The trouble with VAM or teacher evaluations tied to student test scores: Unintended consequences Did teachers report any effects of VAAS that were not advertised? Yes, they did. There was a disincentive to teach certain students. ELL students in a transition year and gifted students with their ceiling effect were both unloved. Given the choice, some teachers reported they would choose not to teach those students. Teacher mobility-- moving from one grade level to another-- was also a casualty of the VAAS model, particularly in those schools that use looping (staying with one group of students for two or more years). Gaming the system and teaching to the test. Angling for the best students (or having the worst packed into your classroom by an unfriendly principal) seem common. And, of course, as we all already know, the best way to get good test results is to drop all that other teaching and just teach to the test. Numerous teachers reflected on their own questionable practices. As one English teacher said, “When I figured out how to teach to the test, the scores went up.” A fifth grade teacher added, “Anything based on a test can be ‘tricked.’ EVAAS leaves room for me to teach to the test and appear successful.” Distrust, competition and low morale also rose in these schools, where VAAS is linked to a merit system. Why share a good teaching technique if its only going to hurt your own ranking? It is bad news for you if the teachers who are the feeders for your classroom do well-- their failure is the foundation of your own success. All of this is predictably bad for morale, and Collinss research supports that. The incentive program is not an incentive. For something to be an incentive, you need to know what you have to do to get the incentive. All we know is that as a teacher you have to improve your scores more than the other teachers. You can make improvements each year, but if other teachers improve the same amount, you have made no gains according to the system. It is a constantly moving target. You dont know what you need to do to get the prize until after the contest is over.
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 13:27:40 +0000