Exiting Ineffective Teachers Policy
Delaware requires local districts to place teachers on an improvement plan if they earn ratings of "needs improvement" or "ineffective" on their summative evaluations or if they earn a rating of "unsatisfactory" on any component of the evaluation. An improvement plan is also required if a teacher's overall rating on a lesson is deemed "unsatisfactory." The plan must include more frequent observations and intense professional development the following year.
Teachers who receive ineffective ratings for two consecutive years or who earn a combination of ineffective and unsatisfactory ratings for three consecutive years are considered to have patterns of ineffective teaching and are eligible for dismissal.
Delaware was helpful in providing NCTQ with facts that enhanced this analysis.
To review the process and types of personnel evaluations observed in other job sectors, including the problems inherent to some evaluation systems see, for example, Gliddon, David (October 2004). Effective Performance Management Systems, Current Criticisms and New Ideas for Employee Evaluation in Performance Improvement 43(9), 27-36.