NYSSAC RECOMMENDS INDEPENDENT EVALUATION OF STATE APPR SYSTEM
NYSSAC’s 23,000 members support the evaluation of principals and teachers in a manner that recognizes excellence, and depicts opportunities for improvement coupled with support and professional development. School administrators across the state report that the current APPR system, which was never piloted prior to implementation, is itself, is in need of improvement. On June 12, Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch reversed the department’s position in regard to APPR evaluations, by asserting that the first two years of the APPR system may be deemed “pilot years” – but nothing about the system has changed.
The laws, regulations and guidance applicable to the APPR system are voluminous and complex; and their collective provisions are time-consuming and expensive to implement. There is no system to document information regarding the successes, shortcomings or unintended negative effects of the current system which is designed to be “high stakes” in regard to its impact upon the careers and compensation of principals and teachers.
An independent study is necessary to examine factors such as the impact of the APPR system on school climate and culture, including principal-teacher relationships; the availability and consistency of Network Team support and APPR implementation region-to-region. The study should also have a quantitative dimension regarding the validity of the statistically-generated student exemplars developed for student-to-student performance comparisons, a depiction of state and local implementation costs, the extent to which the system results in the provision of targeted support and professional development to teachers and principals, and the system’s impact in improving student performance and college and career readiness.
NYSSAC recommends that an independent evaluation of New York State’s system of teacher and principal APPR evaluation be conducted by WestED in San Francisco, California. WestED has a well-established record demonstrating their capacity to compete such a customized study by using appropriate methods to produce accurate and reliable results in a transparent manner.
The laws, regulations and guidance applicable to the APPR system are voluminous and complex; and their collective provisions are time-consuming and expensive to implement. There is no system to document information regarding the successes, shortcomings or unintended negative effects of the current system which is designed to be “high stakes” in regard to its impact upon the careers and compensation of principals and teachers.
An independent study is necessary to examine factors such as the impact of the APPR system on school climate and culture, including principal-teacher relationships; the availability and consistency of Network Team support and APPR implementation region-to-region. The study should also have a quantitative dimension regarding the validity of the statistically-generated student exemplars developed for student-to-student performance comparisons, a depiction of state and local implementation costs, the extent to which the system results in the provision of targeted support and professional development to teachers and principals, and the system’s impact in improving student performance and college and career readiness.
NYSSAC recommends that an independent evaluation of New York State’s system of teacher and principal APPR evaluation be conducted by WestED in San Francisco, California. WestED has a well-established record demonstrating their capacity to compete such a customized study by using appropriate methods to produce accurate and reliable results in a transparent manner.