Audrey Amrein-Beardsley writes about a veteran teacher who refused to bow to the Great Data God.
Lisa Elliott is a champion of public education. She says in the accompanying video, which you must watch, “This is my home. These are the children I teach.” Her refusal to resign after 18 years of exemplary service, her going public with her courageous resistance, is exemplary. I am happy to place her on the blog honor roll.
Lisa Elliott, a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) and 18-year veteran teacher who has devoted her 18-year professional career to the Alhambra Elementary School District — a Title I school district (i.e., having at least 40% of the student population from low-income families) located in the Phoenix/Glendale area — expresses in this video how she refuses to be bullied by her district’s misuse of standardized test scores.
Approximately nine months ago she was asked to resign her teaching position by the district’s interim superintendent – Dr. Michael Rivera – due to her students’ low test scores for the 2013-2014 school year, and despite her students exceeding expectations on other indicators of learning and achievement. She “respectfully declined” submitting her resignation letter because, for a number of reasons, including that her “children are more than a test score.”
The post includes a video of Lisa Elliott, standing up to the VAMinsanity.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I’m very happy and proud of this teacher. However, the article doesn’t say what happened next.
Last year in my school a veteran teacher refused to resign and my principal called the police and had her removed.
I worry that stories like this may convince some teachers that they can just “resist” and nothing bad will happen.
In many places now teachers are at will employees and can be fired for any reason and no reason.resist” and nothing bad will happen. In many places now teachers are at will employees and can be fired for any reason and no reason.
Do whatever you think is right but be prepared to pay a price and know the consequences before you make a move.
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Teachers really can’t resist without jeopardizing their careers. It doesn’t matter whether or not they are probationary–it can be done pretty easily, and for the stupidest of reasons. I am one such example of many thousands dumped and forced into poverty.
They have no real rights at all; administrators can pretty much get rid of them.
Refusing to administer tests, for example, is basically insubordination, and an administrator would be justified in disciplining or firing that teacher.
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I am proudly and courageously entering my 20th teaching year at Alhambra ESD, at the same school I began my career. I am the President of my Association and work tirelessly to bring more teachers into the realm of National Board certification. Teacher leadership can and does happen in the classroom. I serve on several district and site committees following the servant leadership of our new superintendent, Mark Yslas. I will forever stand up for what is true and honorable. Grace always wins. Thank you for your support!
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A national board certified teacher with 18 years of experience with exemplary reviews is asked by and interim superintendent to resign. What does this mean? Do people like New Mexico Secretary of Education, Hana Skandera no longer place any value in competent professionalism in the classroom? Is it really all about destroying public education to privatize it? Is this the kind of education thinking we can expect from a President Jeb Bush, Skandera’s former boss? The answers to all these questions seem obvious, cynical and negative.
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It means that the district has brought in a hack to do the dirty deed. The fools are in charge, and they clearly don’t seem to care about all the research on standardized test scores and poverty. I wonder who is getting paid to turn the district over to privateers?
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What a wonderful speech!
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I totally agree. Right now though I know a tremendous 6th grade teacher who is ready to quit because of the stupidity of the political intrusion into teaching. The total lack of understanding even how to evaluate teachers correctly. This person was voted by her students to be the best teacher in her school, receives exemplary evaluations from her principal, spends HOURS in preparation, grading papers et al, but because of the abysmal ignorance of the politicians who make up THEIR evaluative system this person is rated lower, considerably lower, than a fellow teacher who never takes anything home to correct etc.
Obviously in this blog this story is repeated over and over again.
Again, how long can this nonsense go on.
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I LOVE this teacher’s courage! Although many teachers are now “at will” employees, many more still have due process rights. These rights pretty much protect them from arbitrary or capricious dismissal. Because experts have told us that standardized tests are NOT a valid measure of student progress, pressuring a teacher to resign based on these tests can be seen as arbitrary. She has many ways to show that her students have made adequate progress. Every teacher needs to keep careful records for each child to prove this progress (Involve parents and other professionals as witnesses). For example, a video of a first-grade child reading in September and then again in June can provide powerful proof of progress, despite low scores on an achievement test).
Although the majority of schoolteachers have many wonderful traits as a group (kind, intelligent, generous, law-abiding, dedicated, conscientious, etc,) they often fail at fighting for themselves when attacked or unfairly treated. In my experience, many teachers “caved” when mistreated by their districts. Thankfully this teacher did not.
