Florida: 48th in Public Edyoocashion.

As of now, Florida Public schools are the 48th best in the United States. The 2 that are behind us are Arizona and Nevada (respectively). Recently, our Governor Rick Scott passed a bill that gives teachers bonuses based on merit.

What this essentially means is that teachers will receive their regular paychecks, and an additional bonus based on how well their students did that year in class. I personally believe that this is Rick Scott's second attempt at running this state like a business. Being a business man himself, I'm sure he believes that all success is derived from business-like actions.

The first example of this is him recently passing a bill that was deemed unconstitutional back in 2004 when Crist was in office. The bill makes it mandatory for all state employees to get drug tested. Ironically, a company called Solantic, a widely known privatized clinic that specializes in drug screenings, is owned by (drumroll please) Rick Scott! Seems like a real Dick (Cheney) move if you ask me.

But back to education and merit pay. Some friends of my family are actually teachers at the local elementary school. When I talked about the subject to them, they laughed and pretty much told them that they're going to teach to the test that determines their pay, and nothing else. This is furthered by Vivian Troen and Katherine C. Boles. In the article "How ‘Merit Pay’ Squelches Teaching" in the Boston Globe on September 28, 2005, it says that "The idea of merit pay, sometimes called pay for performance, was born in England around 1710. Teachers' salaries were based on their students' test scores on examinations in reading, writing, and arithmetic. The result was that teachers and administrators became obsessed with financial rewards and punishments, and curriculums were narrowed to include only the testable basics. ... So drawing, science, and music disappeared. Teaching became more mechanical as teachers found that drill and rote repetition produced the 'best' results. Both teachers and administrators were tempted to falsify results, and many did. The plan was ultimately dropped, signaling the fate of every merit plan initiative ever since."

Secondly, it's going to completely undercut essential cooperation between educators. The United Teachers of Los Angeles wrote on November 9th, 2007 that "Teacher unions have historically resisted merit pay proposals because they undermine one of the core principles of teaching and learning: collaboration. Whether it is the informal discussion that takes place in the lunchroom or the more formal exchanges based on grade level, department, or small learning communities, these are only successful because as teachers we understand teaching is about working together to help our students, not competition for better pay."

Thirdly, according to Education-Portal, "Some Teachers are Punished ... Should a teacher who chooses to teach at a large school, an inner city school, or a special needs school where tests scores are generally lower be punished? Definitely not, but that is exactly what some merit pay programs threaten to do." Merit pay really does punish hard working teachers that have bad students, which leads me to another point, that student performance does not represent teacher performance.

My personal favorite is this one: Merit pay creates an incentive for teachers to cheat, by improving student test scores so that they can appear to be doing better as a result of the teacher's work, resulting in bonuses and higher pay. Obviously, the resulting differences in pay would not be fair. In actuality, as a student, this doesn't completely stink. My teachers are going to help me Ace all of my tests, standardized or not. My grades are going to go up, and I'm not going to learn a thing!

But, if that isn't good enough for you, we can turn to past examples and see how it worked out for them. The Boston Globe on September 28th, 2005 wrote an article called "How Merit Pay Squelches Teaching." In it, they wrote "Merit pay comes in many forms and flavors -- including extra bonuses for student achievement gains, satisfactory evaluations by principals or committees, acquiring additional duties, gaining new skills and knowledge, and serving in hard-to-staff schools. We've looked at dozens of plans in North America, South America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Guess what? None of them, past and present, has ever had a successful track record. None has ever produced its intended results. Any gains have been minimal, short-lived, and expensive to achieve."

Sources, mentioned and additional:
Jay Mathews. "Merit Pay Could Ruin Teacher Teamwork". Washington Post. October 6, 2008
Vivian Troen and Katherine C. Boles. "How ‘Merit Pay’ Squelches Teaching". Boston Globe. September 28, 2005
"Report Highlights Risks of Teacher Merit Pay". Education Week. May 20, 2009
"The myth of private-sector performance pay". Economic Policy Institute. May 13, 2009
"Top Ten Reasons Why Merit Pay for Teachers Is a Terrible Idea". Education Portal. July 10th, 2007
Joseph Legueri. "Iron Range view: Merit pay proponents fail to understand facts of teaching". Duluth News Tribune. May 19, 2009
"No merit to merit pay". United Teachers Los Angeles. November 9, 2007
"Merit pay ain't the way". No Fish No Nuts. March 11, 2009
"Say no to merit pay". Letter to the Editor of the New York Teacher. Apr 2, 2009
"the final word on why merit pay is bullshit". Journeys of Jack Tripper. April 29, 2009
"Merit Pay for Teachers". Creating Lifelong Learners.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/09/21/study-merit-pay-teachers-doesnt-improve-student-test-scores/ <---This one is by Fox News, so I usually wouldn't promote using this as a reliable source. They quote a Vanderbilt Study though, so it has to be somewhat legitimate.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/01/22/earlyshow/main6129624.shtml
http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/08/the-uncertain-impact-of-merit-pay-for-teachers/

In actuality though, this isn't going to happen. Florida's Education System can't even afford to give Florida Teachers a 1% raise, let alone pay some of them more than 1% their salary for a "good" performance. In 2012 when this bill is supposed to take effect, Florida will realize that we don't have the money for it (or anything else), and repeal it immediately. Then, they (hardworking teachers) will keep having their crappy paychecks which are less than that of a "grass cutter" or a "stock clerk."
Source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/education/fl-school-jobs-20110326,0,3562023.story
Or, if you don't want to click on that and read the whole thing, read the first three paragraphs (the important stuff) below:
The Broward County School District last year paid about 34 of its painters and 24 of its roofers at least $59,000 – more per day than it paid teachers with 16 years of experience.

Seventeen stock clerks earned $52,000 or more, while 18 grass cutters and three pest-sprayers were paid about $50,000 – each making more per day than most 10-year teachers.

Taxpayers also paid two mail clerks about $49,000, more per day than many 7-year teachers.

For years, the district refused calls from school activists to reconsider what it pays for services.