Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

To the Editor:

President Obama has the right idea when he says he wants to get rid of ineffective teachers and reward the good ones. But his Race to the Top proposal, which includes using standardized test results to judge teacher performance, will do nothing to meet that goal.

I left my job as a public school teacher shortly after the No Child Left Behind law was passed. My job went from teaching children to teaching test preparation in very little time. Many of our nation’s teachers have left their profession because the focus on testing leaves little room for passion, creativity or intellect.

The No Child Left Behind law identifies successful schools as those that show improved test scores on a test with little redeeming value. Now, the Race to the Top proposal seems to identify “good” teachers as those who successfully teach to the test.

I voted for President Obama. I trust that he does not want to sap our teachers of their creativity and inventiveness. I also trust that he does not want our next generation to be a group of men and women who have learned to await the next multiple-choice problem.

Darcy Hicks
Westport, Conn., Aug. 17, 2009

Note from KBJ: Another disillusioned Obamabot.