BYOE: Build Your Own Evaluation

Passing
a good law and implementing it with fidelity are two very different tasks.
Earlier this summer, Indiana University researchers took a thorough look at that state’s ground game on
teacher evaluations—and identified quite a few missed opportunities.

Like
many states, Indiana passed a law that ushered in evaluation reform (the
implementation timeline is here), being one of the first states
out of the gate. Most notably, the law required districts to use student
achievement to evaluate teachers starting in 2014. Ultimately, each district
was permitted to develop its own evaluation system—provided it met certain
criteria established by the state.

That
provision resulted in 271 evaluation plans which are all over the map in terms
of quality. (There are roughly 295 districts in the state, but not all of
them submitted evaluation plans that were reviewable by the researchers.) The
majority fail to include key components that the researchers assert would be
elements of any high-quality evaluation—and indeed it’s hard to argue with
their logic. For example, only 15 percent of districts link a teacher’s
evaluation with their professional development, and less than 25 percent of
districts require evaluators to hold pre- and post-observation conferences with
teachers, giving them the feedback they need and deserve.

In
addition, many districts struggled to articulate policies that would have built
teacher trust in the evaluation process. Fewer than half of the districts
require evaluator training and certification, and fewer than a third of the
districts convene an evaluation oversight committee. Of those districts that
have an oversight committee, few districts have put a process in place for the
leadership team to meet regularly and resolve ongoing issues.

Change
is hard. If we want to make evaluation reform stick, districts need to not only lay
the foundations of a fair and reliable system, but also include practices and
policies that make evaluations meaningful for, and trusted by, teachers.