Defensible Teacher Evaluation: Student Growth Through Classroom Assessment

Meaningful teacher evaluation starts with visible student growth

Annual standardized test scores cannot provide evidence of student growth needed to evaluate teacher performance. But consider student growth in the form of evidence derived from classroom assessment and you’re on to something. For assessment expert Rick Stiggins, this can form the basis for a truly productive teacher evaluation strategy.

This revolutionary book helps you bring classroom assessment to bear for real school improvement, with

• A plan for teacher evaluation based, in part, on dependable evidence of student growth
• Strategies for improving the assessment literacy of teachers and school leaders
• Five steps for developing and implementing productive local district assessment systems
• Practical tools that teachers and their evaluators can put to use immediately

In this era of aggressive teacher evaluation reform, where teachers are charged with preparing ALL students to master 21st century proficiencies, the measurement of teacher success must start where learning happens—in the classroom.

“Developing a fair, practical, and effective teacher evaluation system is like climbing a high mountain: it’s impossible until someone finds a route. That’s what Rick does in this book. He identifies the immense challenges associated with using evidence on student learning as the principal criteria in teacher evaluation and then offers practical guidance for overcoming those challenges. He hasn’t made the climb easy, but he shows us the way.”
—Thomas R. Guskey, Professor of Educational Psychology
University of Kentucky

“Rick Stiggins builds a compelling case for the development of a solid foundation of assessment competence throughout our educational system.”
—Linda Darling-Hammond, Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education
Stanford University