Ask an Expert: Judy Goddess
Using California School Law To Advocate For Your Kids

DOUBTS ABOUT NEW TEACHERS

We live in a rapidly expanding school district. Over the past three years, our school hired 17 new teachers. Some of them are very good, but at least five should consider another career. As far as I can tell though, none of them is leaving. What can we as parents do?

Your parent group needs to make the principal aware of your expectations for teachers. Be specific. Cite examples of good teaching practices youve observed at your school, and contrast them with what you see in these five classes. That means, of course, that you will need to visit classes to develop your criteria for effective teaching. You may want to call some of the groups listed in the chapter on Parent Resources for their suggestions on what makes a good teacher.

Also, before storming into the principals office and demanding that she fire the five, stop for a moment and consider their assignments. Because tenured faculty are given first choice of classrooms, new teachers are often given the most difficult students. (Principals have also been known to assign teachers they dislike or want to move out of the profession to the most difficult classes.) If these new teachers show promise that they might be more successful with an easier classroom, you need to discuss her assignment process with the principal. Remind the principal that inappropriate assignments hurt both students and teachers, and demand that she and the staff address this problem.

It is relatively easy for a principal to terminate a new teachers contract. Due process rights only come into play after tenure has been granted. But principals are responsible for doing more than saying no; they are also responsible for helping new teachers to develop their teaching skills. The Education Code requires that a principal make a minimum of one visit a year to a new teachers classroom two visits during the two year probationary period and to follow-up these visits with suggestions for improvement and additional support to help the teacher do a better job. One visit a year is obviously not sufficient for these five teachers, and it isnt for many new teachers. The California Department of Education, districts, and universities have explored various programs for assisting new teachers in the classroom. The Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Program (BTSA) co-administered by the California Department of Education and the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing is considered one of the more promising. The program assists new teachers in assessing their performance in the classroom and in identifying meaningful professional development activities that are targeted to their individual needs. Over 90 percent of the beginning teachers who participate in BTSA remain in teaching, as opposed to 65 percent of non-BTSA beginning teachers.

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