Effective Teaching

Teachers matter most. Of course there other important factors, but it is clear that teachers are the most important in-school factor for helping students achieve.

We believe now is the time to create conditions to ensure every Oakland student has a great teacher. There is momentum behind effective teaching both locally and nationally, but we need parents and teachers from across Oakland to get involved to ensure that good discussions and decisions take place. The opportunities to engage in policy making can be limited for teachers, parents and community members.

GO is facilitating the Effective Teaching Campaign as a way to give Oaklanders a real opportunity to engage in local policy making. There are 3 steps to the plan:

1. GO "Issue Groups" of educations and parents will create Road Map to Effective Teaching which describes the current state of OUSD and details the changes that need to happen.
2. The campaign team will create an Advocacy Plan for making those changes.
3. GO participants will build a community movement to work with the district and labor leaders to make the necessary changes.

To get involved with the Effective Teaching Campaign:

• Contact Marc Tafolla at marc@gopublicschools.org or 510-868-8800 to join the Core Group, which meets monthly
• Volunteer for this Issue Group
• Learn more about Effective Teaching:
• Interactive Presentation
• One-pager in English
• One-pager in Spanish
• One-pager in Chinese

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All Kids. All Schools. Our Decisions.

Although inequity continues, Oakland's flatland schools have made historic improvements in student achievement. In 1999, only five Oakland schools had API scores above 800. Today OUSD is the most improved urban school district in California - and has been for the past 7 years. We both acknowledge this achievement and understand the work that must be done to bring these gains to all Oakland's schools.

• Today 28 Oakland schools have API scores above 800 - a 460% increase - many of them in the flatlands.
• On average, low-achieving Oakland schools have increased their API scores by 255 points - gains that are 60% higher than in neighboring school districts.

These schools have experienced gains in student achievement because the people closest to our kids are empowered to make the academic decisions necessary for success, at the school site level. Parents, students, teachers, school staff and principals have first-hand knowledge of what constitutes effective learning at their schools, and we need to maximize the resources allocated to school sites to put their vision into action. Empowering our neighborhood schools to make decisions governing their children's education -- with authority over their school site's educational instruction, budget, staffing and schedule -- is a local control and governance model that has proven enormously successful in Oakland.

But this work is unfinished. Many of Oakland's schools, families, and neighborhoods still do not have access to this site based decision-making model and have not been able to participate in its educational success. In particular, we must improve African-American student achievement and reduce unacceptably high drop-out rates. Oakland is one of the most diverse cities in the country, and all our communities must be a part of successful schools. The painful, divisive debate over school closures only demonstrates that parents, teachers, staff and students must be engaged in a more meaningful, formal manner in decision-making beginning at the neighborhood school site level, and within the District's decision-making processes.

We call on the Board of Education to take bold action on behalf of kids. We ask that they adopt policies to create conditions that provide equity and opportunity for our kids and give school site communities clearly defined, local decision-making authority in the following four areas:

• Educational Programs: Local decision-making authority to develop and implement curriculum and instruction tailored to student needs.
• School Site Budgets:  Local decision-making authority to allocate site resources to best meet student needs.
• Staffing: Local decision-making authority around hiring, support and retention of staff based on student needs.
• School Schedules:  Local decision-making authority to create school schedules (which could include additional time in the day and/or school year) to best respond to student needs.

Through the empowerment of our families, students, teachers, staff and principals at every neighborhood school, we can ensure all Oakland students have access to customized, quality education and the opportunity for success. 

Sign the Petition today!

Effective Teaching Campaign

More >

OUSD Teachers Weigh In

OUSD recently released results from its Teaching and Learning Conditions Survey. Over 1,300 of Oakland's teachers responded, and we wanted to share the results with you.

OUSD has released the District-level survey results from its OUSD Teaching and Learning Conditions Survey. Of the district's 2262 educators, 1380 completed the survey (61% overall). It is our understanding that school-level survey results are going to be made public, but only for those schools at which the completion rate was over 49.5% with at least five teachers responding.

