Some Thoughts on Teacher Evaluation

Very soon, I will be given the opportunity to observe and teach in a nearby local school, with an incredible, experienced, mentor teacher. From her wisdom and experiences thus far, along with the research and observations I have already completed, I hope to gain a greater level of understanding, and a great deal of practical knowledge for current and future instruction. I am eager and excited, but also nervous, to apply what I know, to the practices I do not yet. I am also nervous about the ongoing assessment and review I will participate in, regarding my progress and standings.

The fact is, all teachers undergo routine evaluation of their practices and skills throughout the school year, and this student teaching clinical experience, is just the first step in that ongoing career-specific process. Teacher evaluation is occurring all of the time and is no longer simply based on observations by superiors. In current practice, evaluation of teachers can often include: principle and mentor observations, standardized test score results of students, value-added measures, and student/parent feedback. While I feel that this multi-faceted approach is far more comprehensive than the alternative of a singular evaluation tool, I still don't necessarily feel that these methodologies will ever give a wholistic view of each teachers' level of efficacy and impact on their students and student achievement year to year, unless they are modified appropriately for that purpose.

The reason I feel this way, is because research studies suggest that not a single one of those methods for evaluation, are unbiased, consistent over time, or without serious flaws. According to 2011 online article by Washington Post author Valerie Strauss, titled Getting Teacher Evaluation Right, "there is a widespread consensus among practitioners, researchers, and policy makers that current teacher evaluation systems in most school districts do little to help teachers improve or to support personnel decision making. For this reason, new approaches to teacher evaluation are being developed and tested." (Strauss, 2011)

It is my hope that as time goes on, there will be less emphasis on data driven policy and standardized or high stakes testing, and more emphasis on wholistic approaches to student learning, assessment, and long term progress. It is my hope for my own assessment, that I will receive the sort of feedback from my peers, mentors, superiors, parents, and students, that is fair, encouraging, constructive, helpful, reflective of my full range and demonstration of abilities, and timely, so that I may continue to learn, grow, and improve, alongside my students.

Source

Getting Teacher Evaluation Right. (2011) The Washington Post. By Valerie Strauss. Retrieved October 28, 2014, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/getting-teacher-evaluation-right/2011/09/15/gIQAPzs9UK_blog.html

Tackling The Grading Dilemma

In having a recent look at a 2010 online article called "Tackling the Grading Dilemma" by Rebecca Alber, a contributor for Edutopia, I've gained an interesting behind-the-scenes look at the reality of the daily take-home work load most teachers add to their concerns, but also some insight as to possible solutions for greater success in time saving, efficiency, and overall teaching strategy. In her article, Alber highlights four specific solutions or strategies: peer assessment, the one in four rule, the stamping method, and student journals. Here then are my thoughts about each...

Peer Assessment
Just as the author suggests, I believe that peer and self assessment "allow students to learn from each other and practice being fair and impartial - get to know their assignments and expectations inside and out." (Alber, 2010) In particular, with grades four and higher, I feel like students are more mature and critical regarding their own work, and could certainly benefit from participating in the grading process. - It is immediate, constructive feedback too! Further, I couldn't agree more with the author, that having students help to create the grading scales or rubrics used as a class, gives students strong incentive for engagement, while reinforcing independence and responsibility. Taking some of the grading burden off of the teacher seems like a nice but small "side benefit" when weighed against the others.

One In Four Rule
Essentially the author explains in this article, that for every four assignments a student turns in, a teacher might only grade or thoroughly comment on one, and the remaining three, are treated as purely credit or no credit. She asserts that implementing this time-saving, work-load reducing solution (or rule) "allows you to keep up the rigor and keep your sanity at the same time." (Alber, 2010) While I have no doubt this is true, I wonder as a novice, what conditions might apply to this rule and how much time and energy should be spent on weighing out the right balance of differentiated assignments in which, to extract grades from, because clearly, not all can be considered equally representative and interchangeable. Not all can accurately demonstrate the ability and knowledge of each individual student, each having unique learning styles, abilities, preferences, and needs. A concern of mine would be that If poorly weighting these one in four assignments, students could easily be negatively affected by a less than wholistic picture of their overall progress and capability.

Stamping Method
As I understand it from the reading of this article, stamps (whether store bought or custom, can be used as a method of quick, spot-grading for lesser-weighted assignments. I'm confused however, by how the four specific stamps the author suggests using, may be converted into a point system, but they do make sense to me, as a replacement for a grade, as a one-word overall impression - more descriptive and constructive than a simple smiley face, but not overly detailed and time-consuming either. As a side note, I don't care for the use of the word "measly" to describe these lesser-weighted assignments by the author, as I see every assignment, no matter how weighted, as an effort on the part of a student who has done the work to get it to her. I'm sure she feels that way too, but being overwhelmed can color perception and point of view at times... I wonder what the overall efficacy is of this one in four and stamping together?

