Affluent school districts more likely to have highly qualified teachers

[My Central Jersey]

Affluent school districts more likely to have highly qualified teachers
By ERICA HARBATKIN • STAFF WRITER • August 20, 2008

Classes in the state's most affluent schools are more likely to be taught by "highly qualified" teachers than classes in high-poverty schools, according to data released yesterday by the state Department of Education.

Statewide, 2.5 percent of high-poverty classes are not taught by highly qualified teachers — compared to 0.4 percent of low-poverty classes. In total, 1 percent of classes are not taught by highly qualified teachers.

In order to be considered "highly qualified," a teacher must have a bachelor's degree, a standard certificate for which no requirements have been waived and documentation of content area expertise in each subject taught.

Total numbers from the 2007-08 school year showed a nominal improvement over the previous year, when 1.2 percent of classes were not taught by highly qualified teachers. That improvement is rooted in low-poverty classes, where 1 percent of teachers were not highly qualified in 2006-07.

Still, the gap has shrunk since the 2004-05 school year, when there was a 10 percentage point difference between high- and low-poverty classes taught by teachers who are "highly qualified." In 2006-07 the discrepancy narrowed to 1.6 points before growing to 2.1 percentage points in the most recent school year. "High poverty" is defined as the 25 percent of the schools in the state with the largest percentage of students eligible for free or reduced price lunch, while "low poverty" schools are the 25 percent with the smallest percentage of such students.

The No Child Left Behind law set a goal for states to have 100 percent of their teachers deemed "highly qualified" by 2006, but most states haven't met that goal.

Fifteen of Middlesex County's 25 school districts have reached 100 percent, while three others have 99.5 percent of their teachers considered "highly qualified."

The county school districts with less than 99.5 percent compliance are Carteret (99 percent), Cranbury (98.5), Jamesburg (93), Middlesex Borough (97.5), Middlesex Regional Educational Services Commission (87.5), Old Bridge (98.5) and Spotswood (99).

In Franklin and Rahway, 100 percent of teachers are considered "highly qualified," while 86.5 percent of Linden teachers satisfied the requirements, according to the data.

Statewide, classes with the lowest percentages of "highly qualified" teachers were math, ESL and middle school special education.


http://www.mycentraljersey.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080820/NEWS/808200358

[Guest]

No surprise here.

[Guest]

Not sure why this is a surprise, we as individuals seek out the best employment opportunities.

My boss's son spent one year teaching Biology in NYC and said never again. He couldn't get kids focused, there were fights every day, most parents didn't show for parent teacher conferences and the kids he really tried to reach ignored him and did their own thing.

So he gave up and went to the suburbs. Now he's going to medical school.

We keep throwing money at these districts, but until the parents and children learn the importance it doesn't matter and teacher's won't want to deal with these problems. It's not a new 200 million dollar school that matters. It is encouraging parents to take an interest and penalizing kids when they act up in class.

[Guest]

[bogus]

If being a good school is that easy: meeting the 100% number.

The Cranbury data contradicts the title of this article. Isn't Cranbury the most affluent town in the Middlesex county?

[Guest]

well, if it is any indication in NJ Highly Qualified means nothing which is a shame. In the news recently we are seeing Red Bank, Freehold and others have who have Highly Qualified people who simple that because they got diploma's from internet schools that are unacreddited. The school districts have to pay for the higher salaries and in the end there is no higher education or learning that justifies this pay. It is super intendents and principals scamming a system and being supported by our legislature.

I'll take our solid teachers at 98.5% with real degrees over Freehold's super intendent with a degree from Bryar State any day.

[publius]

NCLB is a fraud anyway.
It didn't work in Texass, it won't work here. All it does is teach to the test, any fool can do that. As evidenced by our commander-in-chief, who was probably a product of social promotion.