Gates Foundation bet on Teacher Evaluation Reform Falls Short

Posted on July 5, 2018July 3, 2018 by coreeducation

Matt Barnum, writing for Chalkbeat, has summarized the findings of a RAND report on the $575 million investment from the Gates Foundation into teacher evaluation reform. Excerpts of the article appear below: New research commissioned by the Gates Foundation finds scant evidence that changes [related to human capital reform for teachers] accomplished what they were Read more about Gates Foundation bet on Teacher Evaluation Reform Falls Short[…]

Next Steps for Teacher Evaluation Reform

Posted on June 14, 2018June 10, 2018 by coreeducation

Matthew Kraft, an assistant professor of education and economics at Brown University, has researched teacher evaluation reform extensively, through surveys of principals and multiple studies of state teacher-rating systems. FutureEd Director Thomas Toch spoke with Kraft to get his perspectives on the teacher evaluation landscape. Below, he talks about the value of having multiple rating Read more about Next Steps for Teacher Evaluation Reform[…]

State Education Policy Tracking

Posted on April 9, 2018April 6, 2018 by coreeducation

The Education Commission of the States is out with policy snapshots of enacted state legislation related to teachers. Each snapshot covers all teacher legislation in 2017 as well as select 2018 introduced legislation and details various state approaches to attracting and retaining a high-quality teacher workforce. Access the snapshots at the following links: Teacher Evaluations: Read more about State Education Policy Tracking[…]

Study Finds Feedback to Teachers and Principals Can Improve Student Achievement in Math

Posted on February 9, 2018February 1, 2018 by coreeducation

A study conducted by American Institutes for Research (AIR) for the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) shows that even small amounts of the right kind of feedback to teachers and principals can have a positive effect on student achievement in math. These findings are important for states and districts looking for ways to boost educator Read more about Study Finds Feedback to Teachers and Principals Can Improve Student Achievement in Math[…]

Implementation and Impacts of Pay-for-Performance Across Four Years

Posted on January 12, 2018January 5, 2018 by coreeducation

The Institute of Education Sciences has released the fourth and final evaluation report on the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) grants, which were awarded in 2010 to support performance-based compensation systems for teachers and principals in high-need schools. The report, conducted by IES’ National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), provides basic implementation information Read more about Implementation and Impacts of Pay-for-Performance Across Four Years[…]

States’ Sense of Urgency to Improve Teacher Policies Grinds to a Halt

Posted on January 5, 2018December 21, 2017 by coreeducation

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has released its biannual 2017 State Teacher Policy Yearbook (Yearbook), which finds that the rapid progress made by states over the last decade to modernize their teacher policies has largely slowed. Since the last edition of the Yearbook in 2015, few states have initiated any new actions to Read more about States’ Sense of Urgency to Improve Teacher Policies Grinds to a Halt[…]

Two New Studies show Principals Reluctant to give Low Ratings on Teacher Evaluations

Posted on August 28, 2017August 16, 2017 by coreeducation

A study of 100 principals from Miami-Dade County Public Schools finds that while teacher effectiveness varies substantially, principals’ evaluations of teachers often fail to differentiate performance among teachers. In this study, researchers Jason A. Grissom and Susanna Loeb offer new evidence on principals’ subjective evaluations of their teachers’ effectiveness using two sources of data from Read more about Two New Studies show Principals Reluctant to give Low Ratings on Teacher Evaluations[…]

How DC Schools Are Revolutionizing Teaching

Posted on June 15, 2017June 15, 2017 by coreeducation

When most people think of school reform in the District of Columbia, they probably remember the Time magazine cover photo of former Chancellor Michelle Rhee with a broom in her hand and a hard look on her face. In leading the school system from 2007 to 2010, she was the polarizing public image of a Read more about How DC Schools Are Revolutionizing Teaching[…]

Great Districts for Great Teachers

Posted on April 6, 2017March 30, 2017 by coreeducation

Eight school districts just became the nation’s first-ever Great Districts for Great Teachers. This new honor, developed by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), recognizes districts for their exceptional programs and policies on recruiting, encouraging, supporting, and retaining great teachers. The winners are: Boston Public Schools; Broward County Public Schools; Denver Public Schools; District Read more about Great Districts for Great Teachers[…]

Running in Place: How New Teacher Evaluations Fail to Live Up to Promises

Posted on February 6, 2017January 30, 2017 by coreeducation

National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), a non-partisan research and policy organization dedicated to ensuring every classroom has a high quality teacher, has released a new report on the effects of recent reforms of state teacher evaluation policies on teacher effectiveness ratings. The report examines teacher evaluation policies in the 30 states that require objective Read more about Running in Place: How New Teacher Evaluations Fail to Live Up to Promises[…]

The Teacher Evaluation Revamp, In Hindsight

Posted on February 3, 2017January 27, 2017 by coreeducation

Chad Aldeman of Bellwether Partners recently provided a reflection on teacher evaluation reform during the Obama presidency in Education Next. Excerpts of his insightful piece appear below: When President Obama took office in 2009, his administration quickly seized on teacher evaluations as an important public-policy problem. Today, much of his legacy on K-12 education rests Read more about The Teacher Evaluation Revamp, In Hindsight[…]

Teachers’ Response to Feedback is Influenced by Perceptions of Usefulness

Posted on December 12, 2016December 9, 2016 by coreeducation

A new study finds that the usefulness of teacher evaluation feedback and the credibility of the evaluator are important characteristics in how teachers perceive and respond to evaluations. The Regional Educational Laboratory Central study looked at teachers’ perceptions of feedback from evaluators and identified characteristics of feedback that may influence their use of that feedback. Read more about Teachers’ Response to Feedback is Influenced by Perceptions of Usefulness[…]

Choosing the Best Teacher Observation Instrument

Posted on December 9, 2016December 2, 2016 by coreeducation

Many states and districts are adopting commercially available teacher observation instruments for the professional practice component of their evaluation systems. A report by Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Mid-Atlantic provides new evidence to help educators choose among five widely used “off-the shelf” teacher observation instruments and decide how much weight to attach to scores on different Read more about Choosing the Best Teacher Observation Instrument[…]

What does ESSA say about teacher evaluation?

Posted on December 7, 2016December 2, 2016 by coreeducation

When the U.S. Department of Education granted states waivers to the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), those waivers came with conditions. The waivers required states to adopt teacher evaluations that, among other requirements, were based in part on student performance data. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) ends these federal requirements for teacher evaluations. Read more about What does ESSA say about teacher evaluation?[…]

Evaluation of Performance Measures for Teachers and Principals

Posted on December 2, 2016November 22, 2016 by coreeducation

According to a report from the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), three performance measures used for evaluating teachers and principals provided some information to distinguish educator performance and led to increased feedback. The study examined the first year implementation of a set of three performance measures: observations of teachers’ classroom practices; Read more about Evaluation of Performance Measures for Teachers and Principals[…]