The survey covers aspects of the following areas:   

• Time
• Facilities and Resources
• Community Support and Involvement
• Managing Student Conduct
• Teacher Leadership
• School Leadership
• Professional Development
• Instructional Practices and Support
• New Teacher Support

Some results are found below, and the entire survey results can be found here. Congrats to OUSD and the OEA for commissioning this survey.  We at GO look forward using this information to see how we can better support effective teaching practices.

Section	Question	Result
Time	The non-instructional time provided for teachers in my school is sufficient.	60% disagree or strongly disagree
Time	In an average week of teaching, how many hours do you spend on school-related activities outside of the regular school work day (before or after school, and/or on weekends)?	29% responded between 5 and 10 hours   30% responded over ten hours.
Facilities and resources	Teachers have sufficient access to instructional technology, including computers, printers, software and internet access.	67% agree or strongly agree
Facilities and resources	Students have sufficient access to electives such as art, music, physical education, etc.	55% disagree or strongly disagree
Community	This school does a good job of encouraging parent/guardian involvement.	72% agree or strongly agree
Community	The community we serve is supportive of this school.	78% agree or strongly agree
Community	Non-academic services from this school impact students' readiness to learn.	79% agree or strongly agree
Student management	The faculty works in a school environment that is safe.	86% agree or strongly agree
Student management	School administrators consistently enforce rules for student conduct	46% disagree or strongly disagree
Teacher Leadership	Teachers are effective leaders in this school.	80% agree or strongly agree
Teacher Leadership	Teachers take responsibility for helping one another do well.	80% agree or strongly agree
Teacher Leadership	Teachers at this school have a role in determining the content of in-service professional development programs.	49% say teachers have a small role or no role at all.
Teacher Leadership	Teachers at this school have a role in providing input on how the school budget will be spent.	59% say teachers have a small role or no role at all.
Teacher Leadership	Teachers at this school have a role in school improvement planning.	48% say teachers have a small role or no role at all.
School Leadership	Teachers receive feedback that can help them improve teaching.	65% agree or strongly agree
School Leadership	The school leadership consistently supports teachers.	65% agree or strongly agree
School Leadership	Teacher performance is assessed objectively.	65% agree or strongly agree
School Leadership	The school leadership assists teachers in realizing their professional goals.	59% agree or strongly agree
Professional Development	Professional development is differentiated to meet the needs of individual teachers.	56% disagree or strongly disagree
Professional Development	Professional learning opportunities are aligned with the school's improvement plan.	76% agree or strongly agree

Teacher Layoff Update

At Wednesday's Board of Education meeting, Deputy Superintendent Maria Santos announced that OUSD will not send May 15 notices to tenured or probationary teachers in elementary teaching positions. Note that elementary teachers without English Language Learner Certification and those with temporary status will still receive notice. Staff is working diligently to share more information as it relates to other positions as soon as possible.

GO Public Schools commends the district for moving quickly to review the results of Results Based Budgeting, known exits, and possible elementary returns to make this announcement a full month prior to the May 15th notice deadline.

Click here to review the thoughtful statement released by OUSD yesterday.  

There is more to do!

At the same time, we are calling on the Board of Education and Superintendent Smith to get ALL of our teachers back into their classrooms and focused on students.

• In particular, OUSD needs to help schools retain teachers on temporary contracts who are serving in permanent teacher roles.
• OUSD needs to begin taking action now to develop policies to protect students from teacher layoffs next year.

Classified staff need our support, too! Teachers don't serve our children alone. We also ask that the Board of Education and Superintendent Smith continue their work to direct more money to protect classified employees providing services directly to children. In addition to teacher layoffs, schools sites are planning to cut 25 percent of their classified employees. We recognize the importance of central district services to schools. But every dollar saved on non-core central services is another dollar available to protect classified employees directly serving children.

Save the date - May 3rd!

 Join parents, teachers, and students from across the city at the Save Our Schools Action!

Tuesday, May 3 at 6pm

Cesar Chavez Auditorium, 2825 International Blvd.

Just and equitable schools require that: 1) state legislators let us vote to fund our schools, and 2) OUSD is not fined for mistakes made under State Administration.

Invited guests include: OUSD Superintendent Tony Smith, OUSD Board Members, Assembly Members Sandre Swanson & Nancy Skinner, Senator Loni Hancock, Mayor Jean Quan, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, and State Controller John Chiang.

