Dennis Van Roekel’s Keynote, take two!
Near the end of his keynote address to the National Education Association Representative Assembly, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel called for the creation of a new commission—to be called the Commission on Effective Teaching—that would address “questions that have been avoided for far too long.”
“What would the profession look like if we, the union, actually controlled teacher training, induction and licensure, evaluation, and professional development? How do we ensure that all teachers are prepared to enter the profession and then are supported, especially in their first years?” he asked.
The commission, Van Roekel said, would issue a report on these topics and make recommendations to next year’s Representative Assembly.
Not many more details about it at this point, but the creation of this commission could mean that the national focus on better teacher evaluations is prodding the NEA forward in these directions.
Curiously, teacher dismissal and due-process weren’t mentioned in the list of topics, which means that the American Federation of Teachers’ Randi Weingarten may still be going down that path alone.