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Traditionally, more than 99 percent of teachers are granted tenure automatically after three years on the job.

Under the new policy, teachers still will be eligible for tenure after at least three years, but it will now be based on a combination of test scores, classroom observations, and their contributions to the school community.

On NBC's "Today Show" this morning, Bloomberg said teachers need to perform to keep their jobs.

"We really have attracted an amazing group of teachers from around the country, but not everyone is good,” said the mayor. “Those that aren't doing the job, we want to help and see if we can make them good and then in the end, if they can't, I'm sorry, they have to get another career."

"Let's create a new evaluation system that focuses on continuous improvement and also teacher performance,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers and former city teachers’ union head. “If teachers can't be helped, we have to do something to weed them out of the system."

The leader of the city teachers' union says it, too, welcomes an objective tenure granting policy based on agreed-upon standards.

"I am glad he is now going to be responsible in the authority that has been granted to him a very long time ago in the tenure law,” said United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew.

Parents who spoke with NY1 this morning had mixed feelings about the mayor's plan.

“I agree with it. There should be more good teachers in the classroom,” said one parent. “And we don’t need teachers in the classroom that aren’t doing anything to help the kids and they’re just doing it for a paycheck.”

“I think it should be both,” said another. “I think you should be judged on performance, and yet, at the same time, there should be some type of level where you go from teacher to master teacher, rather than necessarily using the word tenure.”

"I definitely think that tenure is really very important because you don't know what the politics of the administration is going to do," said a third. "And that might risk a teacher's job, even if they're not a bad teacher."

In another effort to boost student performance, President Barack Obama's call for a longer school year is already being met with opposition – and not just from kids.

The president said extending the school year by about a month is crucial to remaining competitive with other countries. Obama made the same call last year.

But education advocates say states and local districts may not be able to afford a longer school year. The president says it would be money well spent.