Teacher Evaluation as a Growth Process

It is important to recognize the teacher evaluation process as just that, a—process. Therefore, this is not a how to book, with a step by step list of how to best implement the teacher evaluation system in your school. This is true for two reasons. The first is that an organization must be measuring the behaviors and actions that they value. The second is that the process must remain a process. True growth and improvement happen when the organization is fostering and supporting individual growth of employees based on collected evaluation data. As a lifelong educator, I believe that it is within all of us to want to do well. While this statement is subjective, we must remember that the desire to improve, especially among those working in service professions such as teaching, is fundamental. Employees who feel that their input and service is valued are more likely to strive for improvement of performance. As educational leaders, we must ensure that feedback is meaningful, not only for individual employee improvement, but for the success of our schools as a whole. Are we analyzing trend evaluation data to drive professional development? Are we analyzing evaluator data to ensure that they are consistently providing appropriate feedback? When these criteria are met, we increase our chances of providing meaningful, intrinsic feedback for teachers and ultimately improving schools for our students. The beginning of many educators'’ careers saw little consistency in the teacher evaluation process (Andrews, 2016, Powerpoint slide 3). Often times evaluation day would look something like this: an administrator (likely the principal) would tell a beginning teacher that they would stop by for an observation sometime that week. The teacher would then prepare many visuals and engaging activities for the upcoming lesson, so the students would be responsive and involved. After a showboat lesson, the administrator would leave a post-it note on the teacher's desk saying something like, "Enjoyed the lesson, keep up the good work!". The administrator would then complete a checklist for the teacher, place a copy in their mailbox, and the teacher would sign and return it. This would likely be the last interaction concerning evaluation for the year. While my colleagues and I agreed that the positive reinforcement that stemmed from a summary of a job well done was pleasant, true constructive feedback was limited. In the 1990’s and early 2000’s, evaluations were only truly utilized and monitored for teacher dismissal. In addition, there was a “lack of urgency” (Andrews, 2016, Powerpoint slide 5) when analyzing teacher and administrator evaluations, as schools and legislators concentrated on implementing school improvement initiatives that focused solely on instructional practices and student achievement scores. Why then, is it important to change the way we evaluate? More importantly, why is it essential to change the conversation around teacher evaluation? Perhaps the below quote states it best: “I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better.” ― Maya Angelou (Goodreads, 2019). Legislative mandates are beginning to force the hand of administrators to adjust evaluation practices in their schools due to increased reporting components. Administrators can no longer skip evaluations for years at a time, nor count the post-it note mentioned above as constructive feedback. Administrators are now being asked to report teacher evaluation data as a summative number to their state agencies for the first time in their careers. Of greater significance, we have an obligation to those in our employee to apply best practices when applicable. Palestini writes “"A subordinate depends on his or her superiors for assistance in accomplishing a task and identifying obstacles to achieving a work goal."” (Palestini, 2011). Beginning and veteran teachers alike can benefit from constructive feedback. The magnitude of the effects for giving constructive feedback to our subordinates are innumerable, but below are a few common uses. An analysis of teacher evaluation data could be utilized not only to provide effective and timely feedback to teachers, but possesses the potential for professional growth in other areas as well. Trend data gathered from teacher evaluation can be utilized to drive professional development at both the state and local levels, as strengths and weaknesses of practicing educators are identified within the evaluation domains. Further, those domains identified for improvement could provide useful programming guidance for institutions of higher education. Once the most challenging areas for teachers are identified, they can become the nucleus of educator preparation programming. Ultimately, this level of support in professional development and educator preparation programs could positively impact teacher retention during an era that is seeing a shortage of young people entering the education profession. Analysis of quantitative teacher evaluation data could be used to drive conversations on teacher strengths and weaknesses, provide professional development specific to the needs of individual teachers, and impact educator preparation programming. The highly effective administrator is always participating in reflective practice, evaluating what went particularly well during the school year, and analyzing how to improve what did not go as well as planned. The teacher evaluation process is no different. In fact, providing effective feedback that contributes to individual employee growth takes time and effort on the part of school leaders. Therefore, we want to make sure that feedback is consistent, timely, and embedded into the culture of our schools, and not just a brief summary on an annual performance review.