N.Y. Justice Cynthia Kern: 12,000 Teacher Evaluations Can Be Released

NEW YORK — A judge has ruled that New York City's Department of Education can release performance ratings for 12,000 teachers.

Justice Cynthia Kern of Manhattan state Supreme Court issued the ruling Monday. She says releasing the ratings with the teachers' names attached would not be arbitrary or capricious under the law.

The judge denied a petition by the United Federation of Teachers to keep the teachers' names private.

A lawyer for the union argued last month that releasing the data would unfairly subject teachers to public ridicule. The union said it would appeal the decision.

The teacher ratings are based on how well students performed on standardized tests. Five media organizations filed Freedom of Information Law requests for them.

Comments

[javadrinker]

03:02 PM on 01/13/2011

Michelle Rhee is my hero! (studentsfirst.org). No tenure for teachers! We need to keep the good teachers during any upcoming layoffs.

[anpu]

11:12 PM on 01/12/2011

Arguing about teacher evaluations misses the overall point. Are student performances across the nation directly related to teacher performance? Are there other factors that have a stronger relation to student performance than teacher evaluations? Do teacher evaluations reflect teacher quality or student performance? Can one be a good teacher and students score low on standardized tests? Can we be a "bad" teacher and student scores on standardized tests increase? Are administrators qualified to be evaluators? How are teachers evaluated? Are the evaluators using the same criteria from school to school and from district to district? Quality control is important.

I think credential programs certifying teachers should be evaluated for curriculum validity and reliability as it pertains to the current educational issues. If a first and second year teacher has a poor evaluation, does that reflect the teacher, the credentialing program, the school site support system, or the district support system?

The argument over whether to release or not to release the evaluations is pointless. Public institutions should release public documents. We have a right to them. My concern is that the dialogue concerning public education and teachers is slanted and disingenuous. It has absolutely nothing to do with the quality of education and has everything to do with controlling the union.

[onrecess]

05:43 PM on 01/12/2011

Before you clamor about how just and great this is, consider this:
Crime has dropped steadily for years, right? Police are doing a better job, right? Actually, anyone with an ounce of common sense knows this is bull. Why is crime "down" statistically but not actually? Police and govt have learned to game the system. Crime goes under-reported or serious crime recorded as lessor crimes after plea bargaining. Every accountability measurement on the immeasurable only has the effect of an artificial gain and actual loss as time is wasted in gaming it. Why did Texas schools improve dramatically under Bush Jr? Falsification. Why do school systems improve under NCLB? Less is taught. It is just like private "prep" school. They teach SAT testing. Their grads do great on the test and yet fair much worse in college. Why? Instead of a broad knowledge base they are taught gaming a test. Ask ANY (honest) teacher and they admit kids are learning less while scores steadily climb. All to encourage vouchers and charter schools. Ever wonder why charter schools, which perform no better and often much worse than public schools and have fostered huge rip-offs of public money, are touted as the cure all? Because of the chance to profit off of public school funds. Billions, waiting to be plucked from your pocket.

[anpu]

10:38 PM on 01/12/2011

They never like to speak about the issues you have raised. The business model has taken hold of education which allows for the shell game to be played! As an educator it is disheartening to see!

[kansasmagic]

08:49 AM on 01/13/2011

I think you got it right - it's an effect of "the business model." The problem is not evaluation per se, but evaluation based only or primarily on a single measure: that is, standardized test scores. It's a "bottom line" thinking that regards students only as so many data points. http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-Differences/2010/10/dear_deborah_you_asked_what.html

[cmbaba]

01:52 PM on 01/11/2011

We should devise a standardized testing system for media outlets - all employees are tested and results are compared to media outlets across the country and posted, with names, on all media outlets.

[sdmcmla]

02:02 PM on 01/11/2011

Because people who work for "media outlets" are paid out of the public treasury?  Because thir jobs are so critical to shaping the futures of the minors they are supposed to serve? 

[cmbaba]

03:36 PM on 01/11/2011

You are missing the point. It's not about not assessing - it's about appropriate, ethical assessment that best serves the human beings in the system.

