Study: Texas' teacher merit pay program hasn't boosted student performance

[tonysam]

AUSTIN – For the $300 million spent on merit pay for teachers over the last three years, Texas was hoping for a big boost in student achievement.

But it didn't happen with the now-defunct program, according to experts hired by the state.

The Texas Educator Excellence Grant, or TEEG, plan did not produce the academic improvements that proponents – including Gov. Rick Perry – hoped for when the program was launched with much fanfare in 2006, a new report from the National Center on Performance Incentives said.

"There is no systematic evidence that TEEG had an impact on student achievement gains," said researchers for Texas A&M University, Vanderbilt University and the University of Missouri.

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Cross-posted from the Education forum.

Of course this hasn't stopped the privatizers from wanting to force merit pay or bonuses on all school districts.

[tonysam]

1. Kick for this important article n/t

[montanto]

2. Did they ask a teacher if it would?

No. Did they ask where they should apply the program? No. ". . . campuses that qualified already had to be higher performers, so it was difficult to register much improvement. There were no significant declines at the schools, but there were no significant improvements, either," Taylor said. Really? No kidding? Next time they should spend all the money at college prep schools where all the students are in the top 20% of performers already. Well, at least they can blame the teachers for not increasing scores even after pouring in $300 million bucks.

[Reader Rabbit]

3. And the "No shit, Sherlock!" Award goes to....

...every non-teacher who promoted the the circle jerk that is merit pay.

[Angry Dragon]

4. Sent a letter to my rep

the other day. He is working on a bill for merit pay. I told him that as long as he thought people should get paid by merit then he should pass a bill to pay congress based on merit. Waiting for an answer.

[Viking12]

5. Yeah, "Race to the Top"

oh wait, never mind :eyes: :shrug: