Seven different assessments that attempt to define and measure effective teaching practices are reviewed in a new working paper from the Consortium for Policy Research in Education.
The report outlines the core features of the systems, which include two teacher-licensing exams, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standard’s certification exam, and four sets of evaluation measures used to guide observations of teachers in the classrooms.
It measures the extent to which the assessments cover eight teacher competencies regarded as likely to boost student achievement. They are: Attention to student standards, use of formative assessments, differentiation of instruction, engaging students, using techniques to develop higher-order thinking skills, content and pedagogical content knowledge, the development of personalized relationships with students, and the setting of high expectations.
Such competencies, the report states, should be at the core of districts’ strategies for recruitment, selection, induction, mentoring, professional development, performance management, and teacher compensation.
The report was written by Anthony T. Milanowski, Herbert G. Heneman III, and Steven M. Kimball, three University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers associated with the consortiums Strategic Management of Human Capital initiative.
