Teacher evaluation task force nearing end of first phase
National education expert Charlotte Danielson was in Russellville last week to consult with the Teacher Evaluation Task Force as they continued development of a common evaluation instrument for teachers. The work of this task force, which began in the summer of 2009, is also being incorporated into the state’s Race to the Top application, which was submitted to the U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday.
“This is an example of Arkansas already taking a progressive approach to strengthening its work force of educators because we were working on this issue well before guidance for Race to the Top was announced,” said Beverly Williams, ADE’s assistant commissioner for human recourses and licensure. “In fact, we were in conversation with Charlotte Danielson about leading this effort before President Obama was even in office.”
The goals set forth by the federal government and by the state are the same, Williams said: a strong evaluation system to ensure Arkansas classrooms are staffed with quality teachers. “This instrument will ensure that administrators have evidence to support their evaluations of teachers, reducing the amount of subjectivity that is sometimes present in the process,” Williams said.
An added advantage to having the same instrument used throughout the state is that as teachers and superintendents change districts, they are already aware of what the standards are and what is expected from day one in their new districts.
Task force members talked Thursday morning about the importance of intensive training at the district level as schools begin to use the evaluation instrument.
More information about the task force’s work is available at ArkansasEd.org. This site will be updated as developments occur.
Posted by JJT.
