[Northampton-GP] letters needed - Springfield newspaper agrees with Romney plan to fire teachers

[NeilESL at aol.com]

Letters and phone calls needed now to the Springfield Republican
413-788-1200
letters at repub.com
(250 word max, addres and phone neede to publish, or anonymous to state 
position)

sample letter :

Letter to the Editor

I was very disappointed to read an unsigned editorial in your newspaper 
backing Governor Romney's proposal to eliminate teacher protections under the law. 
There is already a mechanism in place to remove teachers that are shown 
through just cause to be unable to teach.  Removing the job protections teachers 
already have will only make it more difficult for teachers to teach under already 
very difficult circumstances. 

Teachers are not solely responsible for low MCAS scores. If anything, 
teachers in districts with low scores, those with the highest poverty levels, do an 
incredible job of teacher under very difficult circumstances. High class sizes, 
unresolved discipline issues, cuts in school funding, dilapidated facilities, 
students' cognitive delays and less than advantageous home environments are 
some of the major causes for low test scores. 

your additional comments

name, address and phone

----
Springfield Republican article

Romney school plan faces uphill struggle

There are thousands of highly skilled teachers in Massachusetts making a 
difference in the lives of the children they teach. They have the ability to 
unlock the potential of every child who enters the classroom. And then there are 
some teachers  who couldn't unlock the door to the teachers' lounge. Gov. W. 
Mitt Romney wants to give school principals the authority to fire the bad 
teachers, but lawmakers are acting as if he had suggested that the schools remove the 
desks and chairs from the classrooms.

Under legislation filed by the governor  recommendations from a task force, 
principals would have the authority to dismiss teachers if the school failed to 
meet minimum standards on Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exams 
for two consecutive years. Legislators reviewing the legislaion this week 
called it an attempt to strip union rights away from teachers. We think it's a 
simple way to provide immediate help to a school that is failing. The governor 
is saying that superintendents and principals should have a voice in 
determining which teachers are doing a good job and which aren't. 

The teachers who aren't performing at a satisfactory level should be fired if 
they fail to bring their performance up to reasonable standards.  At the same 
time, those teachers who excel in the classroom should be rewarded with merit 
pay increases. The best system is one in which sustained excellence is 
rewarded. The best way to keep the top teachers is to pay them more than the 
mediocre ones. It is clear that all is not well within the commonwealth's public 
school systems despite the fact that spending in the schools is at an all-time 
high. Teachers are dedicated professionals - and they have arguably the most 
important jobs in the community. That should be reflected in their paychecks. 

What the schools need more than money, however, is accountability. a concept 
vastly unpopular with the teachers' unions and thus many legislators.  Teacher 
unions believe the answer to the poor performance in some schools is more 
money. Sometimes, it's the door. 
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