MAINE EDUCATION - PART 3

The following is a continuation of a series that began following a luncheon I attended a few weeks ago in Bangor presented by the Maine Heritage Policy Center. Part 2 was contained in yesterday's posting (the second half of the posting following the notification of tonight's special meeting between the Boards of Selectmen from Eddington and Clifton).

The information being presented, provided by the Maine Heritage Policy Center, relates to Public Education in Maine. It is not specific to Eddington, Clifton or Holden. However, since we will soon be gathering (and voting) to consider consolidating with four potential partners to form a Regional School Union (RSU), the overall state of public education in this state is relevant to what we should be looking at - and what we should consider as we determine the standards under which we will want the RSU to operate and maintain.

PART 3

What are we doing wrong?

Leaders and Laggards: A State-by-State Report Card on Educational Innovation

School Management: Maine received a D (45th in the nation)....because:

• "Maine does a poor job managing its schools in a way that encourages thoughtful innovation."
• "93% of teachers report that routine duties and paperwork interfere with their teaching."
• Maine does not sanction low-performing schools (32 states do).
• "Maine does not have a charter school law" (40 states do).

School Finance: Maine received a C (42nd in the nation)....because:

• Maine "receives a below-average score for the online accessibility of its financial data."
• Maine does not allow local districts full authority over teacher pay. (25 states do.)
• Maine also "does not have a performance pay program for teachers." (10 states do.)

School staffing: Maine received a B/C....because:

• Maine receives above-average marks for the testing required of new teachers.
• Maine receives an F for the strength of its teacher evaluation systems.
• "74% of Maine principals say that teacher unions or associations are a barrier to the removal of ineffective teachers, 13 percentage points above the national average of 61%"

Educational Data: Maine received a D (45th in the nation)....because:

• "Maine gets a below-average mark for its state data system."
• "The state does not have a teacher-identifier system with the ability to match teachers to students." (21 states do.)
• Maine does not publicly report data such as student remediation rates in college. (18 states do.)

Educational Technology: Maine received a D (38th in the nation).... because:

• "The state does not offer a computer-based assessment and does not require technology testing for teachers."
• "Maine's "D" grade is the result of little research affirming the effectiveness of the state's first-in-the-nation program that equips all seventh- and eighth-grade students and most high school students with laptops."

Summary of Major Findings...

• "Rigid education bureaucracies impede quality."
• "State data systems provide limited information on school operations and outcomes."
• "The teacher pipeline fails to provide a diverse pool of high-quality educators."
• "Teacher evaluations are not based on performance. Major barriers exist to the removal of poor-performing teachers."

More information will follow in Part 4 of this series. Stay tuned.