Unsatisfactory Evaluations: Ohio

Analysis of Ohio's policies

Ohio requires local school boards to include procedures for using evaluation results for the removal of poorly performing teachers. The state does not have policy regarding improvement plans for teachers who receive unsatisfactory evaluations.

SB 5, which included policy that related to this goal, was repealed by referendum in November 2011.

Citation

ORC 3319.111 (HB 153 version and SB 5 version)

Recommendations for Ohio

Require that all teachers who receive unsatisfactory evaluations be placed on improvement plans.
Ohio should adopt a policy requiring that teachers who receive even one unsatisfactory evaluation be placed on structured improvement plans. These plans should focus on performance areas that directly connect to student learning and should list noted deficiencies, define specific action steps necessary to address these deficiencies and describe how and when progress will be measured.

Make eligibility for dismissal a consequence of unsatisfactory evaluations.
Teachers who receive two consecutive unsatisfactory evaluations or have two unsatisfactory evaluations within five years should be formally eligible for dismissal, regardless of whether they have tenure. Ohio should strengthen its current policy to ensure that teachers who receive such unsatisfactory evaluations are eligible for dismissal. 

State response to our analysis

Ohio asserted that improvement plans are developed and implemented in response to concerns about performance. The OTES Model Summative Evaluation includes a process of determining teachers who may be ineffective in one or more components. A written improvement plan is initiated by the evaluator/administrator and is put in place with a timeline for improvement to desired level of performance. The state also added that Race to the Top LEAs commit to using data and results from the evaluation system to inform decisions about removal of low-performing teachers. 

Last word

It appears that the OTES Model Summative Evaluation will only be followed closely by Race to the Top districts. NCTQ encourages Ohio to adopt a policy requiring that all teachers receiving unsatisfactory evaluations be placed on improvement plans and that after two consecutive unsatisfactory evaluations, such teachers are eligible for dismissal.