Teacher Evaluation | News

Louisiana District Implements Teacher Evaluations Based on Framework for Teaching

• By Leila Meyer
• 05/05/14

Calcasieu Parish School System (CPSS) in Lake Charles, LA plans to implement a teacher evaluation and professional development support program based on Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching (FFT) at 21 high-need schools.

The goal of the program is to improve student achievement by conducting regular teacher evaluations and providing teachers with personalized professional development based on those evaluations. To help ensure that the evaluations are fair and reliable, the district will train 70 administrators on the FFT, which is an instrument that "identifies those aspects of a teacher's responsibilities that have been documented through empirical studies and theoretical research as promoting improved student learning," according to a framework document.

Administrators will use the Teachscape Focus observation training and assessment system to conduct the evaluations, and the teachers will use the Teachscape Learn professional learning system to access personalized professional development resources. Both Teachscape products are based on the FFT. According to the company, Teachscape Focus helps administrators "conduct accurate, consistent observations and maintain their accuracy over time" and helps teachers prepare for "observations, professional conversations and reflective practice."  Teachscape Learn includes video libraries, video capture tools, online communities and a learning management system.

"Evaluations are critical to improving teaching outcomes, and ultimately the achievement of our students," said Lauren Beckham, project coordinator for The Progress Project, in a prepared statement. "To make sure the evaluation process is both fair and effective, we have to ensure that observers are seeing teaching practice through a common lens using the FFT and then using the instructional data collected to personalize the professional learning process for teachers."

The district will use Teachscape as part of its Compass evaluation system, the state's educator support and evaluation system, which "is designed to provide all educators with regular, meaningful feedback on their performance and aligned supports to foster continuous improvement," according to the Louisiana Department of Education's site.