[novabird]

02:04 PM on 01/11/2011

Evaluation and assessment is a good thing. Standardized tests are not. :)

[OP3366]

01:21 AM on 01/12/2011

The problem is with the way teachers are currently evaluated -- akin, in some ways, to standardized testing. Place a cross section of teachers in a variety of neighborhoods, classes and grades. Then move them every two years. It would be interesting to see how many of the teachers with the so-called high ratings maintain those numbers. And whether those teachers who are adept at making "breakthroughs" with students; or who are required to work with new technology and teaching modalities, but have a tougher roard to travel, are fairly and adequately credited for success that is less measurable by a statistic.

[kansasmagic]

08:53 AM on 01/13/2011

And when evaluation is *based* on standardized tests? That's the issue here.

[KIVPossum]

10:05 AM on 01/11/2011

While there are many reasons to rate and evaluate teachers, this sounds like a very subjective way to go about it. Every teacher doesn't have the same class to work with. Needs to be some way to bring the other factors into play - ability of the child, parental involvement, etc.

[sdmcmla]

10:13 AM on 01/11/2011

The "value added" method tests how much a child learned in a particular year with a particular teacher.  There are quibbles with the aspects of the method, but, basically, that's what it does.  The object of the VA method is to eliminate some of the discrepancies in teacher evaluations caused by things like ability of the child, parent involvement, etc.  The methond is not perfect, yet (what is?) but it is getting at the right issues and will get better over time as there is more data for more years and more teachers.

[KIVPossum]

10:40 AM on 01/11/2011

Thanks for the info...

Fan 400 to round you out.

[kansasmagic]

12:31 PM on 01/11/2011

Value added assessment does not simply test "how much a child learned in a particular year with a particular teacher" - the same could be said for any assessment. (Otherwise, what is the point?)

VAA uses statistical models to *project* student performance and determines "effectiveness" by comparing actual performance to projected performance. It does not simply compare current to past performance, or end of year to beginning of year. (http://www.cgp.upenn.edu/ope_value.html#2)

To say there are "quibbles" with the method is an understatement. There are major issues. One is the method of modeling. For most parents (and administrators, and politicians), the model is a "black box." Who determines what factors are included in the model, and why? How is the model constructed? In what ways is it valid?

Modelers "assume that the curriculum in higher grades is nothing more than a harder version of that in the previous grade; in other words, 8th grade math is the same as 7th grade math, just more difficult." (http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/nov05/vol63/num03/Challenges_of_Value-Added_Assessment.aspx).

Releasing the scores before major issues with the modeling have been resolved is misleading and irresponsible.

[EmmaNYC]

09:51 AM on 01/11/2011

When do we get to see the value added model for parents? We can use data regarding proper nutrition, school attendance, behavior and discipline, appropriate home environment, parents' education and career success, emotional health, financial stability, etc., and then publish the names of parents in a ranked listing in the newspapers. Think of how society would benefit from learning who the really bad parents are. The failing parents, on the bottom of the list, could be sterilized and prevented from bringing more poorly brought-up children into the world. For the parents who just rated poorly, we could put them on probation and threaten to take their children away to be raised by parents who scored highly. Of course, if the data was faulty, or the algorithm skewed, there might be some mistakes, but so what? The government shouldn't be allowed to hide bad parenting from the public. We have to live with the results of bad parenting and our tax money pays for their mistakes. We have a right to know! The miscreants should be outed and punished!

[Ghoulish]

10:08 AM on 01/11/2011

Love it! LOL

[sdmcmla]

10:18 AM on 01/11/2011

BFD.  We know there are bad parents.  It's almost by definition that failing students have failing parents.  So what.  The children of bad parents are entitled to the same good education as the children of great parents.  That's what public education is supposed to provide and what professional teachers are supposed to be able to do.  Teachers who only want to teach the children of stellar parents need to find another job, maybe in a private school, or somewhere in Japan, maybe. 
 
