The New Teacher Project looks at HR policies and practices in the Chicago Public Schools. Lots of this will be familiar to folks who read their 2005 Unintended Consequences Report. But their analysis of Chicago’s teacher transfer program–in which current teachers who have been laid off or want to transfer schools compete for positions in the same pool with potential new hires, and principals can pick the best fit from the entire pool–is worth checking out, as is their harsh review of Chicago’s teacher evaluation system. I’m generally frustrated when I hear about teacher evaluation systems–they often sound like meaningless bureaucratic exercises and are frequently cast in a punitive or adversarial light, rather than as a constructive way to help workers know how they’re doing and get better. And school reform types don’t help when they cast the issue as one of “how well do these systems help us get rid of low-performing teachers.” It doesn’t have to be this way, though. Paging Brad Jupp.…
–Guestblogger Sara Mead