This action is sponsored by Oakland Community Organizations and a coalition of Oakland organizations, parents, teachers, support staff, and students.

Click here to download the event flier to distribute in your community.

AFT President Randi Weingarten Talks about Teaching on KQED

Randi Weingarten is president of the American Federation of Teachers at a time when debates over declining budgets, labor issues and education reform are raging all over the country. KQED host Scott Shafer talked with Weingarten about the teaching profession during turbulent times. Click here to listen: http://www.kqed.org/a/forum/R201103281000

The American Federation of Teachers represents 1.5 million members in more than 3,000 local affiliates nationwide. 

Why Sacramento City Matters for Oakland

As a result of the state budget crisis, more than 18,500  pink-slips were sent to California teachers on March 15. Here in Oakland, the district issued 538 layoff notices to certificated district employees.

A state policy known as "last-in, first-out" (LIFO) determines which teachers receive pink slips. Teachers, students, and families city-wide have been stunned by both the sheer number of layoffs and the recognition that LIFO policies hit some schools harder than others. Those schools hit hardest tend to be in the city's poorest neighborhoods, often with the highest levels of crime, lowest levels of student achievement, and highest levels of teacher turnover.

Sacramento City protects students' constitutional rights.

In Sacramento City, Superintendent Jonathan Raymond and the Board of Education sought to protect students in the six "Superintendent's Priority Schools" from the effects of teacher layoffs. These academically troubled schools, where the district had difficulty recruiting staff, were identified in March 2010 as part of an effort to improve under-performing schools that had failed to adequately serve students. Students at these six schools will not experience the devastating effects of teacher layoffs because none of their teachers will be laid off for the 2011-2012 school year.

Using the Law to Protect: Sacramento City's action to protect students is based on a state law that calls for two important exceptions to seniority-based lay-offs ("Skipping"). Under the Education Code, Districts are allowed to deviate from seniority-based layoffs:

1. for hard-to-staff fields (such as special education, math, or science), Cal. Educ. Code §44955(d)(1); and
2. "for purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws." Cal. Educ. Code § 4955(d)(2).

(Click here to read about the settlement in LAUSD that complies with this provision).

The Board Leads: On March 3, 2011, the Sacramento City Unified Board of Education approved a Resolution to Determine Criteria for Deviation from Terminating a Certificated Employee in Order of Seniority also known as "Skipping Criteria." In addition to skipping teachers in "hard-to staff" fields, the district also chose to "skip" the teachers working at the Superintendent's Priority Schools.

From the Resolution, Sacramento City's "Skipping Criteria" include the following:
 
1. individuals with the following certifications:

• BCLAD (bilingual)
• Special Education
• High school math

2. individuals teaching in Priority Schools (the 6 schools designated by the Superintendent) [emphasis added]

3. individuals with the following experiences:

• one or more years teaching in the Dual-Language Immersion Program
• two or more years teaching and/or specialized training in a home or hospital setting
• formal Waldorf method training
• experience in the Accelerated Academy Program

What can Oakland Unified do now?
OUSD must use the power it already possesses under the Education Code to uphold students' constitutional, fundamental right to basic equality of educational opportunity.  Current law (Education Code) requires a district to deviate from seniority-based layoffs "for purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws." Cal. Educ. Code § 44955(d)(2).

Rescinding Layoff Notices: The first step is to figure out how to rescind the layoff notices that have already been issued. Recognizing the no teacher layoff is good, OUSD should begin by working with the Oakland Education Association (OEA) and community groups to develop criteria for how to rescind the layoff notices issued on March 15. OEA President Betty Olson-Jones, in a March 22 open letter to the community, states that the OEA is "open to creative suggestions that will help minimize the instability caused by massive layoffs[.]"[1]

The criteria should be developed by OUSD, OEA, and community groups in such a way that will:

1. protect the most vulnerable schools that would otherwise suffer dramatic percentages of teacher layoffs;

2. distribute the remaining teacher layoffs more fairly across our public schools; and

3. be respectful of teachers and their collective bargaining rights.

