In short, the TAAS dictates how things are done in most Texas public schools, and massive financial investments are made to deal with it. Teachers have grown tired of it, too. Sue Ann Perez despises the test. For creative teachers like Perez, teaching loses much of its appeal when they find that their creative impulses are inhibited. The teacher issue is huge.
Teachers are overworked, underpaid, and unfairly controlled by the mandates of the standards.
The research literature clearly shows that good teachers have a far greater impact than most other variables regarding student achievement. And while we have plenty of good teachers, many of the poorer school districts are unable to recruit the best teachers because they simply can't pay the same salaries that wealthy districts can. School finance formulas should focus more on teacher salaries. Progressive School Financing Needed School finance must also be more equitable. Across the country, poor schools like the ones in Texas find great difficulty in recruiting the best and the brightest teachers simply because they can't match the resources the wealthier schools offer.