Students Tell Governor Good Teachers Important

By Lynn Campbell 
IowaPolitics.com 

DES MOINES — A panel of Iowa high school students Friday told Gov. Terry Branstad that they want teachers who are passionate and can teach a subject in multiple ways, so everyone understands. 

“A good teacher would be able to teach it in a different way or show me in a different way,” said Victor Gomez, a senior at North High School here. 

Katherine Kustra, a senior at Kuemper High School in Carroll, said new technology makes classes more exciting. She said teachers also need to be confident and keep a class in-line. 

“If it’s their first year teaching, they need to learn (to have) control over their classroom,” Kustra said. “Students realize that right away if they don’t have control of their classroom.” 

The students shared their views at an hour-long education roundtable convened by Branstad and attended by about 30 people at the Penningroth Media Center at the Iowa State Fair’s cattle barn. Iowans told Branstad that students didn’t get enough input at last month’s Iowa Education Summit. 

Branstad is expected to release draft recommendations to transform Iowa’s education system Oct. 1. A final report will be released, before the start of the 2012 legislative session in January. 

Students emphasized how important it is to have good teachers. 

“At first, we weren’t the best school. We had bad test scores. Kids weren’t behaving,” Gomez said of North High School, one of five in the Des Moines school district. “Just from getting better teachers, better staff members, our test scores went up. We went from fifth to second in the district in one year.” 

Vivian Wu, a junior at Johnston High School in Johnston, said technology is always changing, and keeping up with those changes is important. But she added: “We shouldn’t replace certain basic learning ideas with technology. Teachers are still important.” 

At least two of the panelists said students should be able to rate or evaluate their teachers. 

“If they’re sitting in class and like, ‘Wow, I’m not learning anything,’ that’s not OK,” said Danielle Hubbard, a senior at Van Meter Junior-Senior High School in Van Meter. “I think a lot of students think they don’t have any voice, because they’re the student. But they really should have voices.” 

Increasing standards, innovation, criteria for teachers 

At the Iowa Education Summit, Branstad and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan called for increasing Iowa’s academic standards, adopting more innovative approaches and being more selective about who becomes a teacher.

In 1992, no state scored higher than Iowa in fourth-grade reading and eighth-grade math, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as “The Nation’s Report Card,” which determines what U.S. students know and can do in various subject areas. By 2009, Iowa was ranked in the middle of the pack. 

“I don’t feel like I’m getting the best education to prepare me for college,” Gomez said. “ I’d like to see it be a little more challenging, so when I get to college, I won’t fail all my classes, because it is so overwhelming.” 

The idea of basing teacher pay on performance is expected to be part of the recommendations for Iowa to have a “world-class education.” 

A decade ago, Iowa was on a path to become the first state to implement performance-based teacher pay. But Democrats weren’t quick to embrace the plan when they controlled the Legislature and governor’s office. 

Early childhood education is a possible source of controversy in the upcoming education proposals. 

The State Board of Education this week emphasized that every child should have free access to high-quality preschool. More than 21,000 children participated in Iowa’s state-funded preschool program in the 2010-11 school year. 

But earlier this year, Branstad recommended scrapping that state-funded preschool program and replacing it with a needs-based scholarship program for low-income families. The proposal was held up by the Democratic-led Iowa Senate and failed to see final legislative approval this year. 

Another chance to be heard in Dubuque 

State Rep. Chuck Isenhart, D-Dubuque, and state Sen. Tod Bowman, D-Maquoketa, will hold a public hearing Monday in Dubuque to get additional input in advance of the recommendations to transform Iowa’s education system. 

“We are offering this local hearing, because summit attendees had little opportunity to contribute their own ideas and feedback,” Isenhart said. “Parents and students were notably absent from the crowd of 1,600 people who attended.” 

The forum will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday at the Dubuque Community School District at 2300 Chaney Road in Dubuque. State Education Director Jason Glass will be there to listen.