What’s the best way to grade teachers? Ask their students

12-15-2010

KPCC (audio)

The preliminary results of the Measuring Effective Teachers study, funded by the Bill and Melissa Gates Foundation, are in. Top education experts from across the country found that value-added evaluations based on student test scores coupled with student surveys are a good measure of effective teaching. The study, which is only half complete, will ultimately include sophisticated observation methods and teachers’ assessments of their own performance—measures that critics of value-added have long maintained are necessary to get the full picture. But for now, researchers claim that “value-added” could be a good benchmark for future evaluation methods. Some critics argue that releasing interim results gives undue weight to the value-added portion. They say nothing is clear without the rest of the study. Will school districts across the nation wait for the complete results before revamping their approach to grading teachers? Or does this study give license to pink slip teachers with poor scores? (more…)

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