The professional literature concerning teacher evaluation is extensive, but the sources specific to documentation are relatively limited. Here is a practical synthesis of the relevant sources; the five types of documentation memoranda; and the leading lessons for doing documentation successfully.
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References
1.
Aldridge, J."Effective Documentation for Personnel Decision-Making."Texas School Administrators' Legal Digest7(1992): 1-7. Provides an excellent overview including a solid outline of a basic documentation system's components, complete with examples of each component, legal citations, and applicable case law.
2.
DeMitchell, T. A."Competence, Documentation, and Dismissal: A Legal Template."InternationalJournal of Education Reform1(1995): 88-95. Contributes a list of sample district expectations that administrators may incorporate into the various documentation forms, including instructional planning, instructional delivery, learning environment, curricular content, and professional responsibility. Also provides examples of both specific incident and summary memoranda.
3.
Grier, T. B."Courageous Teacher Evaluation Proves a Principal's Prowess."Executive Educator2(1987): 17-19. Useful, straightforward article. Explains fundamentals of informal, formal, and summative evaluation. Treats evaluation and documentation as principals' professional and moral obligation.
4.
Frels, K., and Cooper, T."Documentation of Employee Performance." In Legal Issues in Public School Employment, edited by J. Beckham and P. A. Zirkel. Bloomington, Ind.: Phi Delta Kappa, 1988. Excellent foundational resource. Describes systematic documentation plan consisting of five types of written memoranda. Offers sample memoranda and thorough explanations.
5.
Bridges, E. M."It's Time To Get Tough with the Turkeys."Principal3(1985): 19-21. Emphasizes the importance of principals' accountability for failure to dismiss incompetent teachers. Provides an inventory of skills and abilities necessary to effectively perform evaluation responsibilities. Excerpted from Bridges and Groves (infra).
6.
Bridges, E. M., and Groves, B.Managing the Incompetent Teacher, 2d ed.Eugene: University of Oregon, ERIC Clearinghouse, 1990. (ERIC Reproduction Service No. ED 320 195) Update of best-selling monograph provides comprehensive guidance [93 pages] on developing and implementing policy and procedures for meaningful teacher evaluation. Digestible, clear format with logical chapters and subheadings. Includes an instrument for evaluating district practices that is keyed to the rest of the text.
7.
Conley, D. T."Eight Steps to Improved Teacher Remediation."NASSP Bulletin, September 1991. Excellent resource for administrators seeking to reinvent teacher evaluation in a building or district. Offers long-term strategies for setting teacher evaluation priorities in a district, such as a policy against transferring any teacher in remediation. Emphasizes teaming and preventive techniques including mentoring and induction.
8.
Ellis, T. R."Teacher evaluation Is Hard Work - and It Should Be."Principal44(1985): 22-24. Good suggestions specific to classroom observations. Asserts that a good observation lasts two hours and entails detailed note-taking followed by conferencing.
9.
Iwanicki, E. F."Using Teacher Self-Assessment To Identify Self-Development Needs."Journal of Teacher Education2(1984): 38-42. Limited treatment of documentation but may help supervisors more fully understand how teachers in various identified stages may approach performance improvement. Focuses on staff development and assistance rather than assessment.
10.
Knox, R. F.The School Personnel Administrator. Eugene: University of Oregon, ERIC Clearinghouse, 1996. (ERIC Reproduction Service No. ED 401 632) Reviews the role of school administrators in evaluation from a historical perspective. Provides several academic cites and reiterates several good basic practices in evaluation.
11.
Langlois, D. E., and Colarusso, M. R."Don't Let Teacher Evaluation Become an Empty Ritual."Executive Educator5(1988): 32-33. Identifies ways individuals and systems institutionalize poor evaluation and teaching practices. Provides a few good suggestions but uses colloquial language and no citations.
12.
Manatt, R. P., and Kemis, M."360-Degree Feedback: A New Approach to Evaluation."Principal1(1997): 24-24, 26-27. Recommends using student and parent feedback and implies reliance on standardized survey instruments. Refers to successful case summaries. May stimulate interest in this specific program but does not provide enough information to implement immediate changes.
13.
McGreal, Tom. "How Well Can We Truly Evaluate Teachers?"School Administrator1(1986): 10-12. Author interviews two other experts on the policy and practices of teacher evaluation. Very brief article touches on issues of accountability, teacher testing, and incentive pay.
