Teacher Appraisals Update

Post date: Nov 11, 2011 5:45:06 PM

Back in May 2010 Governor Henry signed into law SB 2033 on Performance Pay & Evaluation, which required development of a new statewide Teacher and Leader Effectiveness Evaluation System (TLE) by December 2011 and mandated that it become basis of certified staff appraisals no later than 2013-2014. The law stipulated several conditions for teacher appraisals. They are shown below, along with the preliminary recommendations from the TLE commission charged with recommending an implementation plan to the state board of education:

• There must be five ratings: superior, highly effective, effective, needs improvement, and ineffective.

• 50% of the appraisal must come from an "evidence-based qualitative assessment tool" that for teachers includes "organizational and classroom management skills, ability to provide effective instruction, focus on continuous improvement and professional growth, interpersonal skills, and leadership skills."

  • The commission has been considering Marzano’s Causal Teacher Evaluation Model, Danielson’s Framework for Teaching, and Tulsa’s TLE Observation and Evaluation System. Senator Ford has signaled that the commission is leaning toward recommending using the Marzano Model, which includes a large number of assessed behaviors. (See attached summary of the model and a sample assessment form used at Douglass High School in Oklahoma City.)

• 35% of the appraisal must be based on "student academic growth using multiple years of standardized test data, as available" and when there is no state-mandated testing measure for a teacher they must use "objective measures of teacher effectiveness including student performance on unit or end-of-year tests".

  • The preliminary recommendation recommends using a "Value Added Model" with standardized test data and has failed to determine a way to implement this part of the appraisal for the many teachers in subjects with no standardized tests: In regards to the quantitative portion of the Teacher and Leader Evaluation System, the TLE Commission recommends using a Value Added Model in calculating the thirty-five percentage points attributed to student academic growth using multiple years of standardized test data for those teachers in grades and subjects for which multiple years of standardized test data exist.  In addressing those teachers in grades and subjects for which there is no state-mandated testing measure to create a quantitative assessment, the TLE Commission recommends conducting more research to determine the appropriate measure(s) of student achievement taking into account a combination of multiple measures and including teacher and specialist input.  

• 15% of the appraisal must come from "other academic measurements".

  • The commission has also failed to come up with a procedure to address this: In regards to the fifteen percentage points based on other academic measures, the TLE Commission recommends conducting further study of best practices across the country as well as inviting Oklahoma educators to provide input to develop a list of appropriate measures for Oklahoma. 

Bartlesville's own Senator John Ford, who will be at a public BEA meeting at the Hoover Elementary School library at 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday, November 16, chairs the commission, which will meet on December 5 to finalize its recommendation to the State Board of Education.

You should feel free to comment on these preliminary recommendations. Send an email with written comments to Alicia Currin-Moore, Executive Director, Teacher and Leader Effectiveness, Oklahoma State Department of Education at Alicia_Currin-Moore@sde.state.ok.us 

Five teachers from the Bartlesville Education Association (Kelli Bryant, Stacy Gerth, Sheila Stephenson, Granger Meador, and Rhonda Layman) will be meeting during second semester with district central office administrators (Dr. Quinn, Ms. Martinez, Mr. Herriman, and Mr. McCauley) and school board member Nikki Benson to consider the TLE pilots promulgated by the State Board of Education. That group will recommend what, if anything, should be considered during summer bargaining regarding teacher appraisals in 2012-2013.