Teacher Effectiveness and Outcomes Based Compensation
SB67: Teacher Effectiveness and Outcomes Based Compensation, sponsored by Sen. Stuart Adams prescribes requirements for teacher evaluations and directs that evaluations be used as a basis for termination and compensation decisions.
The bill:
- Mandates that 90 percent of a teacher’s salary be based upon a performance evaluation
- Removes hiring and termination decisions from a school district and delegates that authority to a school principal
- Creates the category of “professional teacher” and prohibits any teacher from attaining career status if they have not done so prior to June 30, 2012
- Allows a district to develop its own evaluation program that must:
- Differentiate among four levels of performance;
- Base 60 percent of an evaluation on student learning growth;
- Base 40 percent of an evaluation on teacher effectiveness
- Requires that schools report the number and percentage of teachers in each of four performance rating categories
UEA's Position:
- The bill requires that 90 percent of a teacher’s salary will be based upon an evaluation tool that has not yet been developed and is untested and untried. Furthermore, there are no requirements that any evaluation system meet standards of validity or reliability.
- By addressing only teacher evaluation and compensation this bill fails to recognize the collaboration that is essential in schools. Many educators such as principals, counselors, specialists and others impact student learning.
- There is no requirement that principals or other administrators be held accountable for conducting evaluations or providing remediation to improve teacher performance in their school.
- Allowing districts to create their own evaluation program and then requiring statewide data collection and reporting of evaluation rankings provides a flawed comparison. Since districts are not required to use similar measurements there is no guarantee that a “highly effective” rating in one district is actually comparable to a “highly effective” rating in another.
- There is no expectation of evaluating or reporting teacher effectiveness in charter schools.
- Creating a two-tier system with newer teachers classified as “professional” teachers does nothing to attract and retain top talent in to the teaching profession.
- Unlike SB 64 Public Education Employment Reform, this bill was written without input from or collaboration with education stakeholders. The result is a bill that fails to improve education quality or provide meaningful accountability.
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