Reposted from Hanover Research on LinkedIn:
Amidst the changing backdrop of education reform, the role of the teacher is constantly evolving. As such, the evaluation systems upon which these teachers are measured are under examination. The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) advocates that effective teaching be rooted in academic results for students, and recent reports show that the nation is adopting this mindset quickly. Five years ago, 35 states did not require teacher evaluations to include student learning measures. Today, only six states have yet to add the measure as a future policy.
Since 2007, researchers in education policy have moved toward growth models to assess teacher and program effectiveness because “these statistical tools present a more complete picture of school performance.”
The value-added model (VAM) and the use of student learning objectives (SLOs) have emerged as proven analytical frameworks to measure student growth. The decision to implement one of these types of alternative measures for assessing teacher effectiveness varies based on district needs and data capabilities, finds a NCEE report profiling early-adopting districts. Districts using alternative assessment-based VAMs choose to take advantage of existing assessments, while those using SLOs select them as a teacher-guided method of assessing student growth.
Actualization 