Merit pay is a term used to describe the compensation of a person base on its merit. It rewards people based on their high achievements not just base on there job description. Susan Heathfield (2016) describes Merit pay as additional pay for those with higher performance. Heathfield also stated that she believes that it sends a powerful message and encourages other to increase their effort. Many have argued regarding the incorporation of merit pay in the education system, whether it is encouraging or f it is discouraging to those who do not receive the special pay increase.
One of the great advantages of merit pay, is that it encourages excellence in teaching (Ornstein, 36). By creating this approach, it motivates teachers to develop a more successful way of teaching. I believe this is a good thing, by motivating teachers the students performance will increase. This also creates more opportunities for teachers to earn a pay increase, by allowing them to be recognized for their great effort. By not provided this opportunities it creates less motivation and teachers who thrive on excellence are more inclined to leave teaching (Ornstein, 36).
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Many argue that by creating a performance merit will create competition and it will bring division between the teachers. That environment will not only create division but it can also encourage political game (Ornstein, 36). One of the most significant disadvantage is that by creating competition teachers will teach only for test performance. Teacher's goal will be for student to pass examen, not necessarily learn. Another disadvantage that questions merit pay, is the way their performance is tested. It is very hard to test hard work, and if they test the performance of each student performance based on testing, creativity and good teaching in the activities will be
Gutting makes the claim that teaching applicants have inherently lackluster academic abilities, but he fails to prove that this negatively affects quality of instruction. He states that “For every other knowledge-based profession—law, medicine, university teaching—we recruit from the top 10-20 percent of our undergraduate students. Not so for K-12 teachers” (Gutting). Although this may seem true at fir...
Some people believe merit pay creates competition and favoritism. They seem to think school systems will pay some teachers more than others and create a “battle” for money. In Merit Pay: Good for Teachers? By Gary Drevitch, one interviewee states, “I know it’s worked in some places, but I shudder at the idea of teachers being in competition with each other.” None of these problems will occur if school districts implement a successful, unbiased system. Another issue society presents when it comes to merit pay comprises of differentiating a “good” teacher from a “bad” teacher. School districts can easily evaluate a teacher’s ability to educate students by the work teachers put into helping students. Student’s reactions to a teacher’s class can also help evaluate teachers. More often than not, students will love a class where the teacher clearly demonstrates lessons, explain procedures, and adds elements of fun. On the other hand, students typically dislike classes where the teacher only comes in for a paycheck. This attitude is displayed by their lackadaisical teaching style. Other people argue that money should not be the reason why people go into teaching. Richard Barbieri, author of Merit Pay? argues that money is not an external motivator, but the substance of a teacher’s motivation. Financial incentives will cause employees to work harder
With the low expectations of teachers, students are limited in their ability to learn. As discussed before, it is difficult to predict how well a teacher will do at their job before they begin working. This creates doubt when hiring anyone, and employers may not know if who they are hiring is the right choice. If teachers are judged by not only the basic requirements met, but also their interpersonal skills and how well they are able to teach in a positive manner, there will hopefully be less mediocre teachers hired. In the same way, both an advanced teacher and an average teacher are paid the same wages, which creates a flaw in education. Even more, there should not be average teachers in the workforce if all teachers are paid the same. Though this harms the advanced teachers, who deserve more than they earn, it also harms the students, as they are taught at a lower level by the inadequate teachers. Gladwell mentions these flaws in his article, but he also explains the traits good teachers should have, which brings a strive forward in this issue. Because of this, it is clear America must be more selective and strict when hiring
The first term is merit. Merit is defined as “workers should be hired based on their ability to do the job. In principles, even without significant legal protection, it was expected that they would retain those as long as their performance was satisfactory (Naff, 2014, pg. #). Another important value here is political neutrality.
Teacher merit pay, also known as performance-based compensation for teachers is becoming a widely examined phenomenon in not only the United States but around the world. Merit pay is a system of offering bonuses to workers who perform their jobs at a very efficient level. The history of teacher merit pay has been improving very gradually in the United States. Since the 1800s, there have only been three major changes in teacher merit pay. The first was paying for teachers’ room and board followed by a grade-based salary schedule, where male teachers were rewarded at a higher level than female teachers.
Although some people may argue that performance pay is good, performance/merit pay is bad because it will result in teachers doing much less personalizing of the curriculum, and spending that time doing only what things need to be taught in order to keep their student’s test scores up (so they will get paid more). One of the major cons of performance pay is that teachers would have less time personalising the curriculum, teaching the students what they need to be taught, and teaching other important but non-standardized subjects; then using that time teaching only the things they are required to teach to keep student test scores up so they will get paid more(What Do We Know about Teacher Pay-for-Performance?). This in turn will cause the students to have a harder time learning because instead of the teachers teaching what the students need to be taught and more time teaching what the people who don’t know what the students know think the students should be taught.
