Baltimore County school officials are glowing with pride after the release of a system staffing report last week. They deserve to glow.

The report focused on job satisfaction and the increase in "highly qualified" teachers -- determined by a specific set of credentials -- especially in the county's high-poverty or Title 1 schools, a classification that indicates a large percentage of students from low-income households.

No one can question that hiring and retaining highly qualified teachers is essential to maintaining an effective learning environment. And that is what seems to be happening in Baltimore County.

The percentage of county classes taught by highly qualified teachers stands at 88.8 percent.

In 2003-2004, it was 62.5 percent.

In county schools where a large number of the students are from impoverished families, the numbers are also impressive.

About 97 percent of elementary teachers and 89 percent of secondary teachers in Title 1 county schools are highly qualified. Nationwide, only 53 percent of teachers in Title 1 schools rate as highly qualified.

Keeping talent in the classroom by reducing teacher turnover is also critical to educational success and the report showed county schools had high marks in this area.

This past year, 3.7 percent of county teachers resigned. That's less than half the 8.1 percent in 2004-2005. Also, fewer teachers are retiring or going on leave.

These retention rates may reflect the tightening of the job market elsewhere, but other indicators, including a survey conducted last year by Gov. Martin O'Malley, suggest county teachers have a high degree of job satisfaction.

With findings like this, we think teachers and staff of Baltimore County Public Schools, especially Superintendent Joe Hairston, are entitled to take a bow.

user comments (4)

user jjj21204 says...

Baltimore County Schools trap highly qualified teachers in Title I schools with their restrictive transfer policies. Along the same lines, most highly qualified teachers have too many years of experience to be considered desirable by other school systems who can hire 2 or 3 new teachers for the price of one experienced teacher. Data can be made to say whatever you want it to say and BCPS "leadership" is very skilled at spinning data. Let’s see what the retirement and resignation rates look like after teacher workload is doubled with the new needless reporting system.

Posted 6:58 PM, 12.19.09

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user nochildleftuntested says...

Within the span of several days I received two things from BCPS. The first, my annual Declaration of Teaching Intention form, which must be completed and returned to my school principal by the end of January outlining my plans to either retire, resign, request a transfer or continue teaching in my current assignment, was no surprise. Days later BCPS staff members also received a surprise mandate to implement AIM (which had first been touted as a voluntary and targeted student progress reporting system) across the board with every student, in every objective, across every subject. What does this mean to me as a highly qualified third grade language arts teacher? Well, in addition to daily grading, quarterly report cards, quarterly interim reports, short-cycle assessment reports, benchmark reports, objective analysis intervention checklists, SST documentation, DIBELS data, I am now expected to assign a “grade” of Mastery, Instructional, or Accelerated for the approximately 114 objectives/indicators for each of my 35 students per quarter. I would be lying if I didn’t acknowledge my dismay at the additional burden to an already overextended workload. But I would probably have taken this holiday break to vent, decompress and ultimately figure out one more way to squeeze 8-9 hours of work from a 6 and a half hour work day. But ultimately how much longer can I overlook the fact that what is constantly getting squeezed out of my profession is the TEACH in teacher. Do you want a data analyst or a teacher? I can test my students to find out what they don’t know. I can then record that data so my administrators know what my kids don’t know. I can even create reports to tell my student’s parents what their kids don’t know. But when do I plan the engaging, differentiated lessons that will TEACH my students what they don’t know? This highly qualified educator hasn’t completed my annual intent form yet. If BCPS won’t put the best interests of its students first, I’ve got a lot of thinking to do about my future.

Posted 10:21 PM, 12.23.09

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user msimo says...

Agreed...why pay highly qualified teachers when what they want is highly qualified data entry clerks? The AIM program is folly. There is SO MUCH MORE to teaching than grading and assessing.... Planning takes time. Addressing student needs takes time. If student achievement isn't where it should be, the money and effort should be put into increasing parent involvement, increasing early learning opportunities (quality, accessible preschool programs in every public school anyone?), and providing targeted, pedagogically sound, systematic and required professional development for teachers (instead of the hit-or-miss, random, take-what-you-want system in place now). Asking teachers to do hours of brain-numbing busy work does not encourage retention, and it certainly doesn't increase job satisfaction or, most importantly, student achievement.

Posted 10:01 PM, 01.07.10

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user lovetoteach says...

I have been teaching for more than 25 years. It has been my great joy. I love to live and teach in Baltimore County. Seeing my former 1st graders all grown up with children of their own, or serving in the military, or studying to be a doctor, out in the community and hearing them call out "Hey, Mrs...." and we start to talk with "Remember when..." I know my work as a teacher is important and it is an awesome reponsibility. I have never even given a thought to leaving my role in BCPS---until this year! The current leadership has made it clear that I am not valued. I cannot leave just yet because of the uncertainty of the economy. I completed that survey. It does not necessarily follow that teachers who said they were staying in current positions are satisfied, only that they are staying. Don't get me wrong...I still love teaching...I still want to teach children...I want to motivate and nurture a love of learning in every single one that comes through my classroom door. I just don't think that this is the priority of the current administration in BCPS. They are far too consumed with their personal goals than to consider how decisions such as the use of AIM (there are many more examples) affect what happens in the classroom community every day. I am just incredibly sad. Let's see what this survey looks like on the next go round... wouldn't it be nice if the survey also asked about satisfaction with the superintendent. That opportunity has never been given. Thank you for recognizing teachers in the article. Recently, our superintendent referred to us as misinformed, wild dreamers of manufactured crisis...most hurtful he referred to his own teachers as "those people." That says it all, doesn't it? I don't need a survey to let me know about how my superintendent feels. He made himself perfectly clear. Isn't that sad?

Posted 10:38 PM, 01.07.10

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