School Information System
Newsletter Sign Up |

Subscribe to this site via RSS: | Newsletter signup | Send us your ideas

August 28, 2010

L.A. schools chief says district will adopt 'value added' approach

Howard Blume

Cortines wants the method based on student test scores to count for at least 30% of instructor evaluations. But the teachers union must consent.

Revamping teacher evaluations with the goal of helping instructors improve has become an urgent priority in the nation's second-largest school district, Ramon C. Cortines, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, said in an address to administrators Wednesday.

Cortines said the district will develop and adopt a "value added" method that determines teachers' and schools' effectiveness based on student test scores. And he told a packed Hollywood High School auditorium that he's committed to using these ratings for at least 30% of a teacher's evaluation. The plan would require the consent of the teachers union.

In a later interview, Cortines also said he was disappointed that California lost its bid Tuesday for $700 million in federal Race to the Top school improvement grants. L.A. Unified's share would have been $153 million.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at August 28, 2010 5:55 AM
Subscribe to this site via RSS/Atom: Newsletter signup | Send us your ideas