This plan might include options such as entirely rescinding the layoff notices for the teachers at a select group of schools deemed most academically vulnerable, creating categories of schools based on academic performance and assigning each category a maximum percentage of the staff which can be laid off; or rescinding the notices such that no school has more than the district average of layoffs.

In the future, OUSD can also provide effective teacher attraction and retention supports at those schools that have suffered from high teacher turnover rates and have a disproportionately high number of newer teachers, with the goal of reducing teacher turnover at those schools.

For more information:

• OUSD Layoff Information
• SCUSD Board Resolution
• Article: SCUSD to create 'Superintendent's Priority Schools' for six most academically troubled schools
• Editorial: Latitude Needed on Last Hired First Fired.
  

Oakland Teachers Convention Needs Delegates!

From April 7-9, Oakland's best teachers will convene at the Emeryville Hilton for our city's first Teacher Convention. Will you be there?

Delegates to the Convention will:

• establish shared beliefs and commitments around meaningful outcomes for students
• design and adopt a framework of excellent teaching practice
• identify core values and priorities for aligning district systems to support the framework (i.e. recruitment, induction, professional development, evaluation, career pathways, etc.)
• develop an action plan for improving teaching and learning conditions at school sites based on a district-wide survey to be launched immediately following the convention

To date, only 60 of 215 delegates have been selected to participate. Has your school selected its delegates?

TAKE ACTION

Nominate yourself to be your school's delegate at the April 7-9 Oakland Teacher Convention. Principals and OEA site reps should have brought information about the convention to a staff meeting last week, and voting for delegates is happening now! Nominate yourself. Represent your school. Talk to your principal or OEA rep, or contact Ash Solar at ash.solar@ousd.k12.ca.us for more information.

Shape the Future of Teaching in Oakland

On April 7, delegates from every Oakland Unified school site will come together at the Emeryville Hilton for Oakland's first Teacher Convention. This is a unique opportunity for teacher voices to develop policy to support effective practice in Oakland Unified.

Will you be there?

OUSD's Effective Teaching Task Force is organizing this two-and-a-half day convention, where teacher leaders will collaborate to define the priorities for a five-year strategic plan that will address teacher evaluation, compensation, site-based conditions, recruitment, retention, and professional development. The convention represents an unprecedented opportunity for teachers doing amazing work for Oakland students to set the direction for accelerating improvement in instructional practice across our city.

TAKE ACTION: NOMINATE YOURSELF

Nominate yourself to be your school's delegate at the April 7-9 Oakland Teacher Convention. Principals and OEA site reps should be bringing information about the convention to a staff meeting next week, and voting for delegates will occur a few days later. Nominate yourself. Represent your school.

Our students are counting on you to advocate for them.

Effective teaching will be assured when...

• Teachers are: provided time and compensation for collaborating with each other and for participating in relevant professional development; recognized, accountable, and rewarded for their impact on student learning and achievement; and provided opportunities for professional growth.
• Teachers use multiple data sources to assess and adjust instruction, student interventions, professional development, and curriculum decisions.
• Teachers consistently review student work against student learning standards, and assess and adjust teaching practice to better serve student needs.
  
• School sites are provided with budgets, resources, training and tools to build the capacity of their staffs, ensuring that all are focused on high performance student outcomes and standards of work.
• We have a higher base salary for teachers, as well as incentives to retain and reward effective teachers and those who choose to teach in high-needs communities, that is, teachers are paid more!
• Teacher salaries are competitive with those of surrounding districts and communities.

Add your ideas as a delegate on April 7!

Helpful Links

• Have questions about the convention? Email Ash Solar or call him at 510-879-8666.
• Resources from the Effective Teachers Task Force

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GO Public Schools believes that we must focus on recruiting and keeping an effective teacher in every Oakland classroom. Current studies confirm that among in-school factors, teacher effectiveness is the single most important factor in student learning. Further, effective teaching can close achievement gaps and overcome the impact of poverty on student learning and educational attainment.

Click here to learn more about GO's ideas about teacher effectiveness.

OUSD Teacher Layoffs: Why Los Angeles Matters for Oakland

For the first time during the current recession, Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) school sites will likely have to lay off teachers. For the past few years, school sites have protected teachers in their budgets and enough teachers have voluntarily left OUSD to avoid layoffs.

