Identifying Effective Teachers Policy
In Washington, to advance from a Residency Certificate to a Professional Certificate, teachers are required to successfully complete a state-approved professional certificate program. Those holding National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) Certificates meet this requirement.
According to the state, its Professional Certificate requires the demonstration of effective teaching, among other criteria, and that, whenever possible, teachers need to provide "evidence that his/her teaching has had a positive impact on student learning." Teachers work with a professional growth team to develop their own individual professional growth plan, which is based on "an analysis of the student/learning context in that teacher's assignment."
Washington does not include evidence of effectiveness as a factor in the renewal of a professional license. Washington teachers must renew their licenses every five years by completing 150 clock hours of approved professional development or 10 semester hours from an accredited institution of higher learning.
Require evidence of effectiveness as a part of teacher licensing policy.
Washington should require evidence of teacher effectiveness to be a factor in determining whether teachers can renew their licenses or advance to a higher-level license. While Washington's requirement of evidence that teaching has had a positive impact on student growth as a part of teacher licensing decisions may be a step in the right direction, there is no indication that this must include objective evidence of student learning.
Discontinue license renewal requirements with no direct connection to classroom effectiveness.
While targeted requirements may potentially expand teacher knowledge and improve teacher practice, Washington's general, nonspecific professional development clock hour requirements for license renewal merely call for teachers to complete a certain amount of seat time. These requirements do not correlate with teacher effectiveness.
Washington recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.