How are Teachers Evaluated?

The following is an email I sent to a student who wanted to know what I thought about high school students evaluating teachers.

High school teachers have many stakeholders. From the top down, they include the Federal government (No Child Left Behind Act) which mandates continued test score improvements, the State of California, which tells teachers what to teach, the District, which hires and pays teachers, and the taxpayers (the parents), which support the school district. Those actually being taught, the high school students, have no voice in the process other than choosing which classes to take. Even then there are many mandatory classes, and students can perhaps select a certain teacher, but they cannot avoid the class. Why is that? The State has determined that students must learn certain things, and that the State (thinks it) knows better than the student what those things should be. If the parents disagree, they can homeschool or send their child to a private school, but the students still need to learn certain subjects, like it or not. Since that is the case--students learn information that they may not be interested in (Shakespear, geometry, Reconstruction)--it does not make sense for students to be involved in the teacher assessment process. Should slaves assess their masters? Note, however, that students already evaluate their teachers informally on the internet. Comments I have read on RateMyTeacher.com do not give me confidence that high school students can assess teachers properly (even though I do well there, personally). Additionally, all teachers get a reputation and are sought after or avoided based on these rumors, fair or not. 

 

Teachers are evaluated by principals using fair but strict standards based on equity, preparation, engagement, safety, etc. Most students don't pay much attention to these things but they are the essence of good teaching!

 

I would be more comfortable including student ratings in teacher assessments if they were in elective, not mandatory classes, and answered (on a Likert scale) items such as "does this teacher teach to standards" and "did this class prepare me for a career or college?"

Thanks for the opportunity to respond to your query.