Five Ways to Improve Arizona Schools

This short article from AZ Central is on Arizona’s Teacher of the Year, John David Bowman. As a National Teacher of the Year, John is a part of the oldest and most prestigious honors program to focus public attention on teaching excellence.

This article highlights  John's list of five ways to improve Arizona schools.

1. Increase pay. If you want to fix the issue of recruitment and retention, teachers need to be paid more. It really is that simple.
2. Focus on positive. Arizona has amazing students and teachers. Media needs to focus on some positive stories.
3. Support overrides. I work in a district that has tremendous voters who support overrides on the ballot. Other districts are not that lucky.
4. Did I mention pay? I was legitimately seeking to leave the profession after my third year due to financial struggles. Luckily, my wife is a superstar.
5. Respect dedication. I wish that every voter had a chance to spend an entire day with a teacher to experience the effort and dedication they put forth.

 
Do you agree with his list? What would you add, subtract or change? Please weigh in with respectful comments below.