The state of Washington is expected to lose flexibility over how to use $40 million in federal funds because it did not meet federal demands to include student performance on statewide standardized tests in teacher evaluations. The Washington Education Association was partially responsible for the state’s reluctance, claiming that it was already evaluating teachers correctly by the means it was using.
The federal government is right to expect that student performance on statewide tests be used in teacher evaluations because doing so potentially provides school districts with their most accurate and objective data with which to evaluate teachers. The problem, however, is that statewide standardized tests will not accurately display student performance until districts are provided with the information they need about the tests to properly prepare the students for them. This does not mean taking away from valuable learning time with practice tests but rather by providing students with a rich and interesting curriculum.
Gene Dombrowski
Vancouver
