Tenn. Gov. 'Surprised' Teachers Balking Over Data

Nashville, Tenn.

Gov. Phil Bredesen said Monday he's confident lawmakers will approve sweeping education changes in a special session that begins next week, but he's surprised that Tennessee's main teachers' union has balked at some of the proposals.

The Democratic governor wants performance evaluations and tenure decisions for teachers and principals to be based on student testing data. He also wants mandatory annual teacher assessments.

Bredesen has said the changes would give the state a better shot at a share of more than $4 billion in federal "Race...