Or, maybe the teachers unions need to just come right out as say that teachers believe that children of poor parents can't learn, no matter how good the teacher.  At least then we'll know where we all stand on the issue and we can start to rething who is entitled to a good education in America.

[EmmaNYC]

10:53 AM on 01/11/2011

>

So what??? Parents have the most significant effect on their child's education. Children who come to school without breakfast, with little sleep, without having their homework checked, shortly after a major argument in the home, etc., clearly have difficulty learning. The best teacher in the world cannot compete with parents' failure to send their kids to school learning-ready - but they do their best to try everyday.

And what do teachers' unions have to do with this? They merely safeguard the rights and working conditions of teachers against people like you.

[cmbaba]

02:08 PM on 01/11/2011

Now you've outed yourself - "teachers unions need to just come right out and say that teachers believe that children of poor parents can't learn..." I'm part of a teacher's union, I don't believe what you've written, I teach all of my students to the best of my ability regardless of their backgrounds AND I understand that I work in a flawed system that needs help. You've set up a false dichotomy in your argument, one that propagates yet more misinformation about public education in this country.

[Eagleman]

08:48 AM on 01/11/2011

It is about time...we get to see the report

We can weed out some of the bums who hide under the teacher's union bunkers

However I am also not sure how objective this ratings were..

[EmmaNYC]

09:35 AM on 01/11/2011

But obviously that doesn't matter to you. Just fire some people, any people. Wrong names, wrong classes, wrong kids, so what. It doesn't matter that the data is faulty and that innocent people will be shamed and hurt - just get rid of some of the people. That'll make you feel better about yourself.

[cmbaba]

02:11 PM on 01/11/2011

See this report for a research study of value added: http://www.annenberginstitute.org/products/research.php. You can read the whole report of the summary.

[greasefire11]

06:50 AM on 01/11/2011

As a teacher I'm okay with this, but I think it needs to be tweaked a bit.
Next to my name, the following information should also be published:
1. Average class IQ
2. Attendance rate
3. % free/reduced lunch
Then we can start to draw some conclusions. Still weak and under-informed conclusions, but that's what the media wants.

[novabird]

09:04 AM on 01/11/2011

I suggest adding socioeconomic background to the list. It is a well established fact that kids from poor and disadvantaged backgrounds have the odds stacked against them when they enter school. Kids from stable, wealthy homes benefit from considerable unearned privilege.

[sdmcmla]

10:23 AM on 01/11/2011

I'll give you IQ, but that is already factored into "value added" testing because cildren are measured against themselves and their own past results.  But, why does percent free/reduced lunch get you a pass?  There are lots of poor kids who do very well in school.  There are 90/90/90 schools.  And attendance rate could be based inpart on the teacher's ability.  If you can't even inspire a child to come to class, then you may not be all that.  The fact is that, for the most part,  the students of the best teachers want to come to school and learn.

[db08]

03:46 AM on 01/11/2011

As a parent, citizen and as a teacher, I am tired of the cliff notes version of addressing our problems with our school systems. It solves nothing and is a waste of taxpayer's money.

[dct1999]

01:27 AM on 01/11/2011

When do we get to rate the students' parents/guardians?

[novabird]

10:49 PM on 01/10/2011

Rating teachers on how well students perform on standardized tests is as utterly meaningless as the tests themselves. "Education" companies are making millions from these standardized tests which are doing nothing but hastening the dumbing down of the population. The fact that some people actually believe that teacher ratings based on standardized test scores give an accurate assessment of teacher quality is a testament to how much the general population will passively believe anything they are told.

[sdmcmla]

10:26 AM on 01/11/2011

Why test anyone then?  Just let all teachers assign grades without tests, since testing is meaningless.  Let's stop testing to see if the teacher, doctor, pilot or medical researcher knows their stuff, too.  After all, testing is meaningless and teachers have never been known to grade students based on favoritism or racism or anything shady like that.  Right?

[novabird]

02:03 PM on 01/11/2011

Please read my post again. I actually like tests and I think they are a valuable addition to any curriculum. I even believe there is a place for memorization in education.

