Like what you've read?

On Line Opinion is the only Australian site where you get all sides of the story. We don't
charge, but we need your support. Here�s how you can help.

  • Advertise

    We have a monthly audience of 70,000 and advertising packages from $200 a month.

  • Volunteer

    We always need commissioning editors and sub-editors.

  • Contribute

    Got something to say? Submit an essay.


 The National Forum   Donate   Your Account   On Line Opinion   Forum   Blogs   Polling   About   
On Line Opinion logo ON LINE OPINION - Australia's e-journal of social and political debate

Subscribe!
Subscribe





On Line Opinion is a not-for-profit publication and relies on the generosity of its sponsors, editors and contributors. If you would like to help, contact us.
___________

Syndicate
RSS/XML


RSS 2.0

Good teachers, excellent teachers

By Lawrence Ingvarson - posted Tuesday, 19 February 2008


Teachers who meet the Accomplished Teacher standards should gain access to further salary steps that rise to double the starting salary for teachers, or about $100,000.

The standard for Accomplished Teacher should be set at a level that most teachers should be able to attain after about seven to ten years of experience with appropriate opportunities for professional learning.

Certification should be based on performance, judged by the quality of opportunities for student learning a teacher provides, not years of service, academic course completion or value-added measures based on standardised tests of student achievement.

Advertisement

The idea of an “alternative” career path for good teachers (for example, the “advanced skills teacher” concept) has been tried in most states and it has failed. If it is to have a significant impact on the quality of teaching, the Australian Government’s strategy should instead make certification as an accomplished teacher by an independent professional body a prerequisite for gaining executive and school leadership positions, as well as moving to higher salary levels for those who wish to focus on teaching.

This view may not be popular, but it is well justified by many research studies showing that the most effective school leaders are highly credible to teachers as expert teachers themselves. Its main virtue is to provide powerful incentives for all teachers to seek methods of professional development that lead to improved student outcomes.

Professional certification should be portable, across states and school systems, not limited to public schools, or particular jurisdictions. We do not have one certification system for doctors who work in public hospitals and another for those who work in private hospitals. It would be a waste of resources to establish different certification systems for different states and different school systems.

Developing such systems is complex and expensive. Rewarding teachers on the basis of their performance requires a rigorous system for measuring the quality of teachers’ work. However, there is ample research evidence now that this can be done in ways that are reliable, valid and fair, though few employing authorities would have the resources to do this alone.

The establishment of a national, independent professional agency with the core function of providing a rigorous, voluntary certification system for all teachers who wish to demonstrate that they have attained advanced levels of professional performance is required. This agency should see its main role as providing a credible certification service to all employers and the public, not only to the profession. The agency should live or die depending on the validity and credibility of its assessment processes.

The national professional agency should have all the players around the table to ensure the system will be utilised, including employing authorities, teacher unions and associations. While the system for providing certification should be profession-wide, the way it is recognised and rewarded will vary from one jurisdiction to another.

Advertisement

Most importantly it will need to be embraced by teachers themselves. This will only happen when they become convinced not only of its rigour and its advantages for their own professional lives and careers, but also of the student learning gains that must come when young people are taught by teachers of proven high accomplishment.

  1. Pages:
  2. 1
  3. Page 2
  4. All


Discuss in our Forums

See what other readers are saying about this article!

Click here to read & post comments.

7 posts so far.

Share this:
reddit this reddit thisbookmark with del.icio.us Del.icio.usdigg thisseed newsvineSeed NewsvineStumbleUpon StumbleUponsubmit to propellerkwoff it

About the Author

Dr Lawrence Ingvarson is Principal Research Fellow, Teaching and Leadership, at the Australian Council for Educational Research.

Other articles by this Author

All articles by Lawrence Ingvarson

Creative Commons LicenseThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

Article Tools
Comment 7 comments
Print Printable version
Subscribe Subscribe
Email Email a friend
Advertisement

About Us Search Discuss Feedback Legals Privacy