Letters: 'Race to the Top' forces school districts to cheat

As a 24-year veteran teacher, I take issue with the comment that "teacher unions also object because the program encourages evaluations" ("Obama defends education plan as economic issue," Friday).

If teachers object to the "Race to the Top" program, it's because the plan encourages unfair evaluations, and does not represent real educational reform. It is not a plan; it is literally a race to see which school districts can scramble fast enough to cobble together a last-minute list of buzzwords and promises so that the administration can toss some loose change their way. Traditionally high-achieving districts in New Jersey are forced to play "if it ain't broke, break it," just to regain the vital funding that Trenton slashed in its spring budget. Teachers' professional performance will be evaluated based on their implementation of hastily planned initiatives that may or may not be pedagogically sound.

Teacher unions that are presented with these halfhearted, shoot-from-the-hip plans are told to sign on or else. If we object because we know these plans to be not in the interest of real and lasting reform, we're labeled self-serving obstructionists. If we agree to the plans and they fail, we are blamed for that failure. Teachers know that real reform requires thorough discussion among teaching professionals and public policymakers as equal stakeholders in the promise of educational excellence. We don't need a race for spare change.

Diane Oesau

Cherry Hill