The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the impact of peer-teacher coaches on teacher evaluation ratings. One grand tour question guided this study: How are Indiana elementary teacher evaluation ratings influenced by the partnership between a peer-teacher coach and a teacher? 12 educators from three schools across Indiana were…

Indiana K-12 teacher evaluations were lawfully mandated by Public Law (PL) 90 in 2012. PL 90 required all public-school teachers to be rated annually by their administrators using a state approved teacher evaluation rubric. Teachers were evaluated as highly effective, effective, needs improvement, and ineffective. Student achievement and growth on…

We evaluated the score stability of the Framework for Teaching (FFT), a prominent observation instrument used for teacher evaluation. Three raters each scored 200 reading and mathematics lessons taught by 20 kindergarten teachers. Using Generalizability theory analyses, we decomposed the FFT's Classroom Environment, Instruction, and Total scores…

We used multilevel analysis to examine the predictive validity of scores from the Framework for Teaching (FFT), the observation measure used most often to evaluate teachers' instruction. We investigated how well 81 kindergarten teachers' FFT scores for eight reading and eight mathematics lessons observed throughout the year predicted students'…

Today's schools emphasize the use of student data to make instructional decisions. Standardized tests determine funding and teacher advancement (Datnow, Park, & Wholstetter, 2007; Gullo, 2013; Marchant & Paulson, 2009; Schraw, 2010). To evaluate learning before these tests, teachers must utilize their own assessments and data. Formative…

As reform efforts are prescribed in every state through mandates and regulations in an effort to better prepare students to compete in a global economy, and as states like Indiana implement new evaluation plans for teachers based on a rigorous rubric and objective measures of student achievement, close attention to the ripple effects must be…

For five years running, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has tracked states' teacher policies, preparing a detailed and thorough compendium of teacher policy in the United States on topics related to teacher preparation, licensure, evaluation, career advancement, tenure, compensation, pensions and dismissal. The 2011 State Teacher…