Capitol Comments, By Peggy Bennett

As a member of the K-12 Education Policy and Finance committees, I hear a lot of proposals aimed at improving education for Minnesota’s children. There are many good ideas presented to the committee from representatives on both sides of the aisle. It’s our job as committee members to sift through these bills and determine which would best address the needs of our children and schools.

An obviously critical factor in education is the teacher. Having been a longtime elementary school teacher, I understand both the joys and struggles of the classroom. Teaching can be a very fulfilling job, but it can also be frustrating — especially when are there things getting in the way of the very thing we love to do: teach our students.

I have authored and co-authored a number of education bills that address student achievement, education funding and more. For this column, I would like to share with you some of the bills that will specifically impact teachers, right down at the classroom level, and deal with some of the very real frustrations that get in the way of their ability to teach.

Student over-testing is one of the top concerns I hear from teachers. In many grade levels, nearly one-third of the school year is taken up with high-stakes testing and test prep. This over-testing puts unnecessary stress on students and takes away from precious learning time. A bill that I authored last session, which has now become law, reduced the number of state mandated testing in grades 8–12. I’m hoping this step toward much-needed test reduction has freed up a little more instructional time for teachers in their classrooms.

I am co-authoring a bill with fellow DFL colleague, Rep. Linda Slocum, which would direct the Department of Education to reduce by 25 percent the amount of state paperwork required of special education teachers. All teachers have become hugely burdened by the reams of paperwork that is now required of them, and this is especially true of special education teachers. These educators encounter students with so many differing needs, and the best use of their time is not in doing paperwork; it is in assessing how to best serve their students and investing in classroom instructional time.

On the most basic level, teachers should have the authority in their classrooms to maintain their own safety and that of their students. You may have heard in the news about the growing reports of students assaulting teachers and staff in schools. It is becoming a very real issue. Not only have teachers been assaulted, but there have been incidences where they were essentially told to keep quiet and just deal with it in their classrooms.

I am a coauthor of a bill that allows teachers to remove a student from class, consistent with a school board’s district-wide school discipline policy. Among other things, the bill also establishes a teacher’s right to know which students placed in their classroom have a history of violent behavior.

Teachers are professionals and deserve some autonomy in their classrooms, especially in the area of safety for students and adults. School discipline is an essential factor in classroom instruction. This is a first step, but we have more to address in this area. For now, this bill would provide immediate relief for teachers and establish a healthy learning environment for students.

Teachers need the time to do what they do best: teach our children. I will continue to look for measures and reforms we can implement at the state level to make a positive impact for teachers, and clear the way for them to use their talents and skills in instructing their students. As always, I would love your input. Please contact my office at 651-296-8216 or by email at Rep.Peggy.Bennett @house.mn if you have any questions or concerns!

 

Peggy Bennett, R-Albert Lea, is the District 27A representative.