Teacher value-added models (VAMs) must isolate teachers' contributions to student achievement to be valid. Well-known VAMs use different specifications, however, leaving policymakers with little clear guidance for constructing a valid model. We examine the sensitivity of teacher value-added estimates under different models based on whether they…

We investigate whether commonly used value-added estimation strategies produce accurate estimates of teacher effects under a variety of scenarios. We estimate teacher effects in simulated student achievement data sets that mimic plausible types of student grouping and teacher assignment scenarios. We find that no one method accurately captures…

This article reports on an interview with Marcia McCaffrey, the state arts consultant for the New Hampshire Department of Education and current president of the State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education (SEADAE). The discussion revolved around how the new arts standards may interact with evolving structures of arts teacher evaluation…

The rapid pace of change on teacher evaluation continues across the states in 2012. Since 2009, 36 states and the District of Columbia Public Schools have made policy changes on their books related to teacher evaluation. In the few short months since the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) published "State of the States" and the…

This report examines program implementation in the first two cohorts of Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) grantees (i.e., recipients of five-year grants awarded in 2006 and 2007). It follows on a 2012 interim report on the same cohorts. The report highlights principal and teacher award sizes and distribution and composition of awards, as well as…

The Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) was first authorized in 2006 to support efforts to develop and implement performance-based compensation systems for teachers and principals in high-need schools. The authorizing statue specifies that grantees' performance pay systems are to provide incentives based on gains in student academic achievement,…

This investigation examined the perspectives of twenty National Board Certified Teachers toward the use of growth measures of student learning for teacher evaluation. An analysis of responses from four focus groups that included elementary and secondary teachers, showed that there is much concern about the validity and efficiency of current…

In this article, Heather C. Hill and Pam Grossman discuss the current focus on using teacher observation instruments as part of new teacher evaluation systems being considered and implemented by states and districts. They argue that if these teacher observation instruments are to achieve the goal of supporting teachers in improving instructional…

Several states have recently adopted or are pursuing policies that deny or revoke tenure from teachers who receive poor evaluation ratings over time based in part on quantitative measures of performance. Using data from the state of Florida, we estimate such value-added measures to consider the future effectiveness and number of teachers who would…

So much has changed in the last 30 years. Diversity is on the verge of extinction--diversity of curriculum, instructional practices, and assessment. The nation is moving into an era that will link Common Core standards with a Common Core curriculum taught by teachers who will assess student learning through a slate of Common Core exams and be…

"Have We Identified Effective Teachers? Validating Measures of Effective Teaching Using Random Assignment" tested whether a measure created by study authors could identify teachers who are effective at increasing student achievement. The authors used 2009-10 school year data to create a single composite measure of teacher effectiveness;…

This report examines the ongoing effort to revamp teacher evaluations. After collecting and synthesizing data from 17 states and the District of Columbia, it provides five major lessons for policymakers. New evaluation systems are just one part of sweeping changes in American schools. Because the number and extent of these changes are daunting,…

We examine the efficiency implications of imposing proportionality in teacher evaluation systems. Proportional evaluations force comparisons to be between equally-circumstanced teachers. We contrast proportional evaluations with global evaluations, which compare teachers to each other regardless of teaching circumstance. We consider a policy where…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the TVAAS growth score given by the Tennessee Department of Education and the overall Tennessee Educator Assessment Model (TEAM) observation rating for teachers in grades 3 through 8. The participating county public school system for this study is located in Northeast Tennessee.…

The objective of this study is to examine the relationship between teacher qualities in relation to student achievement in Indonesia. Teacher quality in this study defines as teacher evaluation score, in the areas of professional and pedagogic competency. The result of this study consonant to previous study that teacher quality, in term of teacher…