11/10/2000

Accountability: Why the Public Demands It

Parents, whose tax dollars pay the bills, are demanding that educators measure their success in educating their children. If test results are not the only way to measure academic progress, say the parents, then show us test results plus other compelling data to prove that you are effectively educating the children. The following letter from a Connecticut resident describes some of the economic reasons behind this push for accountability.

Dear Readers:

The question must be asked: How much can we afford?

With education budgets already tapping 65 to 70 percent of most town's budgets, how are town governments supposed to pay for all the other essential services of government , such as administrative costs, street maintenance, poverty assistance, elderly care, youth programs, police and fire protection, debt service, library services, pension contributions, legal expenses and insurance? The growth in government expenses has far exceeded the growth in revenues, so the burden of government has not only overwhelmed the middle class (working class), but has also overwhelmed those on fixed incomes. I'm sure there are those who would point to the state government as a source of help to the towns that need it, but state monies don't solve the basic problems. Unfortunately the state needs to inflict its pain on the same population segment that the towns try to sting. (State monies are middle class dollars, too.) The middle class exodus that plagued the big cities may spread to this state as a result of this strategy. Industry and business may exit next.

Several individuals question the fairness of teacher salaries and want to compare teacher's salaries with those of other professional workers. So we must also ask: How much is enough? A teacher works 1080 hours (180 days x 6 hours a day) versus the hours a comparable college graduate works: approximately 1920 hours (240 days x 8 hours a day). I am discounting all sorts of overtime by both sides since overtime on work days as well as on weekends is expected of most professionals in most industries. Most companies do not pay overtime for salaried employees, whether the work is performed during waking hours or on call in the middle of the night. Therefore, a good comparison of salaries is hourly pay (excluding overtime hours).

In addition, no one in the real business world gets guaranteed raises for going to school. There is no monetary incentive (several thousand dollars) to pursue a master's degree, never mind a sixth year of credits. Good company performance and individual contributions to that company's performance are the only criteria for merit increases.

Salaries are also not the only form of compensation. Let us also include the benefits that each side receives as compensation. Start with medical benefits and the long list of issues such as type of coverage, employee portion of premium, network choices, out of network penalties, co-pays, deductibles, lifetime maximum benefits, managed care control, etc. If one were to look at which side had the better benefits package, the comparison would overwhelmingly favor the public sector employees.

While on this subject, let's look at the benefits that teachers receive at retirement. If one starts teaching at 21, retirement at full benefits can be attained at 56. It can even be attained earlier, if you save your sick days and use them at the end of your career (to retire even earlier.) At retirement, health benefits continue until Medicare and then in many cases, as a supplement to Medicare. In the private sector, there is no pension, so retirement is when you feel that you have saved enough, if ever. Otherwise it's work till you drop. As for medical coverage, you are only covered by your employer while you are employed. When you reach 65, if you are no longer working, there is Medicare with no supplemental coverage from your former employer.

As for tenure (aka lifetime guarantee), it does not exist in the private sector; downsizing (aka no kind of security) is a fact of life. Salary is often a criterion for who gets laid off or cut. In a competitive environment, good product and good efforts are not enough. Many times the events that determine a company's performance are out of the hands of the employees. Foreign competition and its respective salary structure can present 'unfair' obstacles to an American company's ability to compete. In these situations, good efforts and success only provide you another day of employment, if you're lucky. There are no automatic annual salary increases either.

No one begrudges teachers excellent pay for excellent results. But accountability measures must be in place to measure those results. Otherwise mediocrity and outright sloth creep into our schools and make the minds of our children their victims.

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.