MEA Votes

Gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder's wants "merit-based pay" for teachers even though pay-for-performance plans don't raise student test scores, a fact reinforced by a new study.

The new report, the first scientific study of performance pay ever conducted in the United States, found that rewarding teachers with bonus pay does not lead to improved student scores, a common myth perpetuated by proponents of the concept. (Read a copy of the study by Vanderbilt University and the RAND Corporation.)

Yet, Snyder's education plan calls for merit pay for teachers and schools that "consistently perform above the acceptable standard." His plan fails to identify what an "acceptable standard" is and it doesn't say where the money will come from to pay bonuses.

Yet again, researchers have determined that paying teachers a bonus based on student performance does not improve the achievement of those students.

A pay-for-performance study released this week by Vanderbilt University and the RAND Corporation followed nearly 300 Nashville Public Schools teachers from 2007 to 2009. The result?

No overall effect on student achievement.

Nerds like data, right? Maybe Rick Snyder should use this new data to reconsider merit pay as a central feature of his education plans?

Six days from now people will go to the polls. Votes will be counted. What I’m wondering is where will public education stand when all said and done?

Here’s a quick rundown of the top education issues for this election and should be a concern for every politician.

Some ideas in education just keep getting recycled. Merit pay is one and the Mackinac Center’s recent forum to generate enthusiasm for public-private partnerships for merit pay didn’t really offer up anything new.