Increase Class Size— And Pay Teachers More
One Heretical Route to Quality
Back in 1982, as New Jersey’s commissioner of education, I made several recommendations to then-Gov. Thomas H. Kean concerning teachers. These ideas, all of which the governor embraced, stirred controversy, but also put our state on the cutting edge of school reform. The alternate route to certification was a rigorous system designed to open the doors of teaching to bright and talented graduates of liberal arts colleges. Dramatic increases in beginning teachers’ salaries were to create a ripple effect that would raise all teaching salaries. Changes in staff development turned the emphasis from single in-service days and college courses to solving the practical problems teachers face. With access to excellent research, teachers could apply the information where it counted, in the classroom. And a program honoring the state’s outstanding teachers was instituted to provide the recognition that fuels motivation and builds professional identity.
These ideas were all implemented between 1983 and 1990. They were important because they recognized, in a practical way, what we all pay lip service to: the notion that teachers are extremely important. With this in mind, I have a suggestion that would significantly upgrade the quality of teachers in our country, reduce persistent teacher shortages, increase student learning, and not cost any more money. What’s the catch? It would require establishing class size at from 30 to 35 students in all grades except K-3.
What I am suggesting is heresy to most people, because everybody seems to love smaller classes. Teachers want them; parents believe the smaller, the better; and the public generally has bought in. Unions love small classes because the smaller the class size, the more teachers there are, and the more union dues. And to the graduate schools of education, having more teachers for smaller classes...
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