This lawsuit will be fascinating to watch. No doubt the teacher unions will squawk loudly. I have yet to hear a credible argument for NOT evaluating teachers based on the performance of their students. Not doing so is akin to NOT evaluating a mechanic based on how the car runs after he’s repaired it. It’s nonsense that, once again, traps children who are being taught by poor performing teachers. Not measuring a teacher’s impact on student achievement growth is malpractice. From the LA Times:
A group of parents and education advocates is preparing to sue the Los Angeles school district, demanding that it follow an arcane 40-year-old law that requires all California school systems to link teacher and principal evaluations to student performance.
The law, known as the Stull Act, was passed in 1971 with bipartisan support although neither school district officials nor teachers unions ever pushed to enforce all of its provisions, with their potential for conflict.
Now, with L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy locked in a stalemate with the teachers union over performance reviews, a prominent group of advocates believes it can force the issue with a lawsuit, which is expected to be filed Tuesday.
Although the lawsuit would be technically filed against L.A. Unified, its underlying target is the teachers union, which has fought efforts to make student test scores any part of evaluations. United Teachers Los Angeles leaders say tests scores are too unreliable and narrowly focused to use for high-stakes personnel decisions.
