Brian Crosby: Tough Times, Smart Schools

Brian Crosby is the English Chair at Hoover High School in Glendale, Calif., where he has taught for 20 years. His first book, The $100,000 Teacher , published in 2002, offered a blueprint for giving teachers greater professional agency, in addition to bigger salaries. Last summer, he released his second book, Smart Kids, Bad Schools in which he further details his unique idea of an improved American education system where students attend larger classes, have no homework, and study during the summer, and “recognition-starved” teachers participate in education reform, receive performance pay, and yes, make six-figure salaries.

Almost one year later, the country is in a deep recession, the new administration is exploring education reform beyond No Child Left Behind, and many educators don’t know if they will have a job in the fall.

We spoke to Brian Crosby against this backdrop to find out whether he feels his ideas are still viable, why fewer teachers would be good for everyone, and how the Obama administration could make a difference in the lives of educators.