Greensboro Reporter

The North Carolina Board of Education had discussion of a new plan to determine teacher compensation on the agenda for Wednesday's meeting; and while it calls for increasing starting salaries by $10,000 per year, it also comes with having pay tied to test results.

"That doesn't feel like educating a whole child," Val Young, president of the Forsyth County Association of Teachers, told Fox8 News this week. "It feels like what people are going to end up doing is teaching to the test, and that doesn't work long-term for our students." 

The board's plan for merit-based raises—as opposed to salary increases based on seniority—would be driven by student accomplishments on testing, reviews by colleagues and students, and whether the teachers take on added responsibilities outside the classroom, the report said.

 "You have children that come to you with all these problems, all of these barriers, and then I'm supposed to break through all of these barriers in a 90-minute block and get proficient scores from those students, and I just don't see how that will ever be feasible," Melinda Vickers, a teacher with Forsyth County Schools, said in the report.

"No kid learns the same," Bryanna Boaz, a teacher with Guilford County Schools, said. "I could have a straight-A student that tests poorly because of anxiety. There's so many more formative assessments we could do without having to do the state test."

Educators also have a broader goal than getting the children to pass standardized tests.

"I want to help create those well-rounded people who care, and it's hard when you're driven by a test score," Vickers said.