Times updates and expands value-added ratings for Los Angeles elementary school teachers

Jason Song and Jason Felch:

New data include ratings for about 11,500 teachers, nearly double the number covered last August. School and civic leaders had sought to halt release of the data.

The Los Angeles Times on Sunday is releasing a major update to its elementary school teacher ratings, underscoring the large disparities throughout the nation's second-largest school district in instructors' abilities to raise student test scores.

The posting -- the only publication of such teacher performance data in the nation -- contains value-added ratings for about 11,500 third- through fifth-grade teachers, nearly double the number released last August. It also reflects changes in the way the scores were calculated and displayed.

Overall ratings for about 470 schools also are included in the release, which is based on student standardized test scores from the academic years 2003-04 through 2009-10. To obtain the rating of a teacher or school, go to latimes.com/valueadded and enter the teacher's or the school's name.

The initial release of teacher ratings last summer generated intense controversy -- and some praise -- across the country, and this round has already met with some opposition.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at May 10, 2011 2:54 AM
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