Should Teachers Be Judged on Student Performances

This goes along with the merit pay idea. If teachers are judged based just on student test score it sounds like a good idea. Some students do well in the class but poorly on the test even though they know the material. However, at times we do end up with students who do not care, doing nothing while waiting until they turn 16 to drop out. In the mean time, they make learning harder on the other students since the teacher is interrupted by this student(s).

I came across an article on this topic at http://www.theapple.com/news/articles/8536-should-teachers-be-judged-on-student-performance

Some of the pros and cons I have come across include:

Pros:• Teachers are already underpaid. Merit Pay would help address this injustice. Teaching is due for a renaissance of respect in this country. How better to reflect the esteemed way we feel about educators than through paying them more? And the highest performing teachers should be first in line for this financial recognition.
• We are in the middle of a teaching shortage. Merit pay would inspire potential teachers to give the profession more consideration as a viable career choice, rather than a personal sacrifice for the higher good. By tying teaching salaries to performance, the profession would look more modern and credible, thus attracting young college graduates to the classroom.
• With American schools in crisis, shouldn’t we be open to trying almost anything new in the hopes of making a change? If the old ways of running schools and motivating teachers aren’t working, perhaps it’s time to think outside of the box and try Merit Pay. In a time of crisis, no valid ideas should be quickly denied as possible solution.

Cons• Good will and cooperation between teachers will be compromised. In places that have previously tried variations of Merit Pay, the results have often been unpleasant and counter-productive competition between teachers. Where teachers once worked as a team and shared solutions cooperatively, Merit Pay can make teachers adopt a more “I’m out for myself only” attitude. This would be disastrous for our students, no doubt.
• Success is difficult, if not impossible, to define and measure. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has already proven how the various unleveled playing fields in the American education system inherently set up a wide variety of standards and expectations. Consider the diverse needs of English Language Learners, Special Education Students, and low income neighborhoods, and you’ll see why it would be opening a messy can of worms to define standards of success for American schools when the stakes are cash in the pockets of real teachers.
• Opponents to Merit Pay argue that a better solution to the current educational crisis is to pay all teachers more. Rather than design and regulate a messy Merit Pay program, why not simply pay teachers what they are already worth?
• Potential for abuse from administrators.
• Districts may not have adequate resources to support teachers needs
Parents may not want the extra accountability that would be built into a comprehensive merit based program.

What do you think? Should teachers be judged on student performance? Is Merit pay a good/bad idea?