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A Principal with you know whats….we’ll say if this has any effect on the superintendent under pressure to pretend these value added scores have any degree of validity.

I’ve had the opportunity to meet with this principal and discuss his philosophy as a teacher and administrator. His school blew me away, as did his advocacy for his hard-working, innovative teachers. From a day spent in his school, I observed a dedication to providing each and every student with a very broad educational experience and the school bucks the trend of reducing students’ educational lives to an over emphasis of Math and ELA lessons. I am happy to see he is bucking the trend again in regard to tenure, and I hope his Superintendent James Quail (the name of a school’s Superintendent is public information btw) is suitably embarrassed by his actions and will trust Mr. Rubino’s evidence from now on.

Can you explain what a “low effectiveness rating” is? is is a low value-added rating for one year only on the teacher data reports, which have been widely recognized as unreliable by testing experts and statistics experts?

Out of curiosity, what part of IS 318 blew you away? Last year, less than 50% of its students passed the State ELA Exam, and only two-thirds passed their State Math Exam. Again, less than half of the school can read well enough to pass a very basic ELA exam.

If I were an IS 318 parent, I’d want my principal fighting less for tenure and more for those pesky things you dismissively call “over [emphasized] Math and ELA lessons.”

Would have been blown away if this story were about Principal Rubino taping lessons to play back with the teachers who were taped so they could learn how to better deliver lessons and engage their kids. Instead, he’s taping them to use as evidence to argue for tenure.

Sheesh. What a waste of energy and a misdirection of his clear talent and care.

With all due respect, as a parent I don’t give a damn if my kids pass a few days worth of tests. What I am more concerned with is that each of my children receive a range of educational experiences that prepare them for life, not a test.

NOOOO! He should be taping teachers so that he can sit down with those teachers, watch the tape together, and do a play-by-play analysis of their teaching…so that those teachers get even better than they apparently are.

Pour all your energy into that. My guess is those tapes are just sitting around for no other purpose than arguing for tenure. Sheesh. What a poor allocation of energies and resources.

Sure, most schools saw their scores dip. But does that really explain away a less than 50% pass rate on all ELA Exams?! Shouldn’t kids pass a pretty simple Reading test in every grade regardless of the bar?

I know firsthand that the community at 318 is fantastic and special. But there’s something a bit off about a community that thinks it’s okay for less than half of its students to pass the ELA Exams—while celebrating its principal for taping teachers for the sake of giving them tenure, not making them better teachers.

Why are we aiming at tenure? Shouldn’t we all just be dedicated to better teaching, especially the year after we all learned that we weren’t doing nearly enough to help prepare our kids against a slightly higher bar on a less-than-rigorous exam?

I wish I could reply to Winston (below) right from Winston’s response to me. But I can’t because there’s no Reply button on his comment. Ugh! So, Winston, I hope you see this response.

Those points actually do matter! They matter a great deal. The longitudinal analysis of all the past decade of State Exam scores compared to the likelihood of graduating with a Regents Diploma shows that students who score fractions of points higher on their 8th Grade Exams exponentially raise their “chances” of receiving a Regents Diploma. (Though, in high school, they’re not chances, so much as they are affirmations that the kid knows what her or she is actually studying.)

And we all know that those students who hold a Regents are more likely to gain access to 4-year colleges and universities, where financial aid is available, academic support is the norm, 4- or 5-year graduation rates are expected, and the end game is traditionally higher salaries and a higher quality of life.

Every second of time in a principal’s day matters. Every second matters a lot. So I don’t want a caring man like Principal Rubino spending any time jumping into rabbit holes like the tenure argument. Just support his teachers by making them even better than they already are. This tenure argument is a red herring. Focus on what matters—improving classroom instruction.

Winston, you hit the nail on the head. Mr. Rubino’s main focus daily is not just granting tenure. He has created an atmosphere where his students and staff strive for excellence. Have you seen the amount of students from IS 318 who were accepted to Specialized High Schools. How many schools can honestly say the Admnistration and the UFT are on the same page? Children first!!!!!!!!! Students leave IS 318 well rounded and truly prepared for high school.

James, are you aware that IS 318 has a high population of Special Education students? Are you aware that Mr. Rubino took in additional Special Ed. classes a few years ago because no other school would? Knowing this would have a direct affect on the school scores. Once again, go visit 318. I am sure you will change your mind.