We've pointed out some of the provisions of Ohio Governor Ted Strickland's education plan that we aren't too fond of.???? But that's not to say the entire plan is without merit. There is much we actually like in the plan and his recommendations around teacher tenure and retention are especially promising.
Currently, Buckeye State teachers can be awarded tenure after their third year of teaching, which is the standard in most states. Under the governor's proposal, teachers won't be eligible for tenure until their ninth year in the classroom. According to the National Council on Teacher Quality's TR3 database, just eight states grant tenure later than the third year: Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina, and South Dakota at four years and Indiana, Kentucky, and Missouri at five years. The governor's tenure proposal would be a big deal in any state, but it's shocking, and impressive, coming from a Democrat in a strong union state like Ohio.
Strickland's plan would also raise the bar for dismissing teachers to bring it in-line with that of other public employees. Under current law, tenured teachers can only be dismissed for ???????gross immorality or inefficiency,??????? a hard thing to prove that results in either costly, drawn-out litigation or teachers remaining in the classroom who just shouldn't be there. Under Strickland's plan, teachers could be fired for ???????just cause,??????? the same as their fellow unionized public employees.
These changes alone aren't going to rid Ohio's classrooms of bad teachers. District and school leaders will have to do their part by conducting regular and meaningful evaluations of teachers so that they are well-prepared to make their case if and when a teacher should be dismissed or denied tenure.
In his State of the State address, Governor Strickland said: ???????Let me say that not everyone is cut out to be a teacher???????. But even for teachers already in the field, we must have the ability to remove them from the classroom if their students are not learning.??????????? His tenure and retention proposals are smart and fair.???? Let's hope that he can see these provisions through to the final version of the budget that goes into effect July 1.
