Evaluation of Effectiveness : North Dakota

Analysis of North Dakota's policies

North Dakota does not require that objective evidence of student learning be the preponderant criterion of its teacher evaluations.

The state gives local school districts the authority to conduct teacher evaluations; however, North Dakota policy is silent about the content of and expectation for these evaluations. 

Citation

North Dakota Century Code Title 15.1-15

Recommendations for North Dakota

Require instructional effectiveness to be the preponderant criterion of any teacher evaluation.
North Dakota should either require a common evaluation instrument in which evidence of student learning is the most significant criterion, or it should specifically require that student learning be the preponderant criterion in local evaluation processes. Whether state or locally developed, a teacher should not be able to receive a satisfactory rating if found ineffective in the classroom. 

Ensure that classroom observations specifically focus on and document the effectiveness of instruction.
North Dakota should not only require that its evaluations include classroom observations, but also the state should specifically articulate that these observations focus on effectiveness of instruction. The primary component of a classroom observation should be the quality of instruction, as measured by student time on task, student grasp or mastery of the lesson objective, and efficient use of class time.

Utilize rating categories that meaningfully differentiate among various levels of teacher performance.
To ensure that the evaluation instrument accurately differentiates among levels of teacher performance, North Dakota should require districts to utilize multiple rating categories, such as highly effective, effective, needs improvement and ineffective. A binary system that merely categorizes teachers as satisfactory or unsatisfactory is inadequate.

State response to our analysis

North Dakota recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.