De-emphasize test scores for most teachers

A new study calls for about two-thirds of Tennessee teachers to be able to opt for a smaller portion of their evaluations to be based on student testing data. 

The report released Monday by the State Collaborative on Reforming Education, or SCORE, was commissioned by Gov. Bill Haslam to review the state's new teacher evaluation system. The Republican governor asked lawmakers not to enact any changes to the evaluation system while the study was being conducted. Fifty percent of teachers' evaluations are based on student testing data. But only about one-third of teachers teach subjects where value-added testing data is collected. The SCORE report recommends that teachers in subjects or grades without specific testing data be allowed to reduce that component to 25 percent of their evaluation.