Second of two parts
Re “Don’t Mess with the Tenure Laws, Board President Says”
[img]1686|right|Laura Chardiet||no_popup[/img]On those widely scattered occasions when a Culver City teacher is dismissed, he or she should not merely be shown the door, says Laura Chardiet.
This is a time for sensitivity, says the president of the School Board.
“You always want to provide counseling and guidance to a teacher struggling in the classroom,” she said. “You don’t want to pull the rug out from under the teacher without offering a kind of support.”
“New teachers especially need to be developed. You don’t want to disregard that person’s potential without having explored it.”
Although it is said that teachers are required to be on the job for two years before earning tenure or lifetime appointment, paperwork to start the process begins a mere year and a half after the teacher’s hiring. Is that sufficient time to assess professional worthiness?
“If administrators are given the time to do their jobs as instructional leaders,” said Ms. Chardiet, “then it is plenty of time. The problem is, administrators usually are busy dealing with all of the other requirements of their positions. It is hard for them to focus on being an instructional leader.”
Would the School Board president favor a longer probationary period?
“I would be open to discussing the possibility,” she said, adding a significant caveat:
“None of this can be done without your partnerships in place. It has to be win-win for everybody.”
As for the last-in/first-out policy that is crucial to the teacher tenure law, and also was struck down last week by the Superior Court judge, Ms. Chardiet paused and then declined comment.
