by Scott McClallen
Michigan Senate Republicans on Thursday announced their plan to improve childhood learning and support teachers in the K-12 schools.
They proposed a MI Brighter Future plan they said would help students gain access to additional resources and learning opportunities, require proven training methods for educators, give parents more control over their child’s progress, reinstate accountability in teacher evaluations and provide for performance-based bonuses.
“As the Legislature continues to provide record funding for our schools, Michigan’s students continue to fall behind their peers in other states — ranking poorly in reading and math proficiency and near the bottom in high school graduation rates,” Senate Republican Leader Aric Nesbitt (pictured above), R-Porter Township, said in a statement.
Michigan funded $23.4 billion to the 2024 School Aid budget but the state is 36th in K-12 educational outcomes. Michigan’s Growing Together Council says that fewer than 33% of Michigan students are proficient in reading or math in the fourth and eighth grades, and grade-four reading proficiency for Black students in Michigan is at only 10%, lower than in any growing peer state.
The four pillars of the MI Brighter Future plan are:
- Strengthen key provisions of the third-grade reading law, require student progress to be part of every teacher’s evaluation process once again, and restore the A-F grading scale for parents to easily understand how schools are performing.
- Provide bonuses to highly effective teachers who take positions in schools where they can have the biggest impact.
- No student should ever be left behind because of their means or ZIP code. Scholarship opportunities will help families afford additional educational assistance and help cover the costs of summer or after-school reading programs.
- Train teachers in proven phonics-based reading methods that have worked for decades.
The Republican plan might not advance since Democrats have recovered a trifecta in the House, Senate, and governor’s seat after a special election. Before, the House was deadlocked 54-54. Fifty-five votes are required to pass a bill in the House.
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Scott McClallen is a staff writer covering Michigan and Minnesota for The Center Square. A graduate of Hillsdale College, his work has appeared on Forbes.com and FEE.org. Previously, he worked as a financial analyst at Pepsi. In 2021, he published a book on technology and privacy. He co-hosts the weekly Michigan in Focus podcast.
