GOP Pushes Education Reform in Idaho

The Republican push in Idaho to reform the education system to allow a pay-for-performance plan for teachers has passed the state Senate, the Idaho Statesman reports.

The measure now moves on to the House, where it’s expected to pass.

“The support is fairly high on the House side,” said House Speaker Lawerence Denney, a Republican from Midvale.

Other provisions in the reform measures would increase technology in classrooms, equip high school students with laptops, increase class sizes and eliminate 770 teaching jobs. However, Republican lawmakers are not done revising the plan.

“Classroom size is an area that is of some concern to the electorate, to families and children and teachers,” Senate Majority Leader Bart Davis, an Idaho Falls Republican, said to the newspaper this week.

Minor changes are expected to the bill before it goes to the house to address some of those concerns.

“This is a great day for Idaho and its children,” school Superintendent Tom Luna said. “With these two bills, we have reformed the way we pay teachers and we have reformed the way school districts can operate by returning authority and flexibility to locally elected school boards.