Minn. bill would steer kids from subpar teachers

Published 10:40 am Monday, February 25, 2013

ST. PAUL, Minn. — New legislation would demand that Minnesota school administrators avoid putting children in classrooms led by teachers deemed unsatisfactory if they had one the previous year.

The bill introduced Monday by three Democratic state senators and one Republican is the latest attempt to make teacher effectiveness a bigger part of school decisions. If passed, the law wouldn’t take effect until the 2016-17 academic year.

The bill builds off an existing teacher evaluation process. Advocates argue that students in classrooms led by ineffective teachers tend to fall further behind their peers, so helping them avoid multiple subpar teachers is critical.

Having Democrats as authors could help the bill’s chances, but teacher effectiveness measures usually face difficult legislative terrain. The chief sponsor is freshman Democratic Sen. Susan Kent of Woodbury.