Mandating Excellence and Rewarding Initiative in Teaching

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MANDATING EXCELLENCE and REWARDING
INITIATIVE in TEACHING
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) FEA/United's three-year plan for improving student performance to be considered by delegates to the 98th Annual Convention in Miami Beach, October 13-15, 1983.
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Not intended for reproduction as printed, October 18, 1983.
INTRODUCTION

During the past year, improvement of our public educational system has become a national priority. The report of the President's National Commission on Excellence in Education, "A Nation at-Risk", set the tone for the long overdue upgrading of our nation's schools.
Unfortunately, the single issue of merit pay for teachers has dominated the educational agenda with insufficient attention given to other more significant concerns of attracting and keeping the best teachers, providing a positive learning environment and encourag•ing all students to attain their fullest potential.
"Merit Pay" is a ;.simplistic.appr.oach t.hat in and :'0£ itself does little or nothing to improve our schools. It is obvious, however, that the public, as well as the Legislature, is convinced that additional pay for meritorious work is a threshold issue in the development of any e.ducation reform package.
The most recent attempts by the legislatively-established Florida Quality Instruction Incentives Council, where a majority of non•educators are about to make educational decisions that will impact on yOlll1g people for generations to come, leave us no choice but to develop a comprehensive educational plan, not from an "ivory tower" or corporate board room perspective, but from the classrooms and those who must daily face the challenges of educating our citizens of tomorrow.
This comprehensive plan, Mandating Excellence and Rewarding Initiative in Teaching, provides the blueprint for making our educational system the finest in the nation.
Over the years, teachers have been saddled with one innovation after another, only to find that they usually were lll1derfunded, not funded
at all, or replaced by newer programs before determining if the older ones were successful.
FEA/United's comprehensive plan, Mandating Excellence and Rewarding Initiative in Teaching, seeks to meet three overall objectives:
1.
Accomplish the State Board education goal to reach the upper quartile by 1985 in salaries and educational achievement.

2.
Identify and sustain exemplary school programs.

3.
Attract and retain the best teachers.


Specific programs and costs are outlined below. We urge the Florida Legislature to enact the plan at its 1984 session. Although not all the provisions may be implemented by 1984, we believe that complete implementation can be achieved within 3 years, and Florida would be .... well on its way to becoming the Number 1 educational state in the nation.
We caution, however, that our support is contingent upon first the achievement of the upper quartile salary goal, and second, funding of a comprehensive program designed to meet the real needs of
education.
It should be noted that the special bi-partisan panel named by Congress to consider merit pay for teachers recently concluded that without substantial increases in basic pay for teachers, reward•ing only a few with merit pay "will have little impact."
GOAL #1 -ACCOMPLISH THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION OBJECTTVE" TO REACH THE UPPER QUARTILE BY 1985 IN SALARIES' AND EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT.
With great fanfare during February, 1980, the S'tate Board of Educa•tion first adopted the following as a goal for the 1981-83 budget:
"In order to maintain and recruit quality teachers in
our public schools in Florida, teachers' salaries on
a statewide basis shall rank in the upper 25th percen•
tile or among the top 12 states in the nation."
In 1981, the State Board of Education extended the salary goal so that the upper quartile would be reached by 1985. and it also set policy on student performance, when it said:
"On a statewide average, educational achievement in
the State of Florida will equal that of the upper
quartile of states within five years, as indicated
by commonly accepted criteria of attainments."
Since the adoption of the upper quartile goals, student achieve•ment, based upon a variety of indicators, has been steadily rising.
During the same time, salaries, unfortunately, have not enjoyedthe same gain made by student achievement; In fact, Florida has actually lost ground in comparison to other states in average
teacher salaries.
The latest breakdown of Florida's 476 National Merit Scholarship students shows that only five are considering teaching as a career. The overwhelming reason given by the state's top students for by•passing teaching as a profession was long hours and low pay.
Consequently, the first order of business must be to fund the money necessary to reach the upper quartile salary goal by 1985, as set by the State Board of Education.
Salaries of Florida teachers are $3,400 below the average teacher
salary of the 12th ranked state. $306 million, plus an additional
$55 million in social security and retirement matching, will be needed for the state's 90,000 teachers to reach the upper quartile
salary level.
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GOAL 4f:2 -IDENTIFY AND SUSTAIN EXEMPLARY SCHOOL PROGRAMS
In order to recognize outstanding school programs, it is necessaryfor the state to provide funds to the school districts for:
(a)
recognizing schools which develop and implement programs that promote academic excellence and improved student performance;and

(b)
rewarding school employees who participate in and contribute to such programs; and

(c)
expanding programs that have already been identified as exem•plary school activities.


