Trends in Teacher Evaluation: How state are measuring teacher performance

This guide from the National School Boards Association and the Center for Public Education offers a wealth of information on teacher evaluation policies in every state, which have changed dramatically in many states. Incentives provided by No Child Left Behind waivers and the federal Race to the Top competition are among the biggest drivers.

Curious which states allow evaluations to be used in determining whether a teacher can renew his or her license? Check page 27: A dozen states permit that, including Florida, Illinois, North Carolina and Ohio. Which states allow evaluation data to be made public? That’s in the report, too; Arizona, for instance, allows release under open record laws but Louisiana permits release only with the teacher’s consent.

The report even dives into the statistical models used to evaluate teachers’ effect on student achievement, with a map showing which states use which methods. Linking teacher evaluations to student performance is a particularly large shift, one many states are struggling with. But even the way teachers are observed has changed dramatically, the report says.