By Michael P. Norton 
State House News Service 

AUG. 31, 1999--Education experts today told state leaders they can improve learning by imposing fewer regulations, giving principals more power, and basing teacher re-certification in part on student achievement. 

The state Board of Education next month plans to adopt re-certification rules that will dictate what today's teacher must do to keep up with subjects they teach and educational advancements. 

At a board-sponsored forum today, four experts advised board members to "think out of the box" and to give serious thought to tying re-certification in some way to student achievement.  Experts said professional development courses are necessary to help teachers keep pace but suggested the only real evidence of effective instruction is student learning and achievement. 

Pending regulations to the five-year re-certification cycle give principals more authority over the professional development plans of teachers, increase the number of professional development points required for re-certification, and allow teachers to earn points by passing content tests. 

In general, the experts said Massachusetts regulations are on the right track.  Here's a closer look at their thoughts on one of the more controversial topics in education today: 

Fordham Foundation President Chester E. Finn Jr. 

A high-ranking education official in the Reagan administration, Finn said that Massachusetts is known across the country today for its rigorous teacher certification tests.  He encouraged state officials to "stick to those guns" and retain the test despite high initial failure rates. 

Massachusetts ranks highly among the states in demanding academic accountability, setting high academic standards, and offering its residents educational choices, Finn said.  And the Bay State is more appealing than other states that still offer teachers lifetime certification, he said. 

"In education, nothing should last forever except, we hope, the learning that happens in kids' head," said Finn. 

Finn says there's an "inherently inconsistent" aspect to American 
education.  While schools and students are judged by results, he said, teachers are not.  Instead, re-certification focuses solely on "inputs," or teachers attaining professional development points by taking classes.There ought to be a re-certification component tied to "outcomes," or student achievement.  Finn is a charter school fan and says flexibility in hiring teachers mixes well with strong accountability. 

Re-certification standards could be looser, Finn said, if teachers can prove - through student results - that they're effective.  He did say teachers should undergo background checks and prove they are competent in the subjects they teach. 

The results-oriented approach to re-certification is the subject of 
research in Tennessee but has not been implemented anywhere in the United States, Finn said.  It would require year-by-year student achievement data, which is not currently available in Massachusetts.  He acknowledged that Tennessee education managers are nervous about making the change. "Obviously, they're politically skittish about using their data to make individual judgements about anybody," he said. 

Finn said he's not trying to tie teacher re-certification solely to 
student achievement tests. School managers can use any measuring stick of student performance, including standardized tests, student attendance, student portfolios or event student behavior to evaluate teachers, he said. 

States also face choices about alternative certification and attracting qualified teachers from other professions.  The main question is whether non-traditional teachers will simply be given more time to attain teaching credentials or whether education regulators will waive some requirements. 

Maine Department of Education Coordinator of Certification Nancy T. Ibarguen 

Ibarguen agreed with Finn's assessment that Massachusetts is on "the cutting edge" of education. 

In Maine, Ibarguen said, education officials began reforming the 
re-certification process in 1985 and have learned several things since. Specifically, educators noticed a problem with teachers holding liberal arts or education degrees but teaching math or science courses.  "Maine said that needs to change," Ibarguen said. 

Maine found that its re-certification and professional development programs worked best when governed locally by teachers in school districts.  Before 1988, she said, professional development points were awarded by state bureaucrats for courses even remotely related to academic subjects. 

In one case, Ibarguen said a 22-year teacher and basketball clinic operator earned all of his points by taking coaching and training classes. He had not taken any classes to upgrade his knowledge of current events, sociology or US history and government, the subjects he taught.   "The locals said, 'Enough is enough,' " she said.  "We know you've been doing this.  Not anymore." 

Ibarguen is excited about tying professional development to the areas where a particular school needs to improve.  "It helps move the staff and the schools in a common direction," she said. 

Maine is also trying to revitalize its two-year induction program for new teachers.  And the Pine Tree State plans to send the Legislature a results-based re-certification implementation plan in January 2000.  The goal is to implement the programs by 2003, pending legislative approval. 

Cambridgeport School Principal Lynn F. Stuart 

Pointing out that she was the only practitioner on the four-member panel, Stuart began by saying teaching is the most complex profession of all in part because of variables such as race, culture, class, language, parental involvement and early childhood development. 

Stuart said she's all for accountability and "thinking out of the box" but added, "The thing I'm worried about is we're going to reframe the box and it's not going to be big enough," said Stuart. 

Mentioning brilliant teachers with poor communication skills, Stuart cautioned that professional development and re-certification must not focus only on knowledge of subject matter.  Teachers must also be taught effective teaching methods and update their communications skills, she said. 

Stuart advised the board to research its own policies and hold itself accountable for regulations.  "There is too much regulation that gets in the way of us doing what I need to do for children," Stuart told board members.  "The accountability quest is for all of us." 

When pressed for an example by a board member, Stuart said regulations governing teacher tenure and dismissal are particularly burdensome for principals.  She said principals sometimes spend an "excessive" amount of time counseling sub-par teachers who probably should be fired. 

"We need to be able to have some teeth in saying, 'This is not working,' " Stuart said.  "What I really want to do is get to the heart of the matter - just teaching and learning for teachers and kids." 

Finn later said that principals historically have been treated like 
"classic bureaucratic managers" rather than chief executives who are accountable for the success or failure of their schools. 

Teachers should play a strong role in the re-certification process and the state ought to audit 20 percent of programs to ensure their integrity, Stuart said.  Anyone can sit through a class and get credit for it, but it's critical that teachers incorporate lessons learned through professional development into their lesson plans and classrooms.  Finn later pointed out that state officials also have little control over the quality of teacher education at private colleges. 

The best re-certification policy is to have strong certification 
requirements, Stuart said, advising schools to actively recruit good teachers in the first place. 

Pennsylvania Department of Education Deputy Secretary Michael B. Poliakoff  

Poliakoff ripped the re-certification status quo and called for big 
changes.  "We're dealing really with processes that have failed," he said. "The spotlight is properly on colleges of education to update their processes and programs rigorously." 

States consider Massachusetts a leader in teacher re-certification and certification standards, he said, praising the Bay State for focusing on "excellence, accountability and cost-effectiveness."  States are also watching Massachusetts' approach in dealing with private colleges of education. 

Noting teacher excellence is more significant than class size for example, Poliakoff said that in Pennsylvania, educators are focusing on "rigorous" professional development, recruitment and alternative certification. 

Pennsylvania spends $100 million per year on professional development. Poliakoff explained that the expense is needed.  On a recent test of K-12 math subject matter, teachers posted an average score of 5 out of 31, with a high score of 20 out of 31.  Poliakoff characterized the test takers as serious teachers and added that when educators paused to think of teachers who did not volunteer to take the test, they had an "apocolyptic vision" of the quality of their teaching corps.  He later spoke of algebra teachers who were barely able to pass basic arithmetic tests. 

Saying "there is no magic bullet" to improve teaching, Poliakoff 
maintained mastery of the basic subject content is "the most crucial part of a teacher's effectiveness."  He challenged teachers to test their imaginations and academic skills.  "Teachers need to walk the walk of excellence." 
 

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