When members of the Peabody School Committee met last week to consider merging that city's vocational school with two regional technical schools, one of the most pressing concerns was whether all current teachers would be guaranteed jobs with the new entity. Children and their parents would be better served if those in charge in Peabody and elsewhere were asking whether teachers are qualified to hold their present jobs.

Fortunately the latter questions is at the heart of legislation being considered on Beacon Hill this week that could radically reshape the administration of our public schools.

The bill endorsed by the Joint Committee on Education builds on initiatives put forward by Gov. Deval Patrick, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and a group called the Race to the Top Coalition. It would encourage the establishment of more charter and "innovation" schools statewide and allow the state — with or without local cooperation — to rip up union contracts and take over the 100 or so worst-performing schools in Massachusetts.

The carrot is an estimated $400 million in federal "Race to the Top" grants — money the Obama administration has earmarked for programs in those states willing to abandon the status quo and try new approaches to improving student performance.

"The system needs to be restructured dramatically," Christopher Anderson, president of the Massachusetts High Technology Council and a member of the Race to the Top Coalition, told editors at a meeting earlier this fall.

Not all the reforms — pay for performance, for instance — are likely to make it past the House and Senate in the face of vigorous union opposition. But if legislators fail to move this reform effort forward, the voters may do it for them by endorsing an initiative petition now pending that would eliminate any restrictions on the establishment of new charter schools.

Numerous studies have shown that effective leadership and caring, competent teachers — more than new buildings or increased spending — are the essential ingredients to improving student performance. And while Massachusetts already stacks up very well when compared with other states, the concern is that we are falling behind those countries like China, India and Japan with whom our children and grandchildren will have to compete.

The bill now before the Legislature would allow parents more choices in deciding where to send their children and require the worst-performing schools to immediately reform themselves or have someone else do it for them.

The Bay State simply can't afford to stand still at this juncture in history. Change and innovation are essential to maintaining the competitive edge of our best schools and improving those at the bottom. And neither legislative inertia nor union contracts can be allowed to thwart what is in the best interest of those attending our public schools.

Members of the region's legislative delegation should get behind this latest reform effort.