Foundations of Evaluation

1. Foundations of Evaluation [Presenter’s Name] [Presenter’s Title] [Presenter’s Organization] [District Name] [Date]

2. The National Scene • Nationwide reforms to teacher evaluation systems are taking place. • Research over the past decade has highlighted the importance of teachers and the inadequacies in existing teacher evaluation systems. • The federal Race to the Top initiative and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act emphasize the need to identify and improve teacher and principal effectiveness. • By May 2011, 17 states passed or proposed legislation to improve teacher evaluation.

3. Teacher Evaluation in [Insert State Name] • [Insert name of legislation passed or being considered, and what the legislation says.] • [Insert any specific requirements, including dates, with which your school district must comply.] • [Insert any statewide research findings about what school districts are doing to change their teacher evaluation systems (if available).]

4. Teacher Evaluation in [Insert State Name] • [Insert the status of teacher evaluation reform in the district (e.g., topics being discussed, policies already passed, task forces or committees established).] • [Insert names of key players in evaluation reform in your district.] • [Insert a description of how teachers are likely to be affected and when.]

5. What Is Our Current Evaluation System? • [Insert how often tenured and nontenured teachers are evaluated currently.] • [Insert information about who conducts evaluations and what measures are considered (e.g., classroom observations, student test scores, teacher portfolios, or other measures).] • [Insert the structures, if any, for using evaluation results to provide teachers with useful feedback or otherwise improving the teaching profession.] • [Insert data, if available, about the percentage of teachers whose contracts are not renewed.]

6. What Does Research on Teacher Evaluation Say? • There is no universally accepted method for estimating teacher effectiveness. • Many instruments are not validated. • Many districts use poorly developed instruments. • It is often recommended to use multiple measures to accurately capture a teacher’s effectiveness.

7. Some Measures of Teacher Effectiveness • Teacher observations • Portfolios • Analysis of teachers’ assignments or students’ work • Documentation of teachers’ positive contributions to the school • Student and parent surveys • Documentation of teacher leadership and mentoring

8. Student Growth • Student test scores are increasingly used in evaluation to measure teacher effectiveness. • Student test score growth (e.g., from the beginning of the year to the end of the year) is considered a stronger measure than raw achievement levels. • Value-added models are complex statistical techniques for calculating student test score growth in a way that also takes into account prior performance and various demographic or other factors that are beyond teachers’ control.

9. Key Considerations Factors to consider when choosing evaluation measures include the following: • Validity • Reliability • Alignment • Comprehensiveness • Generality • Weighting • Practicality • Credibility

10. Additional Considerations • Who should conduct evaluations? Should the principal be the sole evaluator? • How frequently should teachers be evaluated? Should this be the same for all teachers? • How should evaluations be tied to feedback and professional growth? • What kind of training should evaluators receive? • What else should evaluation results be used for—tenure?pay?career ladders?dismissals?

11. How Can I Have a Say? • Understand how teachers in your grade or subject area are evaluated. • Participate in a teacher engagement team. • Seek representation on the task force or committee. • Engage in informal dialogue with colleagues and key decision makers. • Learn more by visiting www.everyoneatthetable.org.

12. Presenter Name P: XXX-XXX-XXXX E-Mail: XXX.XXXXX@XXX [Organization Name] [Organization Address] [Organization Address]