State of the States 2015: Evaluating Teaching, Leading, Learning

Posted on December 21, 2015December 16, 2015 by coreeducation

A new report from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) examines the policy landscape of teacher and principal evaluations, as well as various states’ successes in using evaluations to inform teacher practice and administrative decisions. As of 2015, twenty-seven states require annual evaluations for all teachers, and forty-five require annual evaluations for all new, Read more about State of the States 2015: Evaluating Teaching, Leading, Learning[…]

Featured Collection: Principal Evaluation

Posted on September 28, 2015September 28, 2015 by coreeducation

The School Turnaround Learning Community has assembled a collection of reports, policy papers, and tools related to principal evaluation. This collection of resources provides considerations for developing local administrator evaluation systems, examples of implementation and resources in support of these systems, and literature reviews identifying themes and perspectives that might be useful to practitioners and Read more about Featured Collection: Principal Evaluation[…]

May Issue Brief: Great Principals

Posted on May 20, 2015May 17, 2015 by coreeducation

School administrators serve as instructional leaders and set the tone for the culture of a school. The principal’s influence is pivotal. In this month’s issue brief, we explore effective school leadership and recommendations for improving the training, support and evaluation of educational leaders. What essential skills should principals master in order to be exceptional instructional Read more about May Issue Brief: Great Principals[…]

Public Comment Sought on Revised Draft Standards for Education Leaders

Posted on May 19, 2015September 12, 2020 by coreeducation

Two national education organizations are seeking additional feedback from the public on revised draft standards for education leaders. These standards aim to ensure district and school leaders are able to improve student learning and achievement and meet new, higher expectations. The first public comment period last fall resulted in suggested changes that have been incorporated Read more about Public Comment Sought on Revised Draft Standards for Education Leaders[…]

Human Capital Resources for Schools and Districts

Posted on May 18, 2015May 17, 2015 by coreeducation

The Noyce Foundation supports major research and development efforts by quality national organizations to create new models for the recruitment, compensation, development, evaluation, and accountability of school principals and teachers as well as district and other leaders. The collection of R&D efforts includes resources from Education Resource Strategies, New Leaders, New Visions for Public Schools, Read more about Human Capital Resources for Schools and Districts[…]

Monitoring the Implementation of Educator Evaluation Systems

Posted on April 24, 2015April 20, 2015 by coreeducation

The implementation of new educator evaluation systems has become an important issue for states and districts. A new guide developed by Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Central provides a three-step process for state departments of education to monitor district implementation of state- or district-developed educator evaluation systems. This process includes the following steps: Develop state guidelines Read more about Monitoring the Implementation of Educator Evaluation Systems[…]

What Can You Learn From Educator Evaluation Studies?

Posted on March 10, 2015 by coreeducation

Evaluation studies of educator evaluation systems can provide feedback on implementation, support continuous improvement, and increase understanding of evaluation systems’ impact on teaching and learning. Although crucial for strengthening evaluation systems, these studies can be challenging to design and can be costly. The Center on Great Teachers and Leaders offers two new resources to help Read more about What Can You Learn From Educator Evaluation Studies?[…]

Building a Stronger Principal Pipeline

Posted on February 20, 2015February 15, 2015 by coreeducation

The third in a series of reports evaluating a multi-year Wallace initiative explores the ways in which six districts are working to improve school leadership districtwide. The report, Building a Stronger Principalship, describes several new measures districts are implementing, including: systematic support for assistant principals the use of performance standards to hire and evaluate principals, Read more about Building a Stronger Principal Pipeline[…]

Building Leadership Talent Through Performance Evaluation

Posted on February 3, 2015February 1, 2015 by coreeducation

Principals’ roles have expanded significantly over the past decade. These leaders face new challenges and new levels of accountability. Performance evaluation provides a powerful tool for developing leadership practices, but many districts and administrators are inexperienced with this strategy. AIR engaged educators in three states to design the Five Essential Practices of School Leadership framework, Read more about Building Leadership Talent Through Performance Evaluation[…]

New REL Reports on Incorporating Multiple Measures into Teacher and Principal Evaluation Models

Posted on January 15, 2015January 15, 2015 by coreeducation

Four new reports from the Regional Education Laboratories (RELs) West, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic examine new multiple-measure teacher and leader evaluations across the nation. These reports are helping to build the literature base on the connections between educator effectiveness and evaluation. Principal and teacher perceptions of implementation of multiple measure teacher evaluation systems in Arizona In Read more about New REL Reports on Incorporating Multiple Measures into Teacher and Principal Evaluation Models[…]

CCSSO Wants Your Comments on Revised Standards for Education Leaders

Posted on September 30, 2014September 26, 2014 by coreeducation

The Council of Chief State School Officers is seeking feedback from the public on draft standards for education leaders that aim to ensure district and school leaders are able to improve student achievement and meet new, higher expectations. The standards detail the leadership skills and knowledge effective district and school leaders need in order to Read more about CCSSO Wants Your Comments on Revised Standards for Education Leaders[…]

States Forge Ahead on Principal Evaluation

Posted on July 30, 2014September 12, 2020 by coreeducation

Since 2010, at least 36 states have adopted laws requiring principals to undergo regular assessments and increasing the rigor of those reviews, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. This change is in large part due to demands set on school systems by No Child Left Behind and the later waivers granted by the Read more about States Forge Ahead on Principal Evaluation[…]

The Bias Inherent in Principal Observation

Posted on June 21, 2014 by coreeducation

In the ongoing dispute concerning teacher evaluation, most of the furor has concerned value-added teacher evaluations—those based on student test scores. The many problems with these, such as teachers being evaluated based on entire schools’ test scores or on test scores of students they have never taught, have been identified. Because of this research, good Read more about The Bias Inherent in Principal Observation[…]

Studies Cast Doubt on Race to the Top

Posted on October 9, 2013September 12, 2020 by coreeducation

Two recent studies have shown that Race to the Top, the Obama Administration’s signature education initiative to help states close achievement gaps, has not lived up to its billing. The first, by Elaine Weiss of the Broader, Bolder Approach to Education, argues that a lack of time, resources, and tools to address opportunity gaps puts Read more about Studies Cast Doubt on Race to the Top[…]

Rethinking Principal Evaluation

Posted on October 7, 2013 by coreeducation

What can school districts do to ensure that schools have the best principals? Deanna Burney and Robert Hughes, writing for the Harvard Education Letter, propose that districts create a growth-oriented system of principal professional development and certification and tie this system to principal evaluation. Following is the basic idea for the Burney and Hughes’ proposed Read more about Rethinking Principal Evaluation[…]

The Effect of Effective Principals

Posted on January 30, 2013 by coreeducation

The Wallace Foundation finds after ten years of research that the leadership principals provide to schools is the second most important factor directly impacting student performance, after only teacher performance. According to a new report prepared by the Wallace Foundation, “a national philanthropy that seeks to improve education and enrichment for disadvantaged children”, the reason that Read more about The Effect of Effective Principals[…]