Teacher merit pay has been debated for many years. The basic concept is that teachers would receive a financial bonus based on performance. The million dollar question is how would that performance be measured? Inevitably there would have to be specific, narrow perimeters by which teachers are assessed to receive their incentive pay.
According Maria Glod in the May 7, 2009 Washington Post article "Budget outlines Funding for Teacher Merit Pay Programs", President Obama wants to pour "hundreds of millions [of dollars] for teacher merit pay programs." In fact, Obama "repeatedly endorsed performance pay plans" throughout his campaign for president. Arne Duncan, secretary of education, said that he "envisions performance pay programs that will give a boost to the best teachers and encourage them to work in struggling schools in high-poverty neighborhoods."
Research on Merit Pay
In an article published May-June 1998 edition of the Harvard Business Review, Jeffrey Pfeffer reports on some interesting research regarding merit pay programs. He tells us that "most individual merit or performance-based pay plans...absorb vast amounts of management time and resources... make everybody unhappy...and can actually decrease performance in tasks that require creativity and innovation." ["Six dangerous myths about pay" v76 n3 p109 (11)]
He goes on to state that the pay check is "just one element in a set of management practices that can either build or reduce commitment, teamwork, and performance."
This research indicates that Duncan and Obama, along with others who support the merit pay idea, are looking in the wrong direction for ways to improve the education system in America. While there are poorly performing teachers in classrooms, it may be the system itself that is broken, causing stellar teaching and improved student test scores a difficult thing to attain.
Alternatives to the Teacher Merit Pay Option
While merit pay is not the best option for improving the school system, few would argue that the school system does not need improvement. Increasing salaries and working conditions are two ways this can be accomplished.
Salaried Pay – Teacher salaries, while indeed an extrinsic reward that could be lumped with the merit pay option, is in fact a vital part of keeping good teachers in the work force. Many teachers find themselves looking for new jobs with higher pay after just a few years in the classroom. Increasing teachers salaries across the board would be a more effective method of improving teacher morale and keeping good teachers in the classroom than bonus pay for performance.
Working Conditions – Many teachers will say that there is not enough time in the school day to accomplish everything required of their job. Because of the nature of the job, teachers often have to take hours of work home with them each night. This results in teacher burn-out, many times exacerbated by under-supportive administrative staff.
While there will always be those who are supportive of teacher merit pay, the research shows that in the end, there are other, more important aspects of teaching that need to be improved upon. In fact, merit pay for teachers may squelch the all-important teacher creativity as they look to improve only the narrowly defined performance markers.
Find out why teaches quit and learn what else President Obama wants to do with the public school system.
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