14.
Nolte, C.How To Survive as a Principal: The Legal Dimension. Chicago, Ill.: Teach'em, Inc., 1983, pp. 175-214. Practical overall reference book that devotes a chapter to teacher evaluation. Written mainly in a question-and-answer format. Also includes case summaries and several sample forms. Some of the information is a bit dated.
15.
Schwartz, R. A."Demystifying Performance Documentation."The School Administrator3(1997): 14-17. Offers arguments why school districts must improve evaluation to improve instruction. Does not define documentation or offer practical advice beyond recommending that districts set evaluation priorities and train staff members.
16.
St. John, W."Documenting Your Case for Dismissal with Acceptable Evidence."NASSPBulletin, October 1983. Short, dated article that contains several lists, including standards in dismissal hearings, sources of evidence, and rules for written documentation.
17.
Stronge, J. H."The Dynamics of Effective Performance Evaluation Systems in Education: Conceptual, Human Relations, and Technical Domains."Journal of Personnel Evaluation in Education1(1991): 7-83. Academic treatment outlining characteristics of a sound evaluation system; necessary skills for administrators; and technical issues of reliability, validity, and utility. May prove helpful to those considering a new approach and policy.
18.
Frels, K., and Schneider-Vogel, M.The First Amendment and School Employees: A Practical Management Guide. Reston, Va.: NASSP, 1986. Briefly addresses importance of effective documentation in preventing a successful First Amendment claim. Includes sample summary memoranda specific to First Amendment rights, one outlining process to resolve problems and the other directing the employee to perform assigned duties.
19.
Jones, R."Showing Bad Teachers the Door."American School BoardJournal11(1997): 20-24. Discusses dangers of failing to dismiss poor staff members but focuses on the reasons for the problem, mainly tenure, rather than offering potential solutions.
20.
Langlois, D. E."How You Can Transform That Staff Turkey into an Eagle."Executive Educator5(1986): 22-23, 33-33. Primarily addresses strategies for new superintendents in approaching administrative staff and offers some interesting theories. Useful insert article concisely applies major research in teacher evaluation to other staff members but may be too simple in regard to current precautionary and legal standards.
21.
Lawrence, C. E.; Vachon, M. K.; Leake, D. O.; and Leake, B. H.The Marginal Teacher. Newbury Park, Calif.: Corwin Press, 1993. Excellent, comprehensive manual targeted to supervisors, not necessarily principals. Provides school-year timeline for evaluating, remediating and, if necessary, dismissing poor teachers with appropriate initial emphasis on assistance reflected in extensive sample documents. Additional documentation, computer software also available.
22.
McGrath, M. J."When It's Time To Dismiss an Incompetent Teacher."School Administrator4(1993): 30-33. Readable article that targets administrators and advances use of author's self-titled template, which consists of four parts: facts, impact, prior intervention, and action. Limited practical information beyond skeletal structure of author's workshop.
23.
Pellicer, L. O., and Hendrix, 0. B."A Practical Approach to Remediation and Dismissal."NASSP Bulletin, March 1980. Provides explanation of the diagnostic prescriptive approach to remediation with a case-styled example. Useful as an introduction but lacks more recent emphasis on measurability and specificity due to its older publication date.
24.
Remley, T. J., and MacReynolds, V. B."Due Process in Dismissals: A Reflection of Our Values."NASSP Bulletin, January 1988. Suggests approaching evaluation leading to dismissal with an empathic, assistive intent to ensure that principals adhere to basic standards of due process. Limited practical tips and citations.
25.
Reynolds, F. C."When Nothing Else Works, Here's How To Fire Somebody - Gently."Executive Educator11(1982): 32-33. Outlines a seven-step process leading to dismissal. A bit dated, but some good suggestions for appropriately involving a personnel or human resources director.
26.
Scriven, M."Due Process in Adverse Personnel Action."Journal of Personnel Evaluation in Education2(1997): 127-137. Counsels taking adverse actions when necessary and provides sample timeline. Targets hearing officer and arbitrator standards. A bit wordy and dense.
27.
Waintroob, A. R."Remediating and Dismissing the Incompetent Teacher."School Administrator5(1995): 20-24. Highlights the danger of attempting to "pad" negative evaluations. Emphasizes the importance of writing to both audiences-the teacher and a neutral factfinder. Offers limited practical advice but bountiful encouragement to frustrated administrators.