When speaking about having test scores as an indication of a school’s competency, everything will be based on the school. The school will have to have something to base it on themselves in order to have the results. This is where it becomes unacceptable. The fact that the whole process puts the school in a jam will make the school fall to the employees for the work. This process leads to teacher evaluations. No one likes to be put under pressure in the classroom. To be put under pressure causes more stress than needed on the teachers behalf. How is a teacher supposed to make students perform proficiently on tests? There are many different cases that can cause a good student to have bad test results. Students may have a lack of determination. Determination is a big factor in attaining success and lack of determination can cause one to fail. Determination is something that cannot be taught nor forced on a student by their teacher. It is something they want to have in order to do good in scho...
When it comes to performance-related pay or in other words, merit pay, I believe that most people are familiar with this concept. This method of payment means that with more labor, better performance, and results, people can get a higher salary in return. It is very common in many industries, such as in sales or on production lines. However, whether it should be applied to the teaching profession is always a controversial issue. Some people think that it would be unfair for teachers, but others think that this can help increase competition, thereby improving the quality of teaching. These two completely opposite views both seem sensible. However, in my opinion, merit pay for teachers is necessary because it can improve teachers’ motivation,
In conclusion, students should be paid to do well in school because it has many benefits to the student. Those benefits include motivation to get good grades, the money would help the student financially, and the student would learn how to manage their money more effectively. School is a big part of every person’s life, so it should be more rewarding to the
Merit pay is a vehicle for employers recognizing individual performance and motivating employees to reach higher achievement. Competition is a natural human instinct and healthy competition compels employees to perform at their highest level. Employees must have clear, attainable goals and supervisors must provide continuous feedback, publicly praising employees to motivate performance. Additionally, employers that recognize and reward individuals for their exceptional performance in tangible ways, ultimately increase employee’s self-esteem and encourage them to maintain a high level of commitment to the organization. Employees are more apt to stay with a company when they feel that their hard work is appreciated and compensated. When employees are highly driven, it decreases absenteeism, tardiness, and results in a positive work attitude. In fact, employers use merit pay not only to retain highly motivated performance individuals, but also to attract new employees who are motivated by monetary rewards cultivating a productive workforce. Personally, I think merit pay plans are a great incentive if they are implemented fairly, equitable, and based on individual performance. Furthermore, I feel nothing demoralizes a high performing employee faster than knowing that all employees who contribute less to performance will receive the exact pay increase. If merit pay programs are instituted, they must ensure that
In any organization, sometimes, monetary schemes doesnot get people involve to pursue work in a certain way, rather it demoralize and threatens the self-esteem of employees. According to Meyer (1975), “the basis for most of the problems with merit pay plans is that most people think their own performance is above average”. The amount may ...
High school testing is not beneficial to students and just wastes thousands of dollars to give these tests. Art programs are being dropped because testing is more important and these programs can be beneficial to the student. Also, very important educational decisions are being made from the results of one test. This puts a lot of pressure of the student and can dramatically affect the results. In order to get an accurate, beneficial result, the student must take these high stakes tests but class work, teacher evaluations, and portfolios need to be incorporated as well.
Reward systems have been evolving and growing throughout the years, but there are many types that have always been there. Base pay is the most common, which is an employee’s base wages and salary that they are paid on hourly, weekly, monthly, or annually (Luthans, 2011, p.94). Merit based pay is another type of incentive, which rewards and motivates an individual to perform their jobs to the standards of their employers. According to the text Organizational Behaviors, by Fred Luthans, there are three other options for paying an employee for their performance: individual incentives pay plans, using of bonuses, and the use of stock options. Individual based pay plans are based on the employees output and/or quality. Some organizations use bonuses as incentives to their employees. These are offered sometimes as op...
Those who look to the profession as a career would need to nourish these perceptions in order to prevail over the negative aspects that surround the profession. The process of teaching goes far beyond the presentation of facts, it includes the dedication of both heart and time. While compensation and working conditions are the main downfalls in teaching, there are many other situations that cause individuals to turn away from the profession. Teaching is obviously a hard complex job and the individuals who answer the call, encounter many frustrations. They are required to first develop goals for classroom instruction and with these goals develop lesson plans, while implementing effective classroom management (appropriate discipline). They must also monitor and nourish the special needs of every child, and stay current on educational advancements and topic knowledge. Imagine trying to su...
In recent years, the cliché image of a teacher has come under attach. Research has shown that teachers often work in an isolated setting in which they are considered experts in their specific area; however they often lack the support and equipment needed to do their jobs effectively. As a result, to the inadequate working environment new teachers often leave the profession within the first five years. These conditions often exist because the educational system fails to prepare our teachers with the proper tools and experience needed to do their job well (U.S. Department of Education, 2010).