CAT Preparation

Gov. Tim Pawlenty toured the state Tuesday to roll out a set of sensible proposals intended to improve K-12 teaching, increase accountability for student performance and provide intensive summer school for students struggling with reading and math.

Together, the plans rightly focus on increasing the quality of teaching and learning with the ultimate goal of boosting student achievement. Some are proposals the governor has pushed for previously, while others expand on concepts his administration already has in place.

Ambitious reforms are needed in Minnesota. Although students generally score well in nationwide comparisons, wide discrepancies remain between white students and some students of color. In addition, only about 30 percent of state 11th-graders are proficient in math, and about a third need remedial math courses after entering college.

Called the "Teacher Transformation Act,'' the first initiative would set a higher entrance bar for admission to teacher preparation programs, create a program to recruit midcareer professionals to teach in high-need subject areas, and provide more continuous, real-time teacher training that is directly applicable to the classroom.

Pawlenty also proposes taking the pay-for-performance concept a step further than the current voluntary Q-Comp program, which only encourages district leaders to change their compensation models. Under the proposal, the state would require districts to use new money in teacher contracts for raises tied to student test-score performance.

To address school leadership and administration, the governor wants to expand participation in a national school leadership program for principals and revise standards for approving principal licensure.