When the Georgia House of Representatives debates Gov. Sonny Perdue’s new proposal for paying teachers, he won’t be able to count Rep. Tommy Benton among his supporters.
“I’m not real fond of the governor’s proposal for pay for teachers,” Benton acknowledged Monday.
In his state of the state address, Perdue proposed partially linking pay to student achievement, as measured on standardized tests, instead of on a teacher’s education level.
Benton takes issue with that “pay for performance” approach.
“It leaves out a large portion of teachers,” he complained. “It doesn’t take care of any support teachers like media, art, band, PE or vocational. They are not part of that equation for testing. If you’re not part of the curriculum, you’re left out of the incentive pay.”
The District 31 Republican also complains that the governor’s approach “treats students like factory products” who should all be alike.
“Technically, you would want your best teachers to teach students at the low end of testing scores to try to pull them up,” he said, something that isn’t likely to happen if pay is tied to standardized test scores.
Benton expects the governor’s proposal to be the subject of sharp debate as the legislative session unfolds.
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