State gets D+ for aid to teachers

Minnesota might be a powerhouse in terms of the quality of its students, but when it comes to improving the quality of teaching, the state is below average, according to a national report issued Wednesday by Education Week.

The "Quality Counts" annual report on K-12 education slapped Minnesota with a D+ for how well it promotes and evaluates teacher quality and effectiveness. That placed the state a woeful 39th out of 50 states and the District of Columbia.

And, according to the report, Minnesota is strictly middle-of-the-pack when it comes to how much it spends on education.

Minnesota ranked 22nd in terms of indicators that measure the state's funding for schools and how equitably that money is parceled out.

On the plus side, the "Quality Counts" report showed that Minnesota students' chances for success based on education and family factors far outstrip those of students in most states. In that category, Minnesota got a B+, and ranked seventh nationwide. But those findings, based on such factors as family income, parent education and parent employment, suggest that students' home lives have as much to do with their success as their schooling. Minnesota got a C for student achievement, which bested the D+ national average.

Still, it's the finding that Minnesota has fallen to near the bottom of the pack when it comes to teaching that was most startling. The state's low ranking comes mostly from a lack of various teaching programs and effectiveness measures that other states have. For instance, Minnesota was docked for not having a statewide program to reduce class sizes, for paying teachers less than what workers in comparable professions are paid, and for not linking student achievement to teacher evaluations.

State Rep. Mindy Greiling, DFL-Roseville, and chairwoman of the House K-12 finance division, argued that such findings show that "the chickens have come home to roost" in terms of the state's inadequate funding of education. But some educators argued that the ranking was unfair.

Rob Panning-Miller, president of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers, said the report chooses the wrong way to measure teacher quality. Advanced degrees, experience and national board certification seem to be overlooked in favor of state-mandated tools, which can be dicey, he said. "A lot of these things are best addressed at the local level," Panning-Miller said.

The teacher pay statistics, though, and the study's finding that the state lacks some teacher pay incentive programs that other states have, hit home for some teachers.

"This is my 10th year of teaching," said Margaret Laboe, French teacher at Richfield High School. "I really like my job, but I'm thinking, 'Am I going to be doing this for 30 years?' I do like the idea of incentives for doing things and proving your quality because that's what they do in the business world."

The study found that Minnesota school districts pay teachers an average 94 percent of what workers in such occupations as journalism, accounting, computer programming, nursing and insurance underwriting make. The national average is 88 percent.

Mary Cathryn Ricker, president of the St. Paul Federation of Teachers, said policymakers and the public need to find common ground on the real value of teachers.

"We need to look at teaching as a career. If you truly believe teaching is a career and not a starter profession, you're going to talk about teaching differently," Ricker said. "We need to talk about working conditions, career-long support for teachers, ongoing training."

Charlie Kyte, executive director of the Minnesota Association of School Administrators, also cited the need for greater professional development: "By and large, we have a well-trained workforce. But how do we change the profession so it feels more like a profession, with advancement opportunities over time?"

The study also gave Minnesota poor marks for not requiring schools to provide mentors for new teachers. But many Minnesota districts are offering such support, said Mary Seidel, a longtime teacher and mentor in the South Washington County schools. "It is absolutely critical," she said. "And many schools are recognizing that."

Minnesota Education Commissioner Alice Seagren said the report certainly will spur discussion on how to improve teaching and how to attract more exceptional people to the profession.

"This gives us an opportunity to really examine our policies in Minnesota," she said, adding that the state is working to link teacher pay to merit and to improve math and science teaching. Other Minnesota efforts include restarting a principals' academy to improve school leadership.

"We can look at this report and say, 'What are we doing and how can we grow those things?'" Seagren said.

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