There's a debate brewing in education circles over a recent L.A. Times story that delves into the student test results of thousands of Los Angeles public school teachers. The reporters rate the teachers based on those outcomes over time, something the paper says district officials could have done but didn't.

Several of the groups that tout education accountability and testing, such as the Fordham Foundation and the Florida Foundation for Excellence in Education, are celebrating the report. The L.A. teachers union, by contrast, has called for a boycott of the newspaper over its irresponsible piece.

Former Washington Post education reporter Linda Perlstein offers an insightful look into the story and what it does and doesn't offer on her blog, the Educated Reporter. Hers is but one of the comments that's bubbling to the surface as the fight over rating teachers based on test scores -- and exactly how to do that, if at all -- swirls in Florida and across the country.

Check out the report. What do you think?

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