Teachers at the heart of transforming nation’s education system
To raise low student performance levels, the U.S. must emphasize the value of teachers, increase teacher pay and put training systems in place that encourage their professional development, according to a recent report.
The report, conducted by the McGraw-Hill Research Foundation and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), found the U.S. is falling behind other nations on the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). The assessment gauges the math, reading and science proficiency of 15-year-olds in participating countries.
Of the more than 60 countries whose students took the PISA in 2010, top-performing nations included Finland, Canada, The Netherlands, Japan and South Korea. On average, American students came in 15th in reading and 19th in science. In math, U.S. teens came in 27th (Dillon, 2011).
The report found that in countries with the highest performance, “teachers are typically paid better relative to others, education credentials are valued more, and a higher share of educational spending is devoted to instructional services than is the case in the U.S.” (Paine & Schleicher, n.d.).
In Finland, which regularly tops global comparisons of national performance, teachers are highly regarded and are given the type of deference the U.S. generally reserves for doctors, lawyers and other well-respected professionals (Paine & Schleicher, n.d.). Only one out of 10 applicants is accepted into a teaching program. This level of competitiveness is also seen in Singapore, where teaching is also highly selective.
Elevating teaching profession could boost nation’s status
A recent study by the OECD, done in collaboration with the Hoover Institute at Stanford University, suggests that if the U.S. could boost its average PISA scores by 25 points over the next 20 years — a feat Poland accomplished in six years — it could lead to a gain of $41 trillion for the U.S. economy over the lifetime of the generation born in 2010 (Paine & Schleicher, n.d.).
In order to accomplish this, one of the report’s authors, Andreas Schleicher, says “the U.S. must invest in the preparation and development of high-quality teachers.” Schleicher also oversees the PISA and is a senior official at OECD.
This, Schleicher says, will require changing the way teacher candidates are selected and recruited, improving the level of initial education they receive before they begin teaching, restructuring teacher compensation and increasing professional development opportunities for both struggling and top-performing teachers.
To regain the world’s regard as an educated nation, the U.S. “must do its best to both develop exceptional teachers and raise the level of professional regard in which the job of the teacher is held by the public and officials” (Paine & Schleicher, n.d.).
Speaking at a March press conference on education reform, shortly following the release of the report, President Obama lauded the heroic work educators are performing every day. The president also called on the U.S. to adopt the social status South Korea gives its teachers, who are known in that country as “nation builders.”
Challenges ahead
While the OECD report outlines what must be done to turn around sagging performance levels, the solutions proposed in the report come at a time when states throughout the country are laying off teachers and cutting education funding.
The report outlines that the U.S. has “the resources and the talent to compete more effectively and raise its level of educational achievement” (Paine & Schleicher, n.d.). However, it can only do so if government leaders devote the necessary resources to education reform and display an understanding that an educated workforce is vital to America’s ability to compete globally.
References
Dillon, S. (2011, March 16). U.S. Is urged to raise teachers' status. The New York Times.
