Reading requirement nixed!

Outpouring of member protests sinks proposed class

Mat-Su EA President George Stuart (left) speaks in opposition to the Alaska Reading course.  He was testifying in person before the Alaska State Board of Education.  From the state capital Juneau EA Past President Richard Steele (below)testified on behalf of JEA against the proposed Alaska Reading Course. His and other associations' testimony helped send the measure back to the drawing board

A firestorm of opposition from educators across Alaska caused the Alaska State Board of Education to back off and rethink a controversial new reading requirement put forward last summer by the Alaska Dept. of Education and Early Development (DEED).  At its December meeting, the State Board did not take a formal vote on the proposal.  Instead, the Board directed DEED to continue working on the topic of improving student reading skills—in collaboration with Alaska educators and literacy experts.    “This is a major win for our members,” said NEA-Alaska President Bill Bjork, “and for the children of Alaska.  Mandating the Alaska Reading class would have simply added another barrier to attracting quality teachers to Alaska—and keeping them here.”

(Photo by Patty George)

The proposal would have required that, beginning next year, teachers pass the three-credit course as a pre-requisite for recertification.  New teachers would have had to take it before they could earn a professional license.

“In the first place, the pedagogy of the course was suspect,” said Bjork.  “Everyone from kindergarten to calculus teachers would have had to take the same class.  It’s that one-size-fits-all approach that all educators know doesn’t work.”  The school boards of Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Lower Kuskokwim, and Bering Strait came out in opposition to the proposal, as did the Alaska State Literacy Association and the Dept. of Teaching & Learning, College of Education, University of Alaska Anchorage. 

But the overwhelming number of protests came from teachers.  The State Board received more than 500 pages of written comments.  Impassioned and articulate, the e-mails poured in.  Below are a few excerpts from those protests, including one from a rural administrator:

• “I teach a reading class through UAA.  I have a master’s degree as a reading specialist and 17 years of teaching experience.  I find the requirement rather redundant.”

• “Requiring a “one size fits all” course would more likely end up being a ‘one size fits none.’”

• “Test scores in reading are the least problematic in our district.  Staff development already addresses reading strategies, including as recently as our October in-service.  Fairbanks is very concerned about recruiting and retaining teachers, and this new requirement would be a deterrent to this mission.”

• “This is simply ridiculous—I AM a reading teacher.  I do not need additional ‘doc in the box’ shotgun ‘training.’”

• “If the primary area of need, according to all state tests, is mathematics, why are we not then requiring a mathematics course?”

• “Teachers’ professional development needs are best determined at the site level, not the state.”

• “The state keeps adding more hoops to jump through, more expenses for the entry level teacher, while at the same time reducing the security of retirement programs and failing to maintain the competitive edge in salaries that Alaska once had.  Being an administrator in rural Alaska, I can now offer a teacher a non-competitive salary, sub-standard housing, sub-zero temperatures, $5 a gallon gasoline, very little sunshine during the school year, and very high standards to get these things.  Has anybody been paying attention to the number of applicants showing up for the ATP job fairs?”

After the Board’s decision not to move forward with the class as proposed, Bjork said, “We applaud the State Board for its thoughtful response on this issue.  We stand ready to be part of the solution.  Teachers, above all others, know the critical importance of making sure every Alaska child learns to read.  Teachers are also lifelong learners who value appropriate staff development.   

“We will gladly work with the state on any new reading initiative that is research based, appropriate for our members’ grade level and subject, and meets the needs of the students.”

Statewide teacher training mandate nixed

Story source:  Fairbanks Daily  News Miner
By Robinson Duffy (Dec 8, 2007)

A proposal that would have meant all teachers in Alaska would have to prove they know how to teach reading was voted down by the Alaska State Board of Education on Friday.