I have mixed feelings when it comes to teacher evaluations. On one hand, it is necessary to evaluate a teacher's performance to make sure that they are doing their job thoroughly. On the other hand however, I wonder if teaching can really be measured with numbers and statistics. In my opinion teaching is both a form of an art and a science. A teacher needs to be able to build a relationship with their students and have the passion to inspire and teach the children, while also being able to apply and follow different sets of principles and rules.
In this article, http://stateimpact.npr.org/ohio/2013/06/16/grading-the-teachers-how-ohio-is-measuring-teacher-quality-by-the-value-added-numbers/, a teacher named Maria Plecnick was very dedicated to teaching and loved her job. She thought her students were doing an exceptional job with their grades, but when it came time for evaluation, she received the lowest rating of "least effective." After receiving such terrible news, she now plans to leave the teaching profession.
I couldn't help but think that this could happen to me or any one of us when we enter this career. That we could all love our job and have bright, intelligent students in our class but somehow still manage to score very poorly on our evaluations. It's sad to think about the consequences we might have to face when our expectations are higher than the outcome.
Teacher evalations are hard. Often teachers feel victimized and singled out by these, but the evaluations must be done so that we know teachers are fulfilling their responsibilities. I think that evaluations should be done more often and thoroughly so that teachers are more familiar with them and the evaluations aren't so scary
ReplyDeleteFelicia I see what you are saying. That is hard especially for a teacher who feels that she is doing such a good job and her students are learning so much. Then to be told you are in the least effective category. Like Angela said it can make a teacher feel like you are judging just them. I know teacher evaluations need to be done but I think if a teacher does end up in the least effective category that seminars need to be set up in place to help the teacher learn techniques to becoming a better teacher.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I am a little confused on what to believe. There are benefits and drawbacks to both sides. I think in the end though if evaluations are going to better a school system then I am all for it.
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