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Thursday, January 31, 2013

Shanker Blog » Living In The Tails Of The Rhetorical And Teacher Quality Distributions

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Living In The Tails Of The Rhetorical And Teacher Quality Distributions

A few weeks ago, Students First NY (SFNY) released a report, in which they presented a very simple analysis of the distribution of “unsatisfactory” teacher evaluation ratings (“U-ratings”) across New York City schools in the 2011-12 school year.
The report finds that U-ratings are distributed unequally. In particular, they are more common in schools with higher poverty, more minorities, and lower proficiency rates. Thus, the authors conclude, the students who are most in need of help are getting the worst teachers.
There is good reason to believe that schools serving larger proportions of disadvantaged students have a tougher