Obama calls for end of 'firewall' rules that shield teachers

In a tough talk on education, the president spells out criteria for winning $4.35 billion in federal grants. He challenges rules that say teachers should not be judged by how their students perform.

By Christi Parsons
LA Times
November 4, 2009

Reporting from Madison, Wis.

Declaring there should be "no excuse for mediocrity" in public schools, President Obama on Wednesday pledged to push for recruitment of better teachers, better pay for those who succeed and dismissal of those who let their students down.

When principals are trying to determine which teachers are doing well, he said, they should be able to consider student performance as part of the evaluation.

And when schools are failing, "they should be shut down," Obama said. "But when innovative public schools are succeeding, they shouldn't be stifled, they should be supported."

The president's tough words came as Obama spoke to students and teachers at a charter middle school in Wisconsin's capital, Madison. But as he announced the criteria by which states can win grants from his Department of Education's $4.35-billion "Race to the Top" fund, Obama spelled out standards that depart from conventional Democratic dogma.

(More here.)