Schools

POLL: Are New Educator Standards Unfair?

Plainview educators among many sparring with state on new standards.

The debate over how to evaluate educators is on the rise, and several Plainview public school principals have joined the fray.

They were among hundreds of Long Island educators who signed a letter objecting to

The New York State rules went into effect in September and involve teachers and principals being evaluated, in part, on student performance on standardized tests. The standards were imposed as part of an effort to win new federal funds under the Race to the Top program.

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“As building principals, we applaud efforts aimed towards excellence for all of our students. We cannot, however, stand by while untested practices are put in place without any meaningful discussion or proven research,” the group says in an open letter on a new website.

But as many taxpayers object more loudly to tax increases and student test performance is often used to judge a district, some parents want more measurable accountability from educators.

Find out what's happening in Plainviewwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

One Plainview educator, Parkway Principal , said it is the state system that is "broken," and passionately defended the work of Plainview's teachers.

"This doesn't take into consideration the children's readiness for testing, their ages, the various stages of their development," Hershkowitz said last week. "Test results that are not on target can make it look like a teacher" is under-performing.

What do you think? Should teachers be held accountable for student performance? Take the poll below about the new standards and make sure to tell us why you are voting that way in the comments.


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