OUSD may lay off hundreds of teachers next year. The numbers will be less if a tax extension measure is placed on the ballot by the state legislature next week and is passed by California voters in June. Teachers who might be laid off must be given notice by March 15th.

Normally, the newest teachers are laid off first. A school site may cut a teaching position, but District-wide seniority will decide which teacher(s) actually get cut from the school. "Bumping" occurs when a teacher who did not get laid off has to give up her/his position to a teacher with higher seniority. This state policy is known as a "last-hired, first-fired" or "reverse-seniority" layoff policy.

How does what happened in Los Angeles impact Oakland?
In February 2010, students at three Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) middle schools filed a class-action lawsuit against LAUSD, charging that students' rights to a quality education were being violated by a strictly "last-hired, first-fired" layoff policy. The students argued that the layoffs were unfairly damaging to their schools because they had so many new teachers. For example, at Liechty Middle School, 72 percent of the teachers received layoff notices last school year. The layoffs were stopped by a Los Angeles Superior Court last May.

State law allows for an exception to seniority-based layoffs "for purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws." The Court found LAUSD's layoffs caused a "real and appreciable impact on Plaintiff's fundamental right to equal education opportunity."

The settlement reached by students, LAUSD and Partnership for Public Schools, and approved by the LAUSD board in October 2010, requires that 45 LAUSD "targeted schools" that meet agreed-upon criteria be shielded from teacher layoffs. Those 45 schools will receive LAUSD support to increase teacher and administrator attraction and retention. Also, the layoffs that would have been at those schools will be spread out more evenly among the rest of LAUSD's schools. The final settlement was challenged by United Teachers of Los Angeles.

These excerpts from the Los Angeles Superior Court's Final Approval of Settlement indicate why the Court upheld the settlement against a challenge from the United Teachers of Los Angeles:

"Under no circumstances can LAUSD bargain away students' constitutional rights" (p.4)

"The evidence adduced at the final approval hearing confirms that high teacher turnover devastates educational opportunity in multiple ways: time and resources are spent orienting newly assigned teachers; collaboration among teachers is disrupted; teacher-student relationships are fractured; and the faculty infrastructure is undermined."(p.22)

"As this Court already recognized, teacher turnover can have many causes. Teachers may transfer to other schools, retire, or leave the profession. But voluntary turnover cannot be prohibited; layoffs can."(p.28)

"Substantial evidence throughout this litigation has shown how budget-based layoffs devastated the teaching corps at struggling LAUSD schools, removing dedicated teachers who were committed to teaching at those particular schools."(p.29)

"Providing more stability at the Districts' other struggling schools is therefore critical to allow for reform efforts...the principal at Gompers [middle school] has recruited a corps of teachers who were 'among the best teachers [she has] ever encountered in her career'....The schools invested substantially in teacher development. But the seniority-based layoffs decimated those turnaround efforts. As Mr.Deasy [the incoming LAUSD superintendent] testified, reform plans are wiped out by turnover."(p.34)

What can OUSD do?
OUSD must uphold students' fundamental right to basic equality of educational opportunity.

OUSD could comply with this state constitutional mandate to provide an equal education to all students by working with the Oakland Education Association to develop criteria for layoffs that protect the most vulnerable schools that would otherwise suffer dramatic percentages of teacher layoffs, and distribute the remaining teacher consolidations more fairly across our public schools.

OUSD can also provide effective teacher attraction and retention supports at those schools that have suffered from high teacher turnover rates and have a disproportionately high number of newer teachers, with the goal of reducing teacher turnover at those schools.

Click here to read GO's post from June 2010 when the suit in LA was first filed on behalf of students at three LAUSD middle schools.

For more information:

• OUSD Layoff Information, including links to related laws
• LAUSD Court Order
• LAUSD Settlement
• Judge OKs settlement that limits use of seniority in L.A. teacher layoffs
  
• Judge Approves Landmark Settlement in Reed v. State of California

Empowering Effective Teachers in Oakland

Now in its sixth month of meeting, OUSD's Effective Teaching Task Force, a small group of teachers, district personnel and union leaders, is ready to bring its work into the community. The task force is launching a series of community engagements, including listening tours, focus groups, speaker series, and a culminating teacher convention to bring the topic of teacher effectiveness to the forefront of Oakland's education conversation.