My argument is with standardized tests. There is a considerable and growing literature suggesting that standardized tests are a wildly inaccurate assessment of academic achievement.

[eceresa]

06:15 PM on 01/11/2011

Teachers assign grades using tests, as well as other measures, knowing that tests don't tell the whole story. They also use tests that are given to the actual person being graded. I've never heard of a teacher giving a test to kid A and using that test score to figure kid B's grade, even though kid B might have some effect (though it would be impossible to know how much) on kid A's achievement.

[Farro]

10:34 PM on 01/10/2011

Now if only we could have teacher evaluations done by students--the ones who observe the teacher the most and the ultimate beneficiaries (or losers) of public education. THAT would be a real change.

[db08]

03:40 AM on 01/11/2011

You will actually find those type of evaluations online. Students voluntarily submit them. However, it is not as objective as you might like to think. If students like a teacher, good ratings. If they are p!ssed off, poor ratings. Does this measure teaching ability? Hardly. It measures how students feel that day.

[Farro]

07:42 AM on 01/11/2011

Do not make the claim that those two are equivalent. *Of course* ratemyteacher ratings will not be objective in that format since they are voluntary and online (although interestingly enough, the ones for my school were by and large accurate, at least for the teachers I had).

Because they are voluntary, only students with strong feelings write them, and because they don't matter in the end, students don't care how accurate their writings are. Do not make the kneejerk reaction (that a lot of people make) that I want anything like that. I'm thinking mandatory evaluations at the end of the semester, which are anonymous and in a form which is worded such as to avoid grading teachers on, say, easiness--the way they are done in colleges.

Also, such things as teachers disrespecting or being mean or abusive towards student should be counted as bad teaching. If you hate kids, don't teach (I've seen many teachers like this). You aren't teaching well if you are hostile to your class (or even have a vendetta towards a particular student).

What I'm particularly upset about, though, is that this isn't even *discussed* in the context of school reform. Everything you hear is about *the parents*. I am sorry, but schools serve students first, teachers and administrators second, and parents and the community third.

Besides, a deadbeat parent shouldn't have to drag down a student with them.

[nyjjc]

09:51 PM on 01/10/2011

Interesting. Last I checked, New York state FOIL laws exempt personnel records. Either teacher reviews are not personnel records, or this is just another example of a judge legislating from the bench.

I'm thinking the latter, considering the case of the Daily Gazette Co. and Capital Newspapers [Times Union] v City of Schenectady, 93 NY2d 145.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/nyctap/I99_0050.htm

In the decision, the court clearly finds that personnel records are exempt from FOIL requests.

Bottom line, this case will be overturned.

[sdmcmla]

10:29 AM on 01/11/2011

Teachers are public servants.  Their scores are their job results and are as much public information as te success of a military unit.  Imagine if the public did not have the right to know how many NASA rockets went kaput on the launch pad because of some scientist's privacy. 

[nyjjc]

06:03 PM on 01/11/2011

Apparently you didn't bother reading the opinion of the court, nor their finding that personnel records are not subject to FOIL.

Interestingly enough, if you took the time to read the sub-section of NY State law the court refers to, it's pretty much in plain English that personnel records are not subject to FOIL requests.

Just because you may feel "entitled" to the information because you are a taxpayer, doesn't necessarily mean you in fact are entitled to it. And there is a big difference in a report from NASA saying they lost X number of rockets at the launch pad, as opposed to a performance evaluation of the scientist who designed them. One you are entitled to. One you are not - at least in New York, where this case is pending. While you are at it, why don't you FOIL every document on programs deemed top secret as well. Let me know how that works out for you. Being a taxpayer does not equate to being entitled to every piece of information the government holds.

[sue denim]

09:50 PM on 01/10/2011

The judge made the right decision. Parents and others should know who is an effective teacher and who is not. This is about transparency in government. But in typical teacher union fashion, they want to protect their members, even the worst performing members at all costs.

