Teacher Evaluation

How should schools measure a teacher’s (or a team of teachers’) job performance? How should job performance affect compensation, promotion, or other rewards and sanctions for teachers? How should schools provide performance feedback to teachers? Should teachers be evaluated individually or as teams? Answers to these questions span a variety of policies and management practices often grouped together as teacher evaluation.

The goal of evaluation policies and programs is to improve the quality of teaching in schools. There are large differences between teachers in how successful they are at promoting student achievement and development. Measuring each teacher’s performance is the first but not the only step. Evaluation results inform performance feedback, rewards and sanctions, selection decisions, and investments in skill development.