Teacher Tenure: Good for Teachers, Bad for Students

“Wait ‘til you have tenure, then you can do that,” was my former colleague’s favorite line. Although the tenured teacher referenced here is an outstanding educator, this axiom is more often used as a justification for poor behavior than a co-worker’s quip.

Missouri teachers are tenured, or become permanent teachers, once they have taught for five consecutive years within the same district. According to the American Federation of Teachers, a Missouri tenured teacher may be fired only in the following circumstances:

(1) physical or mental condition unfitting him to instruct or associate with children;

(2) immoral conduct;

(3) incompetency, inefficiency or insubordination in the line of duty;

(4) willful or persistent violation of, or failure to obey, the school laws of the state or the published regulations of the board of education of the school district;

(5) excessive or unreasonable absence from performance of duties; or

(6) conviction of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude.  

This law is meant to protect Missouri teachers, but does it provide Missouri students with protection from bad teachers? A Los Angeles Superior Court Judge recently considered this question.

Judge Rolf Treu found on Tuesday that teacher tenure protections “disproportionately affect poor and/or minority students.” The ruling cited Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark Supreme Court case that declared segregated schools are not equal. Judge Treu said:

All sides to this litigation agree that competent teachers are a critical, if not the most important, component of success of a child’s in-school educational experience.  All sides agree that grossly ineffective teachers substantially undermine the ability of that child to succeed in school.

California’s teacher tenure laws may differ from Missouri’s, but the problems are the same. One Missouri superintendent reported, “Teacher tenure is the greatest restraint to student performance!” If we hope to provide all students with at least a chance at success, we must consider Missouri tenure reform.