Views toward merit pay by certificated personnel in the Griffin-Spalding County school system, 1989

This study was undertaken to present the views of elementary, middle school and high school certificated personnel in the Griffin-Spalding County School System toward merit pay and to determine whether these views positive or negative. An educational opinionnaire was designed and pilot tested on a small group of central office personnel, including two schoolbased administrators. The pilot test opinionnaire instrument was calculated at a coefficient alpha reliability of .78. Following the pilot testing, the opinionnaire instrument was distributed to 100 elementary, middle school and high school certificated personnel in the Griffin-Spalding County School System. Sixty four percent of the total opinionnaires distributed were returned. From the tabulation and analytical treatment of the data, it was concluded that certificated personnel in the Griffin-Spalding County School System displayed strong negative attitudes about merit pay as the means to reward master teachers or superior teachers. Participants' responses suggest strongly that there is no fairway to implement any form of merit pay. It was also concluded that the certificated personnel generally held positive attitudes about their overall commitment to the educational system and about the educational system in Griffin-Spalding County. Negative views reported regarding the ability of the school system to provide for a fair and impartial implementation of merit pay. The major recommendations are that the Griffin-Spalding County Board of Education study the issue of merit pay very carefully and that classroom teachers, along with administrators, have adequate input in devising local guidelines for merit pay