Although the idea of merit pay is quite admirable, I don't think it is going to be implemented any time soon. The way I see it, most teachers are not expecting to get paid a lot. I'm sure they would appreciate a monetary reward now and then for a job well done, but according to Education Week, top teachers aren't the ones getting recruited anymore. New teachers are the hot commodity. Why? Because they're cheap and don't have to get paid as much as an experienced teacher (because they don't have a leg to stand on yet).
On another note, it seems like ever since I've started the Teacher Licensure Program, I've been hearing a lot of negative things about the teaching profession. This can be very discouraging to new teachers. Last week, a panel of former U of R TLP students (that are now teaching) came to discuss their views on teaching in our Foundations class. Although I wasn't surprised at what the panel was saying, their attitudes were very negative. How do they expect us to love our job if everyone else is being so negative? I do not understand this. I can understand the importance of being fully prepared and knowing what you're getting yourself into, however; if you are in teaching for the long run, you shouldn't let anyone or anything get in the way.
Attitude can make a huge difference in how well someone performs his or her job. If we're expecting merit pay to become a reality, we need to look at changing our attitudes first.
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