Grading Teachers on Test Scores: NY's Eval System on Hold

The teacher evaluation system that was supposed to be implemented throughout New York’s public school districts won’t be, this year.

According to northcountypublicradio.com, fully 90 percent of the state’s more than 700 school districts have been granted waivers so they can delay implementation of the system, which became law in the spring.

Among the many local school districts requesting and receiving the waiver are Lakeland, Ossining, Pearl River, Peekskill, Scarsdale and Yorktown.

“The waiver extension allows districts and their respective associations additional time to formulate a plan relative to teacher and administrator evaluations,” said Peekskill Superintendent Dr. David Fine. “This is a vital component and should be mindfully coordinated as it relates to instructional expectations and student success. Our waiver was approved a few weeks back and we continue to collaborate with our teachers and administrators in order to design an appropriate APPR plan for all stakeholders. In addition, as a region we are consistently working together with respect to best approaches and defining various directions from the state so as our focus remains on our practice, pedagogy, and students.”

The new teacher evaluation system was a top legislative priority last spring for Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The system requires teacher evaluations to be 50 percent based on the scores their students receive on New York’s state tests. That’s those controversial tests based on the Common Core standards that were skipped by one in five students this spring.

Another controversial part of the teacher evaluation system is the requirement that one evaluation of each teacher’s performance be made by an “independent” observer outside of that school. District officials have wondered if they’re supposed to pay someone or shunt administrators from building to building, according to Carol Burris, an award-winning principal (retired) who has written scathing commentaries on New York’s teacher eval plan -- here’s one that dissects data about teachers in Westchester -- and other aspects of the Common Core.

As details of the success this spring of the civil disobedience movement called “Opt-Out” surfaced, Cuomo backpedaled in part, calling the implementation of the Common Core standards “deeply flawed.”

RELATED:

• NY Education Officials Launch Online Survey on Common Core
• State Test Scores Released; 20% of Students Opted Out This Spring
• Cuomo Launches Task Force to Mend “Deeply Flawed” Common Core in NY