OTTUMWA —
Iowa’s governor told a crowd in Ottumwa that in order to improve education, we’re going to have to change our educational system.
“The [current] system provides too little support for raising student achievement,” Gov. Terry Branstad told an audience of mostly educators Wednesday. “[Our goal] is to raise achievement for all Iowa students.”
The public meeting at Ottumwa High School drew teachers, business people and superintendents from around the area.
Branstad said about one-fourth of the Iowa fourth-graders are not rated as proficient readers.
In the meantime, other states and other countries are pushing their students to do better in math and science. The new jobs available today in industry require math and science. And there are jobs available, Branstad said.
“Industry is telling us, ‘We have jobs available,’ but the unemployed workforce does not have the skills they need,” he said.
Iowa would be more attractive to new business or expansion of existing businesses, he said, if there was a knowledgeable workforce. And to impart that knowledge, he added, it’s going to take a topnotch education system.
“Great teaching is a game-changer,” Branstad said.
But to attract the best teacher candidates in the first place, the governor said the base salary needs to increase. Policies need to be in place to support teachers and puts them in leadership roles.
“I really like the focus on teacher leadership the governor [talked about],” said Ottumwa Superintendent Davis Eidahl.
In fact, he said, that’s something the Ottumwa district has already started moving toward. But questions remain. For example, how can these teacher leaders be compensated?
“It would be [beneficial] if you could take the best math teacher, the best English teacher, the best science teacher, and have them be ‘coaches’ for other teachers,” Eidahl said.
But doesn’t that pull our best teachers out of the classroom?
“It can, and that’s one of the concerns. But [there’s a proposal] to have them teach half a day and coach half a day.”
Cardinal Superintendent Joel Pedersen said he liked several parts of the blueprint.
But when Branstad asked for feedback, Pedersen also said he and some of his fellow superintendents wonder how the state will fund these improvements.
Branstad said he’s aware that past initiatives have been declared, put in place, then allowed to flounder. But Iowa’s fiscal house is now in order. For the first time in a long time, promised state aid to schools was fully funded. One-time money for programs is no longer an acceptable magic cure for budget problems. And the governor and his office have no intention, he said, of putting reforms into place and then withdrawing funding after a year.
Another concern came from Brad Little, who heads the Ottumwa Regional Legacy Foundation, which supports educational programs in the area. And the one thing he’s heard from educators quite often is how important parent engagement is as part of a child’s success.
Little appeared concerned after the governor told the audience that “we can’t use a bad home situation as an excuse for poor student academic achievement.”
He said he wouldn’t want the governor to overlook the importance of getting parents involved in their children’s education.
But Branstad said he is aware that parent engagement is critical for student success and that it’s something his administration will not ignore. In fact, data he’s seen suggests that rich or poor, parents who stay involved in their student’s schooling fuel that student’s success.
Several times Wednesday, Branstad talked about ways schools will find creative ways to overcome obstacles to student achievement. One superintendent told the governor that his school district made changes to their calendar. There are now more hours of classroom instruction every year.
But if that works for them, does Eidahl worry that every district will be mandated to change its calendar?
“No, I don’t [worry]. We’re all educational organizations, and some of our needs are the same. But we also have individual needs,” he said. “But what’s nice is to be able to hear those ideas from other districts.”
Some could prove helpful, he said.
It’s true, Eidahl said, that innovation at the local level will be important as education adjusts to changing real-world requirements. Branstad pointed out in the meeting how Iowa was beginning to fall behind compared to other states.
But Eidahl said what the governor is proposing means Iowa is heading toward statewide innovation.
When compared state-to-state, Eidahl said, we want to maintain our reputation.
“Iowa is about education,” he said.
Local News
Related Photos
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Gov. Terry Branstad spoke about — and listened to — ideas on education reform Wednesday during a stop in Ottumwa. He says to keep up with the rest of the world, Iowa's education system has to improve. Mark Newman/The Courier
September 6, 2012
Branstad: Education reform key to growth
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