The following programs should be funded to implement the goaland objective" outlined above:
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Expansion of PREP to K-6 $60 million

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Enhance Math/Science/Computer Skills $20 million

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Increase the number of teacher aides $40 million

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Initiate pilot programs to improvealternative education $20 million

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New exemplary pro~rams to encourage

school level exce 1ence " $35 million

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Provide salary increases to the classi•fied school personnel, plus social securityand retirement matching $118 million


We acknowledge that upgrading the physical plant, air conditioningand other similar features are necessary to establish a positivelearning environment, however, they must be dealt with separately.
GOAL #3 -ATTRACT AND RETAIN THE BEST TEACHERS
FEA/United recommends the establishment of the Career Teacher Program to provide for professional growth and development.
The Career Teacher Program contains four levels of teaching classi•fication: Apprentice Teacher, Senior Teacher, Associate Master Teacher and Master Teacher.
Movement on the Career Ladder from one level to another is dependent upon successful performance in the current level, additional train•ing as part of a planned program and favorable recommendations by a team of evaluators.
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Teachers currently teaching will be designated "Teacher" and will be paid on the regular salary schedule. In order to advance alongthe Career Ladder, to Senior Teacher, Associate M~ster Teacher and
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Master Teacher levels, all the regular requirements must be met.
A cooperative management-union training program will be developed and implemented to ensure that administrators are trained to evaluate personnel, consistently, fairly and objectively,
Under the Career Teacher Program, employees will continue to be paid under salary schedules negotiated in collective bargaining contracts. Additional compensation for movement on the Career
Ladder would be funded by the state to school districts.
An integral part of the Career Teacher Program will be the expansion
of the Beginning Teacher Program to include a one-year internship.
This will be followed by a period of two-to-four additional years of
supervision and assistance. At the end of the 5th year, teachers
will be required to meet the qualifications of Senior Teacher, or they will not be permitted to continue teaching.
Those who meet the higher standards of Senior Teacher will be rewarded with $5,000 on top of their regular pay on the salary schedule.
One of the requirements of achieving Senior Teacher status will be a Master's degree in field. With the establishment of this require•
ment, the "Master's In field" will have to be revamped in most universities to make the degree relevant. Teachers will be reim•bursed tuition as an additional incentive to continue training in their field of teaching.
Teachers who already have Master's Degrees, but not in field, can meet the qualification by successfully completing 15 semester hours of in field courses.
LEVEL I -APPRENTICE TEACHER
Qualifications: (1) Have achieved minimum of Bachelors Degree in an accredited school of higher learning; and (2) Successfully completed the Beginning Teacher Test.
Compensation: Apprentice Teachers will be paid on the regularteachers' salary schedule commensurate with educational attainment and prior experience.
Duties: The Beginning Teacher Program will be expanded to broaden experiences so that new teachers will be given maximum opportunity to develop to their fullest potential. Time will be allocated for observation of other teachers and ass.istance will be provided by Associate Master and Master Teachers.
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The first year will be a full year of internship where the Appren•
tice Teacher teaches no more than 50% of the time. The remaining years of apprentice teaching will include supervision and assis•
tance.
By the end of the fifth year, an Apprentice Teacher must meet the qualifications of a Senior Teacher, or will no longer be per•mitted to teach. Normally, Apprentice Teachers will advance to Senior Teacher after the 5th year, but may apply after the 3rd year.
This "Up or Out" provision is a maj or feature of the Career Teaching•Program. Those teachers who meet the rigorous standards of becoming a Senior Teacher will be recognized as outstanding teachers.
LEVEL II -SENIOR TEACHER
Qualifications: (1) Successful completion of at least 3 years as an Apprentice Teacher and been favorably recommended by a panel of evaluators; and (2) Received a Master's Degree in the field which
the teacher teaches.
Compensation: As compensation for meeting the high standards of the Level, an amount of $5,000, in addition to their regular salary, will be awarded to Senior Teachers.
Duties: Teachers achieving the classification of Senior Teacher will be recognized as outstanding teachers. Senior Teachers will be employed on a ten-month contract and will be assigned classroom responsibilities 100% of the time.
LEVEL III -ASSOCIATE MASTER TEACHER
Qualifications: (1) Successful completion of at least 3 years as
a Senior Teacher; (2) Completion of additional training as part of
a planned program and be tested on the training; and (3) Favorably
recommended by a panel of evaluators.
c0:tensation: Associate Master Teachers will be compensated with
$5, 00 above the Senior Teacher level in addition to the regular
salary schedule and also. receive an extra 10% of regular salary
for the 11th month of employment.
Duties: Associate Master Teachers will continue to devote most
of their time (from 75%-100%) to classroom teaching, but will be
utilized in the development of curriculum and other instructional
leadership responsibilities.
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LEVEL IV -MASTER TEACHER

