As many teachers and researchers recognize, the person who has the ultimate impact on student achievement is the teacher standing in front of them day in and day out, throughout the school year. Although there are many high quality teachers in Baltimore City who sacrifice their time and health for the good of their kids, we all know of or may have heard of the teacher who is not there for their kids on such a consistent basis.
Recently, stories have been reported in the Baltimore Sun that administrators and school system officials are trying to "crack down" on teacher truancy within BCPSS because it is nearly impossible to be an effective teacher if your attendance is sporadic or poor. City Officials say this is a distorted message. "What the CEO has said is that if we have employees (not just teachers) that are not coming to work and there is not a legitimate reason for those absences it should be reflected in one’s evaluation," said Tisha Edwards, Alonso's chief of staff. "I think that’s a reasonable expectation in EVERY profession."
I do understand that people get sick, things happen in life, and we all need to look out for our own well being. Should teachers that miss an excessive amount of days be held accountable for being out of the classroom? If they do not have legitimate personal or family excuses, yes. I think that instead of sending threats of impending evaluations or reprimands (as some BCPSS teachers have reported), administrators should work with staff members to help them be more likely to attend work consistently and offer support where necessary. Having teachers in class everyday does impact student achievement and we should be working as a district to support teachers in their demanding (and stressful) jobs rather than place punitive measures on them.
I do believe this is what Dr. Alonso and city school officials truly believe, and unfortunately the message is being distorted as it travels through the messengers to the receivers. Lateness and chronic absence costs the school system more money, lowers student achievement, and hurts the collaborative efforts at a school. Principals should be messaging this to their staff and working with any staff who have attendance problems to solve the issue so that they can be present in the classroom consistently.
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I can really resonate with you ideas here. Too often, threats or demands of compliance are used in an attempt to motivate teachers. While we should be expecting that teachers uphold values of professionalism, if a school or district is facing high levels of excessive teacher absences for sick or personal leave, some major questions should be posed to leadership: Why might teachers feel the need to take time off if they don't have a legitimate reason? Are these decisions related to work place stress and mental health? (I'm in a somewhat leading manner here assumuing yes...) What measures, including changes in scheduling, prep time, teacher support, etc. could be put in place to assist teachers to develop a more healthy lifestyle so that taking time off of work does not feel necessary? If school leaders believe they have hired a strong and professional staff, addressing issues of school culture and teacher support might be of more assistance than threats.
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