Creating more winners and losers will not solve teacher shortage
01/04/2016

 

UPDATE 1/8/16: Take action against this bill

 

In an op-ed in the Indianapolis Star, State Board of Education member Vince Bertram advocates for a recently proposed bill by Sen. Pete Miller to allow school administrators to negotiate individual teacher contracts. ISTA recently addressed this shortsighted and wrong bill in a previous blog.

 

However, it’s important to point out the false promise of “fair pay” in Sen. Miller’s bill that is being sold by Mr. Bertram. That’s because hundreds of different teachers being paid differently for any host of reasons doesn’t ensure fair and proper compensation for all of our kid’s teachers.

 

To advocate for greater pay for teachers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) areas may sound plausible, but doesn’t work in the real world, nor is it fair, as Bertram contends. What he fails to mention is that if we start cherry-picking certain teachers to pay more, that means the majority of other teachers will be paid less.

 

Ironically, it’s simple math. Schools get one pot of money to work from to pay teachers. Pay one teacher more, another must earn less.

 

In this new hypothetical world of picking winners and losers, it’s the K-8 and fine arts teachers who would be the greatest losers. Under this new model, these non-STEM teachers would have to take a pay cut so that schools could pay STEM teachers more. In this new system, politicians would be sending a counter-productive message to these important teachers that the work they do to develop readers and other valuable skills that later contribute to a child becoming proficient in STEM areas, aren’t valued.

 

Making these non-STEM teaching jobs less desirable would no doubt further exacerbate the teacher shortage and further harm students.

 

K-12 public education is about giving students a strong set of educational opportunities in ALL subjects—the foundational subjects, the subjects that complement critical thinking, and, yes, the STEM subjects.  That is what a well-rounded education entails. 

 

In the coming days of the legislative session, we encourage legislators to ditch politics and consider student-centered solutions to address Indiana’s teacher shortage.