In bold move, Colorado alters teacher tenure rules

It will be good to see this if you are correct, but I heard the legislators/teachers in the statehouse pretty much gutted the bill of any significant reform. Title looks good, but the interior is worthless.

And bravo to Mr. Obama, good to see the students winning out over the teacher's unions.

I to never understood why tenure was even granted for K – 12 teachers. In spite of the problems associated with evaluating teachers across the board, there must be a way to make that evaluation. We know you can’t necessarily compare a middle school teacher in an affluent school district with a population of college graduates and achievers, with a teacher in a middle school located in an area with a population of drop outs, or simply people who don’t care if the kids do well or not. My son is back in college to pick up his teaching certificate, some of his student teaching has been in schools where fully 1/3 of the kids have at least one parent in prison, some are being raised by “relatives” who just don’t care if the kids even attend school much less if they do well. And of course the kids reflect that attitude. It’s sad. Nevertheless teachers do not need a free pass when it comes to job performance.

Ronbo wrote: The problem with our education system has very little to do with the teacher's performence. The main problem is that our society does not allow them to do their jobs. By law, public schools must accept all students and too many of them do not give a damn. They disrupt the classes and bring down the rest of the students that want to be there. Private schools do not have this issue because they always have the option of not accepting problem students and kicking them out if they do not meet their standards.

I half expect (and would not blame them) the teachers union to strike at the beginning of this next school year.

Don't the kids that don't care just drop out?
And I went to private shool with a number of kids who didn't want to be there but, get this, they were inspired by the teachers to try and did graduate.

But I would also advocate more education/intern programs like Arrupe. In these programs, kids go to school in the morning and then work in businesses in the afternoon. This way they see that they can actually use the skills they are learning, and a reason to get their education.