Teacher Evaluation Plan Gets Mixed Reviews in First Public Forum
Educators raise questions, concerns about heavy emphasis on student test scores
By John Mooney, March 14, 2013 in Education |Post a Comment
The Christie administration took its new teacher-evaluation system on the road yesterday — and the maiden trip left few doubts there are going to be some bumps along the way.
State Department of Education staffers held the first of a half-dozen public presentations on the new system, this one at Toms River High School North.
Held at the end of the school day, it drew more than 200 people, many of them educators who will be judged under the new system. Many were from the Monmouth and Ocean counties, although some traveled from as far away as Ridgewood and Westfield.
Most of the two-hour session was a tutorial on the detailed process, unveiled last week, that will rate every teacher and principal based on a mix of measures — including student performance – starting next year.
There were few objections voiced when the new regulations were initially presented to the State Board of Education. But questions and comments from the audience yesterday indicated the plans may get a tougher reaction as they are presented around the state.
At the end of yesterday’s session, there were still plenty of people in the audience with questions, including local union leaders whose members will soon face the new rating system.