Student Journals
The final strategy or solution the author of this article proposes, is to create student journals in lieu of individual writing assignments, that students would become solely responsible for, and maintain (for either singular/comprehensive grade or one in four grade) approximately every two weeks. She recommends offsetting the collection days for each classroom, for teachers that do multiple periods throughout the day, so they are not grading all 100-150 binders at once. She also suggests that student journals maintain a structure whereby the front portion holds all current/ongoing work and checklist of what has been done, and the back portion holds homework. I feel like a journal/portfolio such as this, is a terrific idea for showcasing and archiving the learning of individual students for your and their periodic review. However at the same time, I am always concerned that such heftily weighted comprehensive assessments, may or may not fairly represent a students' full knowledge and ability. And then too, what happens if for unforeseen reasons beyond the students control,male thing happens to said binder? The author even admits, teacher often loose student work....Are we as understanding when the other party is to blame? From a parent perspective, this is a real fear. I believe this type of assessment only works for everyone, if it's on a one to four or less ratio of scoring, with maybe overall binder incentives, rather then the other way around.

To know for sure, exactly what I'd do in any of these scenarios, I'd really have to experiment using the strategies listed, in some form, to get a feel for what works in my own classroom community. I imagine that getting to know my individual learners,mother needs, and styles of learning would be a helpful guide too. While I cafe very much about combating the lack of time, and giving myself enough to plan dynamic and engaging lesson plans, I also want to be sure that my students know that I'm matching their efforts and care about the work they've taken the time and energy to turn in to me, so that's it can be met with the appropriate amount enthusiasm, encouragement, constructive, and timely feedback, to keep them motivated, and feel invested. I agree with the author, that increasing more opportunities for self assessment, peer assessment, and personal accountability, does invest students further, and set a rigorous, consistently high standard, however, I feel that we must consciously strive towards modeling these tasks ourselves, as often as possible, striking whatever balance we can as we go along.

Source
Tackling The Grading Dilemma. (2010) Edutopia. By Rebecca Alber. Retrieved October 24, 2914, from http://www.edutopia.org/grading-dilemma-strategies-tactics

High Expectations & Providing Intervention

Having high expectations for your classroom learners, is a fine goal, however, you must be able to communicate those high expectations to your students, in order to see actual results. "Teachers and students may begin the year with excitement and high expectations for a great academic year, but somewhere along the line some kids fall behind and others seem to never achieve. The teacher must have good communication skills if she is going to help the students have a successful start of the year and stay on the right track. Procedures for communicating high expectations for elementary school students help more kids achieve their goals." (Hanly, 2014)

Some of the procedures a teacher might use are:

• Clear Communication All expectations should be shown, demonstrated or modeled, and listed clearly.
• Children & Families Get parents involved from the start! Handouts, emails, and other communications should regularly be used to indicate clear expectations, reinforce those e pec tattoos, and note progress with constructive feedback, as it is happening.
• Offer Praise Praise is a powerful motivator. It can (when used appropriately, and is both specific and genuine), improve student behavior, and inform students at the same time (in a less obvious way) of the teachers' expectations.
• Respect & Support Language used by teacher should be carefully self-monitored, so as not to distance students who feel less confident in their abilities or may be struggling. At the same time as acknowledging the difficulty of the work however, a teacher should express faith in students' capability to meet expectations with perseverance and effort, and find ways to help them in that process by providing frequent assessment/constructive feedback, such as with RTI.

According to the RTI Action Network online, "Response to Intervention or RTI, is a multi-tiered approach to helping struggling learners, in which high quality instruction and universal screening of children, both occur in the same general education classroom." (RTI Action Network, 2011) Author Ben Johnson, in his 2012 article called Olympic Gold in the Classroom: RTI, from Edutopia online, provided the analogy of weak swimmer who, if left by himself, might sink. However, with an attentive coach providing additional training and practice, the student can be retested to show improvement and be able to swim on their own. If not enough progress has been made after this assistance, the coach can further provide extra conditioning, strength building, and personal coaching etc. and repeat. If none of the coaches' efforts have enabled the swimmer to work towards independence, the coach may have to defer to medical staff or other professionals regarding a deeper issue. In any case, the author suggests that "the key to successful RTI, is quick turn-around between noticing the problem, intervening, and testing the effect of the intervention." This assertion organically flows back into my initial premise: having and communicating higher expectations to students. To achieve this lofty goal successfully, teachers must use strategic measures to make known what the expectations are, and reinforce those expectations with assessment and support.

Sources/Resources

How to Communicate High Expectations for Elementary Students. (2014) Global Post. By Samantha Hanly of Demand Media. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/communicate-high-expectations-elementary-students-3650.html

Response to Intervention: A Tiered Approach to Instructing All Students. (2008) YouTube. By AtlasInitiative. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://youtu.be/nkK1bT8ls0M

What Is RTI? (2011) RTI Action Network. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/what 

Olympic Gold in The Classroom: RTI. (2012) Edutopia. By Ben Johnson. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/intervention-rti-benefits-ben-johnson

How to Implement Response to Intervention at the Secondary Level. (2011) Edutopia. by PJ Caposey. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/response-to-intervention-secondary-school-philip-caposey

Response to Intervention: A Primer for Parents. (2007) National Association of a school Psychologists. By Mary Beth Klotz and Andrea Canter. Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.nasponline.org/resources/handouts/revisedPDFs/rtiprimer.pdf