Student Growth for Educator Evaluation
Legislation requires that 25 percent of teacher and administrator evaluations be based on "student growth and assessment data” during the 2018-2019 school year, with half of the growth component of evaluations comprised of state assessment data for tested grades and subjects. Beginning in 2019-2020, the law will require that 40 percent of teacher and administrator evaluations be based on "student growth and assessment data”. Schools, districts, ISDs, and PSAs using educator evaluation as a continual improvement process are encouraged to define student growth and assessment data as the academic performance of a student or group of students over two or more time points (Castellano and Ho, 2013). Below, you will find resources that will help you as you determine the best way to use state and local data in evaluations that are fair to educators and most likely to lead to improved teacher performance.
Approaches to Measuring State Assessment Student Growth
- Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs)
Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs) represent one powerful way to quantify the learning of individual students over one or more years. Conceptually, SGPs communicate the degree to which a student has learned in a particular domain, compared to a group of academic peers who had a comparable score on the previous test (or multiple previous tests) in that subject.
- EVAAS Value Added Model
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has contracted SAS to provide value-added reports to provide efficient access of effective student growth data for use within educator evaluations. EVAAS reports are not intended to replace reporting tools provided by the state such as MI School Data and Secure Site Dynamic Score Reports, but rather supplement these reports to provide a clear picture of academic growth and achievement.
Approaches to Measuring LEA Assessment Student Growth
- Student Learning Objectives (SLOs)
Student Learning Objectives (SLOs) are measurable, long-term, academic goals, informed by available data that a teacher or teacher team sets at the beginning of the year for all students.
Additional Resources
- SGPs and EVAAS: Key Characteristics and Frequently Asked Questions
This document is intended to outline the similarities and differences of SGPs and EVAAS in an effort to help better inform district choice.
- Student Growth Score Exclusion Guidance
This document is intended to provide guidance to Michigan educators for the exemption of student growth data within educator evaluations consistent with (380.1249(2)(i)).
- 2019 Teacher and Principal Evaluation Policy: Measures of Student Growth
The National Council on Teacher Quality report on student growth within educator evaluation across all 50 states.
- Measuring Teachers' Contributions to Student Learning Growth for Non-tested Grades and Subjects
This Research & Policy Brief provides information about options for states to explore as well as factors to consider when identifying and implementing measures. The brief emphasizes the importance of fairly measuring all teachers, including them in the evaluation process, and ensuring validity in measurement.
- Michigan Department of Education Student Growth Workshops
The Student Growth Workshops are designed for district teams of central office administrators, building administrators, and teacher leaders to collaboratively develop district plans for measuring student growth for educator evaluations. Video recordings of three day-long workshop sessions providing specific guidance and structured activities are now available.