Stop House Bill 1234 and Convene a K-12 Task Force

Replace HB 1234 with a task force on K-12 education

Greetings,

I just signed the following petition addressed to Governor Dennis Daugaard and the members of the South Dakota Legislature:

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House Bill 1234 proposes a number of reforms to South Dakota's K-12 education system. Among the proposals considered by the Governor and Legislature so far have been competitive merit pay, hiring bonuses for new math and science teachers, and the elimination of continuing contract.

These proposals promise to do more harm than good to our K-12 system. Extensive research fails to show any firm connection between merit bonuses and student achievement. Targeting math and science bonuses to new teachers does not recognize proven classroom performance. School districts already have the power to remove bad teachers; ending continuing contract only makes it easier for school districts to get rid of good teachers for bad reasons.

If there are problems in our K-12 public schools, we want to fix them. Instead of rushing to adopt specific policies right now after just a few weeks of legislative debate, we want to take time to study our education system and its strengths and weaknesses, research alternative policies, and propose suitable reforms with proven records of success.

We therefore urge you to replace HB 1234 with a task force. Convene a panel of teachers, parents, students, administrators, and other stakeholders. Charge them with the following tasks:

1. Conduct hearings across the state during the legislative interim to gather public input on needs in South Dakota's K-12 system.

2. Complement these hearings with an interactive public website that fosters further public discussion throughout the task force process and documents all task force activities.

3. Review existing research on various education reform policies in school systems here and abroad.

4. Create a list of education reforms that research shows are most likely to have a positive impact on student achievement.

Our schools are too important to gamble on rushed unproven policies. We should hold off on the K-12 reforms currently pending in the Legislature. Instead, we should take time as a statewide community to study our K-12 system and inform wiser, more deliberate education reform decisions next year.

Thank you for seeking the best policies possible for our kids and our public schools.
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Sincerely,

[Your name]