Metro

City teacher tenure rates tumble under new rules

It’s gotten harder to become a tenured teacher in New York City.

The city’s Department of Education approved 58 percent of tenure applications this year, down from 89 percent in 2010.

The DOE deferred 39 percent of applications, up from 8 percent last year. And 3 percent of tenure applications were denied, the same as last year.

There were 5,209 teachers eligible for tenure this year.

The dramatic shift in the numbers follows a decision in December by the DOE to shift the framework it uses in measuring teacher effectiveness.

READ THE UFT’S LETTER TO CHANCELLOR WALCOTT (PDF)

The new rules were designed to weed out its bad teachers and reward its best ones with jobs for life. After years of rubber-stamp approvals, principals will now make tenure recommendations based on such performance benchmarks as classroom preparation and student feedback.

“We can’t afford to squander the highest honor we can bestow — of guaranteed lifetime employment — on those not worthy,” Deputy Chancellor Eric Nadelstern said at the time.

Under the new rules, tenure-eligible teachers must be deemed “effective” for two consecutive years in such areas as student learning, instructional practice and professional contributions. Teachers who don’t make the grade are given either a probationary extension or a pink slip.

Principals will make the tenure recommendations based on classroom visits and statewide student test scores. Teachers will also be judged on classroom planning, annual reviews and feedback from colleagues, parents and students.

The United Federation of Teachers sent a letter to Chancellor Dennis Walcott’s office on July 13 citing concerns about the tenure process.

The UFT claims in the letter that tenure probation was “extended for reasons entirely unrelated to their performance.”

“The UFT has always believed that the process of granting tenure should be transparent, rigorous and consistent,” the letter states.