A Message from Ed Drapp Acting Superintendent of Schools
“Of all the variables under a school’s control, the single most decisive factor in student achievement is excellent teaching”, this according to research conducted by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It seems simple and basic that “excellent teaching” is the foundation upon which schools must build their programs and services to meet the social, emotional and academic needs of students, but I think it is the magnitude of the impact that quality teachers have on academic success that often gets overlooked in most discussions about the importance of classroom teachers.
The McKinsey & Company consulting group produced a report entitled How the World’s Best-Performing School Systems Come Out on Top (September, 2007), its conclusions were that:
- The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers and,
- The only way to improve student outcomes is to improve instruction.
If it is still unclear where I’m going with my message let me quote Colorado state senator and former principal Michael Johnston ”what we now know is that the single most important variable determining the success of any student is the effectiveness of the teacher in that classroom. That impact is so significant that when you talk about curriculum, professional development, or even class size, those changes are literally rounding errors compared to the impact of a great teacher.”
My theme here, of course, is that it takes excellent teachers practicing excellent teaching to reach the level of achievement we want for our students. To be sure we need high-caliber administrators and building leaders, we need a versatile, knowledgeable and committed support staff, and we need dedicated parents and community members to act in unison as equal partners in achieving success. But ultimately it is the teacher who will be the major determinant of the level of success our students will achieve.
Region 6 is fortunate to have many teachers who meet the definition of ‘great’ or ‘excellent’. Their dedication to their profession, their students and their own professional growth is evident by the myriad of selfless actions they demonstrate every day. Their focus is on their students, and student learning. Their commitment is laser-like and unwavering.
So, if you want to know the quality of the Region 6 educational system, just ask yourself what is the quality of Region 6 teachers? I think you will reach the same conclusion as me, that we have a high-quality and dedicated staff that are committed to improving student outcomes by continuously improving the quality of their instruction. We can all say with pride that the quality of education in Regional School District No. 6 is defined by the quality of our teachers, and this is a good place to be.
November will be our “Thank a Teacher” month and the district will celebrate its cadre of professionals. I invite you to join in by recognizing a teacher that has made a difference in your life and/or in the life of your child(ren). A simple ‘thank-you, you’ve made a difference’ will go a long way in reaffirming the critical and important role teachers make in the many lives that they touch over the course of a career.