By AP
Nashville, TN – Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen's proposal to require up to half of teacher evaluations and tenure decisions to be based on student achievement data is headed to the full Senate for a vote. The Senate Finance Committee unanimously passed the measure Thursday. The governor has said it's key to Tennessee's chances of landing up to $485 million dollars in federal "Race to the Top" money. Tennessee currently uses no testing data to evaluate teachers.
Republican House Speaker Kent Williams of Elizabethton told reporters Thursday morning he may want to push Bredesen's higher education proposals into the regular session if lawmakers get bogged down on K-12 matters during the special session.