Study: Teacher Performance Tied to Student Achievement

Professor Thomas Kane and the Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) project released a study yesterday finding that strong teacher performance can increase student achievement.

This is the first large-scale study showing that the quality of teachers directly affects test score results regardless of a student’s past performance. The three-year study, sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, included an analysis of about 3,000 teachers and their students in seven school districts. The study found that students test scores were not the only tool to measure effective teacher performance. Classroom observations and student evaluations also prove effective.

“If you select the right measures, you can provide teachers with an honest assessment of where they stand in their practice that, hopefully, will serve as the launching point for their development,” Kane told Education Week.

To read the study, visit: http://www.metproject.org/downloads/MET_Ensuring_Fair_and_Reliable_Measures_Practitioner_Brief.pdf

For more coverage of the study visit:

• The Wall Street Journal
• The Washington Post
• The Los Angeles Times
• Education Week