Delaying tenure in California.
Jan 14, 2008 - A California Assemblywoman will be introducing a bill - AB 1761 - to require teachers to work four years before they are granted tenure. Currently the probationary period is two years.
The Assemblywoman was a school district superintendent for several years.
TT - It will never happen. Jean Fuller is a Republican, and the California Assembly and Senate are controlled by highly partisan Democrats. The teachers unions are opposed and they provide newspapers with misinformation about teacher shortages and the number of teachers who leave "the profession."
One in five teachers leave teaching profession in four years because most probationary teachers do not intend a career in teaching. It is simply the most available occupation after completing college, especially for graduates with weaker academic backgrounds.
A large number of teachers are never completely qualified but are hired on an "emergency-certified basis" or emergency permits, or apprentice teachers who are hired with an agreement that they will become qualified. Many do not.
Skewing the statistics are the large number of teachers who are retiring, classroom reduction size that requires more teachers to do the same job, and the number of teachers who are unable to complete licensing requirements, repeatedly fail competency exams, or demonstrate usuitability or poor performance. Link Link Turnover is an issue.
Tenure is a virtual lifetime job guarantee where firing for cause frequently costs $100,000 or more and can drag on for years. Four years probation is reasonable; two is absurd.
See the series, "The Hidden Cost of Tenure" series for insight into how flawed the system in Illinois is.
