Evaluating Teachers: Lessons From the EWA Seminar
Over the weekend, EWA hosted a one-day seminar at the University of Chicago on the subject of "Evaluating Teachers: Beyond the Rhetoric." I can tell you the sessions were engaging, thoughtful and thought-provoking. One of the reoccurring themes we heard from teachers (and their advocates) at the seminar was that they welcomed evaluations, if the intent was to actually help them improve at their work. What policymakers should be worried about is whether the evaluation models "improve instruction ... not just `did we rate them well,'" said Rob Weil, director of field programs in the educational issues department of the American Federation of Teachers. The idea that you can identify teachers who are falling short "and nature will take its course" and people will improve on their own "doesn't happen," Weil said. "You have to help." When teachers are presented with an evaluation system
