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| Gates Foundation Releases MET Preliminary Report |
| posted by: Alix | December 13, 2010, 05:00 PM |
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We hear a lot about accountability from education reformers these days. Unfortunately, numerous methods of how to measure teacher effectiveness are constantly challenged. While no system of evaluation is perfect, preliminary findings of a recent study by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have shown that the "value-added" system along with student surveys are the most reliable system for rating educators. The study is called Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) and is being conducted in school systems across the country. The $45 million project seeks to develop fair and reliable measures of effective teaching, focusing on finding what works and what doesn't when it comes to evaluating teachers. The study has shown through preliminary results that teachers' effectiveness can be reliably estimated by gauging their students' progress on standardized tests. The approach estimates a teacher's effectiveness by comparing their students' performance on standardized state tests to their performance in past years. Student surveys were also indicators according to the research. The study found that feedback from students as young as fourth grade, especially about a teacher's ability to manage a classroom and challenge students' learning, was useful in evaluating teachers. "In every grade and subject we studied, a teacher's past success in raising student achievement on state tests was one of the strongest predictors of his or her ability to do it again," said Vicki Phillips of the Gates Foundation. Although the findings are preliminary, the data is a shocking blow to union backlash against the value-added model. AAE membership has been historically supportive of using student test scores as part of a teacher's evaluation when a value-added model (also known as a growth model) is used. That position was reaffirmed this year in AAE's national member survey. Although some argue that student test scores should not determine a teacher's fate, the Foundation highlighted the reality of the situation, "The public discussion usually portrays only two options: the status quo (where there is no meaningful feedback for teachers) and a seemingly extreme world in which tests scores alone determine a teacher's fate. Our results suggest that's a false choice." The Gates Foundation argues that the value-added system should be the new "bench-mark" of teacher evaluation based on its reliability in their study. At a time when districts are struggling with budget short-falls and are looking for common sense reform ideas, this study will no doubt have an enormous impact in the coming years. A final report from the study, including results from video observations of classroom across the country, is due the winter of 2011-12. The full preliminary report can be found here. What do you think of the findings? Would you support a value-added system with student test scores and student surveys? Comment below.
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