks the wrong end of the problem.

Standard Tests for Teachers Exist on a National Level and are Available for any School or School District that Wants Them.

We are reinventing the wheel here. I have talked to several school boards and school administrators from around the state and they all say that they NOW have all the tools they need to screen and select teachers. They know they can use the national tests if they want.

Once Again, We are Substituting the "Wisdom" of Legislators for Local Control by School Boards

In virtually all circumstances, I will support local decision making and local responsibility. I do not believe in centralized government control as it usually does not work as well as intended.

This Test is for Beginning Teachers Only and Does Not Apply to Existing Teachers

There is already a system for evaluating existing teachers, but I am skeptical that it currently is or will be used to find teacher deficiencies and/or eliminate poor teachers from the present faculties. I sincerely hope that I am wrong. Several other states have started down the road to improving education through teacher testing and the result was that every teacher got a raise. It worked like this: They could not find enough teachers who could pass the test and who would work for the salary which was offered. Of course, when the beginning teachers got a raise so did everybody else up the scale. Anchorage teachers average $49,125.00 per year. This has been sufficient to attract very competent teachers, but beginning teachers are paid far less. We will see what happens to Alaska teacher salaries in the coming years.

I trust this explanation of why I voted against teacher testing is helpful. I am certainly in favor of quality education, but this testing effort is wide of the mark of addressing our problems. Let us hear your views and keep in touch.

I can be reached by phone, (800) 342-2199 or (907) 465-2199; by mail, State Capitol Building, Room 428, Juneau, AK 99801; or via the Internet, Representative_Fred_Dyson@legis.state.ak.us. You can also send us information via the Public Opinion Messages (POMs) by calling the Legislative Information Office at 258-8111 (TTY 258-8173).