Tuesday, February 7, 2012

"Tennessee Teacher Evaluation Systems Have Rough Road Ahead" by Sarah Garland



This article discusses the new teacher effectiveness measurement in Tennessee. An eighth grade teacher at a school in Memphis was surprised when the assistant principal dropped by to watch her teach as part of this new evaluation system. During class time, the lesson didn’t go as planned and many students stumped on review questions. After the class, the assistant principal rated her with 1s and 2s on a 5 point scale. He provides his reasoning’s, which to her seems unfair. After Reading, do you agree with the ratings that the assistant principal gave the teacher? Do you think that this new evaluation system is effective?

1 comment:

  1. I disagree with the ratings the evaluator gave the teacher. It seems unlikely that one would be able to accurately gauge a teacher’s performance by visiting the classroom for one hour. I think a more effective method, if they were to continue with this type of evaluation, would be to observe the teacher on 3 or 4 occasions over a span of time, maybe twice a month. This will give the evaluator a better idea of the teacher’s overall performance and consistency. Sellers had to review some information in the class; however, she reviewed the material to ensure that the students understood rather than pushed forward. Every student will not "catch-on" to the material at the same rate, I would not consider that a difficulty but rather a reality.

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