Teachers: This is your opportunity to include your voice in these critical conversations. Make sure OUSD and OEA hear what YOU believe are the conditions and supports necessary for effective teaching in Oakland's public schools. 

Listening Tour Dates
February 15 - 4:30-6pm at Cesar Chavez Community Center Auditorium
February 23 - 2-4pm at Life Academy (Calvin Simmons Auditorium)
March 23 - 2-4pm at United for Success (Calvin Simmons Auditorium)

Speaker Series Events (at the James Moore Theater, Oakland Museum of California)
March 10 - 6-8pm - Pedro Noguera
March 28 - 6-8pm - Linda Darling-Hammond

Teacher Convention (at the Hilton Garden Inn in Emeryville)
April 7 - 4-8pm
April 8 - 8-5pm
April 9 - 8-5pm

VIDEO: Noel Gallo on changes needed to ensure effective teaching in every Oakland classroom

Noel Gallo asks Superintendent Smith to provide "bold direction" to engage the OUSD organization and community in discussion to ensure that OUSD has an effective teacher in every classroom as part of the Thriving Students strategic planning process.

Video of OUSD board meetings is available on the OUSD website.

VIDEO: David Kakishiba and Tony Smith on Teacher Effectiveness Task Force

David Kakishiba and Tony Smith discuss the purpose and priorities of the Teacher Effectiveness Task Force to be created as part of the Thriving Students strategic planning process.

Los Angeles Unified's Teacher Effectiveness Task Force published its findings and recommendations in April 2010.

Video of OUSD board meetings is available on the OUSD website.

Teacher Seniority in L.A. (and across the country)

ACLU sues on behalf of three L.A. middle schools    
In 2009, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) laid off thousands of teachers. State law requires the least senior teachers to be cut first ("last hired, first fired"). On February 24th, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California filed a lawsuit naming the State and LAUSD as defendants. The ACLU stated that massive layoffs last year at Gompers, Liechty, and Markham middle schools "have deprived thousands of low-income students and students of color of the legal right to an education consistent with prevailing statewide standards.... At Liechty, fully 72 percent of the teachers received layoff notices; at Markham, the layoffs included almost the entire English department along with every 8th grade history teacher."

The lawsuit sought a preliminary injunction preventing the state or LAUSD from laying off teachers at the three schools for 2010-11, and also a permanent injunction asking the state and LAUSD to fund an effective, stable faculty at those schools.
                                                                                                                      
Ruling in favor of the ACLU
On May 12, Judge William Highberger enjoined the Los Angeles Unified School District from laying off disproportionate numbers of teachers at the three named middle schools. Layoff notices were rescinded for teachers at those schools. The Judge cited state Education Code section 44955 (d) (2) which allows school districts "to deviate from terminating a certificated employee in order of seniority for . . . purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws."

Changing the Law: Assigning Teachers to Where They Are Needed
The California State Board of Education voted unanimously to support the ACLU's lawsuit and the Governor also supported the lawsuit. Politicians all over California agreed that something had to be done at the state level to protect schools like those named in the lawsuit. Layoff by seniority is a state law, not a part of the OUSD-OEA Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Senate Bill 955 (Huff), supported by the Governor, would (a) allow school districts to use performance evaluations and subject-matter needs, not just seniority, in determining the order in which certificated employees are laid off or reappointed, and also allows protecting entire sites from layoffs, (b) change the date for notifying teachers of "non re-election" from March 15th to May 1st, (c) reduce the role of the Commission on Professional Competence in dismissing or suspending an employee. The bill passed out of the Senate Education Committee on April 24th but was then stalled by opposition from the California Teachers Association, the United Teachers of Los Angeles, and Senate Majority Leader Pro-Tem Darrell Steinberg. SB 955 is an urgency statute and requires 2/3 vote of the legislature to pass.

