Teacher Evaluation and Professional Learning: Lessons From Early Implementation in a Large Urban District

• In Event: 54.037 - Investigating Teacher Preparation, Professional Development, and Evaluation

Abstract

This study examined the alignment of teacher evaluation and professional learning in a large urban district in the Northeast. Researchers analyzed the types of professional learning activities teachers reported participating in, the alignment of the reported activities with what evaluators prescribed, and whether evaluation ratings improved across academic years. Evaluator feedback tended to include more professional practice activities, such as independent work to improve instruction, than professional development activities, such as attending workshops. Teachers reported participating in more activities for the instruction-based standards than for the non-instruction-based standards. Less than 40 percent of teachers participated in all evaluator-recommended activities. This study takes the first step in illustrating the need for coherence between teacher evaluation and systems of support and development.

Authors

• Karen L. Shakman, Education Development Center, Inc.

• Jacqueline Zweig, Education Development Center, Inc.