I admit that an “at will” teacher can’t do much if a district wants to get rid of her, but a teacher with due process rights can do a lot to fight injustice for herself, her students and her fellow teachers. Here are some of the strategies I witnessed as a teacher:
Go over the head of the district and file complaints with outside agencies (state, federal government, law enforcement, child protective services;
Get parents to fight for you;
File a grievance and go to court, if necessary. The word “lawyer” puts fear into everyone’s heart, and that includes the superintendent;
Make personal friends with a board member and get him or her to fight for you;
Work with the union to get a friend appointed to the Board of Education;
Write letters to the local newspaper;
Let the public know your situation through social media, as this teacher did;
Etc.
Yes, it’s true that the district can make your life miserable if you fight back (change your grade level from sixth to kindergarten, etc.) but a teacher needs to have courage. Also, just as a teacher can be intimidated, so can a principal or a superintendent, as long as the teacher is willing to report unjust actions to outside agencies or media. (Of course, all I have said only applies to teachers who are unjustly or illegally treated. Don’t try it if you are in the wrong!)
Good luck, Teachers. Remember that the public is mostly on your side!!!
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Even when the public is “mostly on (our) side,” they don’t stand up when a teacher is fired. This is what happened to a teacher in Utah who refused to grade a standardized test of her own students. This test isn’t even given anymore in that district, but she was still fired:
http://www.sltrib.com/home/2338826-155/rolly-test-bucking-utah-english-teacher-loses
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The teacher in this post is fighting an unfair action (i.e. being pressured to resign based on tests that do not measure her effectiveness). However, teachers must obey laws like everyone else and in most states refusal to administer standardized tests is consideration insubordination. A teacher who does this must know that she can be fired, even if tenured.
In my opinion a teacher should work through legal channels to get rid of high stakes tests. When achievement tests are given, only parents and teachers should see them.
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“These rights pretty much protect them from arbitrary or capricious dismissal.”
No they (due process rights) don’t protect from “arbitrary or capricious” dismissal. If the adminimals know what they are doing (and fortunately most don’t in this regard) they can get rid of a “tenured” teacher in a month or so. Make impossible to reach demands and the teacher is “insubordinate” (like public school teaching is the military or something). Document a few of those and voila, he/she is gone. Or have an adminimal have a subordinate file sexual harassment charges even if there is no sense of reality in the charge. I know, been there been subjected to that. (In my case, though the underling wouldn’t go along with their evil scheme, so I moved on “voluntarily” as I didn’t want to give the evil bitch that attempted to do so the satisfaction of abusing me anymore.)
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In my 42 years of teaching, I never saw anything like what you have described. Yes, I did see a few tenured teachers dismissed, but there was a long process and in almost all cases, the charges were serious and not “arbitrary or capricious.” In my state teachers are fairly well protected against unfair dismissal.
That said, an unethical administrator can make a teacher’s life miserable, but , as I explained in my post, a teacher can fight back, just as the teacher in this post did.
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Linda,
Unfortunately I’ve seen it happen more than once. I had an adjunct professor, a former public school district superintendent, in a masters administration personnel class brag about getting rid of “tenured” teachers and that it would take him a max of 45 days. He was quite proud of that fact. We figured out that if you peppered your test answer essays with “Dr. Whateverhisnamewas said such and such and blah blah. . .” that you’d get the highest marks. A tad egotistic that man was.
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Correction: I meant to say that experts have said that standardized tests are not a valid measure of teacher effectiveness (e.g. VAM)
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Yep and the sun comes up every morning, eh!?!?!
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I congratulated Lisa for her courage to stand up for herself in this crazy sea of school reform…..
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Bravo, Bravo, Bravo!
Her strength will serve her well no matter the outcome.
Systems typically respond in punitive ways and are surprised when teachers stand up straight, with dignity, speak proudly, present themselves highly organized and professionally. I have personally experienced it and witnessed others. It works!
If not, standing up for what you think is right will help you transition to another part of your life. The alternative is being a victim.
Never been an option for me, and should not be for you.
Our profession is a dignified profession.
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Yes, it does work! Teachers need to fight for what is right. They don’t have to be victims.
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Tell that to the 32 year veteran teacher who refused to sign her “needs improvement” Evaluation that put her on probation last May because she had the highest test scores in our school but the principal hated her for standing up and challenging the reformist craziness. She took early retirement rather than face firing and loss of license.
She was escorted off the school grounds by police. She is struggling to survive on her meager Florida pension being too young for Social Security and too old and too educated and experienced to be hired, as most places tell her. She has 2 kids in college and is a widow with medical problems.
We don’t all have savings or family or other wealth to fall back on when we do the right thing. Remember that when you urge others in different circumstances to be heroes.
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Obviously a teacher should not be a “hero” if she doesn’t have the means to do it and the law is not behind her. Every situation is different.
From my experience, teachers who were in the right prevailed when they stood up for themselves, but not all the time.
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