She implies that Cleveland teachers bear the sole responsibility for the district s poor showing. Parental participation in education has the greatest influence on student achievement. Teachers must teach according to a school s curriculum or Graded Courses of Study .
Teachers have no control of what goes on outside of the classroom.
The state proficiency tests should be primarily assessments of student achievement. They may also serve a secondary purpose of assessing teachers as well as parents, principals, administrators, board members, superintendents, and in our city s case, the mayor. Districts that score well on the report cards applaud and take pride in the efforts made by the whole community. Poor showings in all 27 areas must be blamed on everyone, not just one group. But Sheridan s comments make it clear that she believes that if the problem is not the test, it has to be the teachers and the teachers alone.