LAUSD Ruling Clear on the Law, Won’t Shake Up the State
One week ago, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Chalfant issued a ruling on the use of student test scores in teacher evaluations. Reformers are crowing, unions are complaining, and most of the state’s teachers and students, heading off to summer break, are not yet aware of the ruling and the changes it might bring. For a good overview of the case and the ruling, and some interesting exchanges of comments on the ruling, see John Fensterwarld’s post in Thoughts on Public Education.
What does the judge’s ruling mean for the future of teacher evaluation? It appears to me to a rather narrow but clear ruling that will compel districts and unions to comply with California’s teacher evaluation law, widely known as the Stull Act, and in reading the judge’s summary and analysis, it’s hard for me to see any other logical outcome to this case. Districts and unions simply have not been complying with state Education Code Section 44662:
What does the judge’s ruling mean for the future of teacher evaluation? It appears to me to a rather narrow but clear ruling that will compel districts and unions to comply with California’s teacher evaluation law, widely known as the Stull Act, and in reading the judge’s summary and analysis, it’s hard for me to see any other logical outcome to this case. Districts and unions simply have not been complying with state Education Code Section 44662:(a) The governing board of each school district shall establish standards of expected pupil