Qualifications: (1) Successful completion of at least 2 years 'as an Associate Master Teacher; (2) Completed additional training as part of a planned program and be tested on the training; and (3)Favorably recommended bya panel of evaluators.
Compensation: Master Teachers will receive $5,000 above the Associate Master level in addition to the regular salary schedule. The Master Teacher will also be compensated 20% above the regularsalary for l2-month employment.
Duties: The Master Teacher will be the highest level of attain•ment in terms of salary and distinction in the Career Teacher Program. The Master Teacher will spend up to one-half their time in various instructional leadership roles such as supervising new teachers, developing curriculum, reviewing textbooks and ether teaching materials, etc. This will still permit the Master Teacher to teach in the classroom at least 50% of the time.
COSTS FOR THE CAREER TEACHING PROGRAM
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Training for Principals to Evaluate Personnel -A joint programin cooperation with the union. $10 million

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Tuition Reimbursement -To encourage teachers to get Master's Degrees in field and thus get up-to-date training. in their teach•ing areas. ' $4 million

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Outstanding Student Scholarship Plan -Payment of full cost of college education for outstanding students to enter teaching.Costs will be repaid on a one-for-one basis with years of teach•ing in the public schools. $30 million

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Retirement Incentives -To encourage early retirement to make way for newer teachers. These incentives include: Early retire•ment after 25 years and 50 years of age; Set retirement on the best 3 year's average salary rather than best 5 years; and establish a medical insurance program to fill the gap between early retirement and Medicare. $65 million

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Apprentice Teacher -Year-long internship -provide for regularinstruction during internship and apprentice teaching, while these teachers carry a reduced load. $10 million

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Senior Teacher -$5,000 plus social security and retirement matching for approximately 45,000 people. $265.5 million

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Associate Master Teacher -$5,000, social security and retirement matching, and funding for the 11th month, for 15,000 people.

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Master Teacher -$5,000, social security and retirement, and


$212.4 million
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funding for the 11th and 12th months, for 5,000 people. $118 million
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CAREER TRAINING PROGRAM /

Reg. Salary
+ 20%-llth & 12th Month
+ $15,000 Classroom Teaching 50-75% Instructional Leadership 25-?0%
MASTER TEACHER

Qualifications: + Training & Test • Team Evaluation
• At Least 2 Years Assoc. Master Teacher

Classroom Teaching 75-100% Instructional Leadership 0-25% .
Reg. Salary
+ IO%-Ilth Month

·ASSOCIATE MASTER TEACHER

+ $10,000
Qualifications: • Training & Test • Team Evaluation
• At Least 3 Years Senior Teacher

Regular Salary + $5,000 Classroom Teaching-100% Of Time


SENIOR TEACHER

Qualifications: • Masters Degree In Field • Team Evaluation
• At Least 3 Years Apprentice Teacher

Regular
Salary

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APPRENTICE
TEACHER

Qualifications:
• Bachelor Degree
.'",-......
• P~~s Beginning Teacher Test
T
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CONCLUSION

Mandating Excellence and Rewarding Initiative in Teaching is a comprehensive approach designed to meet the needs of education in Florida and will provide the framework in which to establish our public school system as the finest in the nation.
FEA/United's support, however, is contingent upon the enactment of an overall reform program, including money for upper quartile goals. Anything less will be simply a piecemeal approach and will be doomed to failure.
The National Connnission on Excellence in Education concluded that, "If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war...We have, in effect, been committing an act of unthinkable, unilateral educational disarma•ment."
In light of that statement, FEA/United's Mandating Excellence and Rewarding Initiative in Teaching should be viewed as a battle plan to regain our past commitment to education and win the war over ignorance.
The Career Teaching Program, coupled with achieving the upper quartile goals and development of the Outstanding Student Scholar•ship Plan, will have provided the vehicle for turning around the 30-year drift away from at.tracting the "brightest and the best" into the ranks of teaching. It will provide the incentive for talented young people to receive a college education with the end result of getting the best minds into the classroom.
As this overall plan is developed more fully, it will be necessary to deal with many related issues such as certification requirements. We urge that a complete rev.iew of the teacher certification law, in light of this proposal, be undertaken prior to legislative sunset in 1985.
Provisions must also be made to re-examine the traditional roles
of administrative and quasi-administrative positions, where some responsibilities for instructional leadership may now shift to
functions of teachers in the Career Teaching Program.
FEA/United prides itself for having been on the cutting edge of
change throughout its 97-year history. Mandating Excellence
and Rewarding Initiative in .Teaching puts us once again at the
forefront of change.
We believe that it will provide for professional growth, recognize
and reward outstanding performance and inspire excellence in our
classrooms.
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