Frequency of Evaluations : Colorado

Identifying Effective Teachers Policy

Goal

The state should require annual evaluations of all teachers.

Nearly meets goal
Suggested Citation:
National Council on Teacher Quality. (2011). Frequency of Evaluations : Colorado results. State Teacher Policy Database. [Data set].
Retrieved from: https://www.nctq.org/yearbook/state/CO-Frequency-of-Evaluations--8

Analysis of Colorado's policies

Commendably, Colorado now requires annual evaluations for all teachers. 

New teachers in Colorado must receive at least two documented observations and one evaluation that result in a written evaluation report each academic year. The state does not articulate when these observations should occur. 

Citation

Recommendations for Colorado

Base evaluations on multiple observations.
To guarantee that annual evaluations are based on an adequate collection of information, Colorado should require multiple observations for all teachers, even those who have nonprobationary status. 

Ensure that new teachers are observed and receive feedback early in the school year.
It is critical that schools and districts closely monitor the performance of new teachers. Colorado should ensure that its new teachers get the support they need and that supervisors know early on which new teachers may be struggling or at risk for unacceptable levels of performance.

State response to our analysis

Colorado recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.

Research rationale

For the frequency of evaluations in government and private industry, see survey results from Hudson Employment Index's report: "Pay and Performance in America: 2005 Compensation and Benefits Report" Hudson Highlands Group (2005).

For research emphasizing the importance of evaluation and observations for new teachers in predicting future success and providing support for teachers see, D. Staiger and J. Rockoff, "Searching for Effective Teachers with Imperfect Information." The Journal of Economic Perspectives. (24:3) American Economic Association (2010).