By Ben Velderman
EAGnews.org

CORRYVILLE, Ohio – Cincinnati Federation of Teachers leaders say they support using student tests scores in teacher evaluations, but they’re about as convincing as the husband who promises his wife that he’s really wants to start that strict new diet – tomorrow.

A new Ohio law requires that by July 1, 2013, all school districts have a teacher evaluation system in place that weighs student scores from state-mandated tests. Test scores must account for 50 percent of a teacher’s evaluation, but individual districts are in charge of figuring out the details of the plan, reports Cincinnati.com.

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The Cincinnati school district is prepared to implement a revamped teacher evaluation plan this year, but the CFT says it’s too soon and too many questions are unanswered.

“While the teachers agree with the intent of the policy – to base teachers’ reviews on their students’ academic growth – they disagree with the details and they especially disagree with the timeline,” reports the news site.

CPS administrators say that by doing a dry run with the new system this year, they can work out any kinks that may appear before the plan takes effect next year.

School officials have assured the teachers union that educators won’t be penalized for poor performances until the 2013-14 school year, and can’t be fired over lousy test scores until 2014-15, according to the news site.

“Cincinnati is the only district in the state that is trying to implement the student growth portion of the evaluation this year,” reports the news site.

Union members packed last night’s school board meeting, urging board members to delay implementing the plan. By a vote of 4-3, the school board caved in and agreed to delay a final decision until later this month.

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Union members are concerned because “many of the growth measures that districts can use haven’t been developed yet,” Cincinnati.com reports. “Just using state test results isn’t enough, and would result in good teachers getting bad reviews, they say.”

That’s a lame argument. Everyone in a school building – from the custodians and cafeteria workers to the students and the parents – knows which teachers are superb and which ones are mediocre.

Even if a top teacher gets a low score from the student learning portion of this new evaluation system, administrators will be able to counter that through glowing classroom observations and other measurements. School leaders are not stupid or self-destructive, which means they will not fire their best teachers over test scores. The union’s concern is wildly overblown.

What’s far more likely is that the CFT is trying to derail the new evaluation system in hopes that future, union-friendly state legislators will repeal the law, or at least issue waivers.

If the new evaluation system takes effect before then, parents and taxpayers might find that it works smoothly and that they appreciate knowing how different teachers impact student learning. That would make it much more difficult for the union to repeal it.

We believe that’s what’s really behind CFT’s strategy of delay, delay, delay.