This week Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg proposed alternate legislation, SB 1285, to address the problem of disproportionate impact from layoffs. Steinberg's proposal would (a) prohibit disproportionate layoffs at the lowest performing 30% of schools (decile 1-2 schools) in a district (b) require superintendents to assign newly hired teachers in a way that balances experience across schools (c) require the state to reimburse districts for the added costs for complying with this law. SB 1285 does not allow teacher effectiveness to be used to determine the order of layoffs.

Similar legislation is being considered in New York and Cleveland is now in the Washington, D.C. teachers contract.

Why does this matter to Oakland public schools?
Due to high teacher turnover, OUSD has not had to lay off teachers during this budget crisis. However, state seniority rules are still resulting in impacts to teaching teams at many schools, as reported by the Oakland Tribune. Disruption to OUSD school communities due to seniority has also resulted from the layoffs of classified (non-teaching) staff.
Individual Oakland public schools have slight protection from the impact of budget related layoffs because OUSD has Results Based Budgeting (RBB). RBB allows school sites to have control over what gets cut during budget reductions. Most schools have chosen to retain staff while cutting other expenses.

Research shows having a quality teacher is the most important factor for raising student achievement. Allowing all of our public schools to have control over their teaching teams could be a high leverage solution for our neediest Oakland public schools.

Learn more about this issue:
•    From the ACLU: ACLU's complaint (Large file). Full statement of Mark Rosenbaum, ACLU/SC chief counsel. Full statement of Sharail Reed, 8th grader and member of the AVID program at Markham Middle School. Full statement of Concepciona Manuel-Flores, 7th grader at Markham middle school. Listen to Markham teacher Nicholas Melvoin discuss the issue on NPR.
•    Read Bob Huff's statement on SB 955 (April 21, 2010)
•    Read California Teachers Association response to SB955 (there is no response from CTA to SB1275)
•    Read San Francisco School Board Member Rachel Norton's blog post on SB955 and seniority.
•    Read Darrell Steinberg's press release on SB 1275 (June 13, 2010)
•    Read California Chronicle's article on SB 1275 (June 15, 2010)
•    Read EdTrust West's Policy Brief Effectiveness, Not Seniority
 

We must focus on recruiting and keeping an effective teacher in every Oakland classroom. Current studies confirm that among in-school factors, teacher effectiveness is the single most important factor in student learning. Further, effective teaching can close achievement gaps and overcome the impact of poverty on student learning and educational attainment.

We want our children to graduate with strong mathematical reasoning skills, a sound grasp of science and the arts, strong writing skills, world-class capacity for creativity and innovation, and strong understanding of civics and leadership. But all this is impossible unless their teachers have the knowledge and skills we want our children to have.

Click here to review GO's most recent publication: Key questions, research, and data that can help inform the critical conversations being held at the 2011 Oakland Teacher Convention, (April 2011).

Effective teaching will be assured when...

• Community and educational leaders have a shared understanding of current research on effective teachers, and are committing to uncompromising high standards for the adults we offer the privilege of serving our children.
• School sites make their own decisions about financial resources, time, and staffing. This enables schools to create working conditions that treat teachers as professionals.
• Teachers are: provided time and compensation for collaborating with each other and for participating in relevant professional development; recognized, accountable, and rewarded for their impact on student learning and achievement; and provided opportunities for professional growth.
• Teachers use multiple data sources to assess and adjust instruction, student interventions, professional development, and curriculum decisions.
• Teachers consistently review student work against student learning standards, and assess and adjust teaching practice to better serve student needs.
• Principals have the authority and support to recruit, select, develop, and keep or dismiss teachers and other school staff. This ensures that all schools have high-performing staffs that are committed to that school's vision and approach.
• School sites are provided with budgets, resources, training and tools to build the capacity of their staffs, ensuring that all are focused on high performance student outcomes and standards of work.
• We have a higher base salary for teachers, as well as incentives to retain and reward effective teachers and those who choose to teach in high-needs communities, that is, teachers are paid more!
• Teacher salaries are competitive with those of surrounding districts and communities.
• The teacher recruitment program is powerful enough to attract and recruit the strongest candidates, and effectively induct them into the system; Oakland leaders collaborate with those organizations that have shown that they can recruit and train teachers who positively impact student learning.