This study connects descriptions of effective teaching with descriptions of teacher development to advance an initial understanding of how effective teaching may develop. The study's main premise is that descriptions of effective teaching develop cumulatively where more basic teaching strategies and behaviors are required before teachers may advance to more complex teaching behaviors. The sample incorporates teaching behaviors observed across 878 classrooms. Teaching behaviors were observed using the International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching (ICALT) observation protocol. Using Rasch analysis, the study reveals that 31 of 32 effective teaching behaviors fit cumulative ordering. The ordering also parallels descriptions of teacher development. Together the results indicate that the instrument is a potentially useful tool to describe teachers' development of effective teaching.