[Martha Infante]

01:10 AM on 01/11/2011

Unfortunately, if the New York media uses the same methodology as the L.A. Times, parents will still not know who is or is not an effective teacher. That's just the thing: the justification for this release of questionable data is to help parents, but you are being sold the idea that test scores are the way to measure teacher effectiveness.

A teacher can elicit high test scores in many ways: by eliminating untested subjects, taking all the creativity out of lessons to focus on rote memorization, bribery, or master teaching, just to name a few. The ratings, as released by the LA Times, did not indicate which method the teachers used. The reporters took the "value added" scores of each teacher, then made the determination themselves as to whether they were effective or ineffective based solely on the number.

While value-added measures may have a place in evaluating teachers once the method is refined (currently there is an up to 20% error rate in year to year scores), it is unwise to use test scores for a purpose other than for which they were developed. You should look up "corruption of scores" and "value added" for more detail.

[sdmcmla]

02:18 AM on 01/11/2011

What is an "untested subject"?  How does a LA teacher increase his "value added" score by "eliminating untested subjects"?  Can LA teachers pick which subjects on which to test their students?  Do LA teachers write the tests for their students and eliminate certain topics?  And why is bribery and lack of creativity a problem if students are learning the subject matter?  Just wondering.

[sdmcmla]

05:07 PM on 01/11/2011

MI, we test math and English because they are foundational and essential to academic acheivement in all areas.  We could test every subject, every year, but then the anti-test folks would really protest.
 
You can argue about narrowing of the curriculum, but the fact is that American Johnny can't read or do math, so it's no wonder that he doesn't know history or science and can't place his country's capital on the map.  You can teach science and music all you want, but if a child can't read or do math, he will fail later in school because admission to institutions of higher learning requires the ability to read test questions with fluency and comprehension.  So with all due respect, I'm thinking they need to narrow the curriculum even more, until Johnny can read and do math with confidence.  If we do that, the rest will follow.
 
As to what parents want, you may be right, but I'm thinking most parents are like me; they want their child to learn, and they want to see objectively that their child is on par with the best students the world over.  I don't think most parents care one bit what methods teachers use to accomplish learning, bribery, comedy, cajoling, even fear of the teacher's wrath (we all endured teacher wrath back in the old days when Johnny was not expected to have his lifetime development stunted by a raised voice or a bit of displeasure), so long as the methods are legal and fair. 
 
As a parent, I would love to be able to rely on teachers' professionalism and competence to know that my children are being taught well.  Unfortunately, until the system starts to weed out the teachers at the bottom of the barrel, I have to read articles about things like VAA, go to PTA meetings, go to any number of school committee meetings, and stay on top of goings on at my children's school to ensure that they don't get placed in the classroom of the loser teacher who sleeps in class, slurrs her speech, comes to school dressed like a bag lady, yet is still the highest paid teacher in the school (blind application of tenure and seniority in action).  Surely she's joking you say.  Well, I'm not.  Lazy, incompetent, borderline dangerous teachers are a fact of life in public schools across America, and everyone seems to know this except teachers.  So while some privileged parents of public school students in the tony areas can wring their hands, second guessing teachers' methodologies, and discussing the finer points of enrichment classes and keeping their little geniuses properly stimulated and engaged, those of us in the trenches of public Title I school education will continue to focus on making sure that our little Johnnys can read and do math.  We don't have time for anything else.

[coachleonard]

07:25 PM on 01/10/2011

While we're at it let's post Doctors won-lost records for all to see and eliminate all those who post a failing score. Of course, we won't take into the account the difference between an Emergency Trauma surgeon in NYC and and a Family Practitioner in Utica. Results are results and the numbers won't lie.

[OnlyIfIHaveTo]

07:50 PM on 01/10/2011

You already can via med review boards which show any malpractice claims, etc...

[sue denim]

09:50 PM on 01/10/2011

Thank you, I was going to say the same.

[sdmcmla]

02:20 AM on 01/11/2011

Yes, but there is no database of bad doctors and no method of tracking bad results.  There is a whole lot of medical stuff that can be really bad, yet not amount to something that will get a doctor sanctioned.