Teacher Evaluation System a 'Complicated Process'

The is in the process of working out the “kinks” in its plans to .

Superintendent of Schools Tami Crader explained at Monday’s Warren Board of Education meeting that the new system is scheduled to take effect in the 2013-14 school year (and piloted in 2012-2013) and acknowledged that implementation will be “a complicated process.”

Administrators will be meeting with the district’s Advisory Committee this week to discuss implementation, timeline, weights and components.

“It’s going to be a complicated process,” Dr. Crader said.

Evaluations are currently based on administrator classroom observation. Under the new system, that observation (described as “Teacher Practice”) would account for 50 percent of the total evaluation. It will include a state-approved teacher practice evaluation framework and measurement tools, including classroom observation.

The other half would be based on student achievement, including 5-10 percent from state-approved school-wide performance measures and performance-based evaluations (35-45 percent for tested areas and 10-45 percent for non-tested areas).

After reviewing several options, the board opted to utilize what is known as the Danielson method, a research-based protocol developed by education expert Charlotte Danielson in 1996. The Danielson model includes four domains: Planning and Preparation, The Classroom Environment, Instruction and Professional Responsibilities.

“What we have fits nicely into it,” Dr. Crader said, adding that the Danielson system is “very teacher-friendly. It will not be unfamiliar language to teachers. It will be an easy process and transition as far as that goes.”

When asked how subject areas such as gym would fit in with student achievements, she said, “All will have to develop benchmark assessments of some sort to show student outcomes.”

Among the state’s requirements is a digital piece. Dr. Crader pointed out, however, that the state has not provided any funding. The district selected the Danielson/Teachscape’s Framework for Teaching, which Dr. Crader described as “easier for administrators and teachers.”

“The actual weights and how we go about linking it to student achievements” have yet to be worked out, she said.

The superintendent asked that the board delay voting on the $56,055 cost of the program, since the district is seeking grant money to help cover at least some of the cost.

“Regardless of the grant, this is where we should be going,” she stressed.