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deal or no deal

October 20, 2010

City release of teacher ratings would break 2008 deal with union

by Anna Phillips, at 3:38 pm

The city’s decision to release teacher evaluation data this week represents a departure from an agreement officials made with the teachers union two years ago.

In a deal made in 2008 between then-president of the United Federation of Teachers Randi Weingarten and Department of Education Deputy Chancellor Christopher Cerf, the city and union agreed to keep the reports private. The reports assign scores to teachers based on how much they improve their students’ test scores.

“It is the DOEs’ [sic] firm position and expectation that Teacher Data reports will not and should not be disclosed or shared outside of the school community, defined to include administrators, coaches, mentors and other professional colleagues authorized by the teacher in question,” Cerf wrote.

“In the event a FOIL request for such documents is made, we will work with the UFT to craft the best legal arguments available to the effect that such documents fall within an exemption,” he wrote.

DOE spokeswoman Natalie Ravitz said the city’s decision to release the scores doesn’t violate the agreement.

“We do not believe that any of the exemptions under FOIL apply in this matter, which is what we told the UFT.  But that will be for a judge to decide,” she wrote in an email.

In the past, when reporters have submitted Freedom of Information Requests for the same data, the city has withheld teachers’ names and individuals’ scores.

In 2008, New York Times reporters submitted a Freedom of Information Request asking for teachers’ ratings. The city responded by only giving the reporters ratings broken down by district and without any teachers’ names.

Two years later, much has changed. A revision in New York State law means that teachers can now be evaluated based on their students’ test scores. However, it’s not clear what led the city to reverse its policy of keeping the scores private. This is the second time the city has departed from policy it set in 2008.

In 2008, Chancellor Joel Klein wrote a memo to teachers saying that the reports would not be used in job evaluations or to guide merit pay. Now, the city is asking principals to use the scores in tenure decisions for this school year.

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  • Jeff S

    The man can’t keep his word. What a piece of whatever.

  • http://charterreformer.blogspot.com John

    I am not against the use of a value added score as part of a teachers evaluation provided:

    1. It is only a part of the evaluation process. Students performance on standardized tests is not the only value a teacher adds to students.

    2. The value added scores are averaged over a few years. Value added scores have low reliability (they can fluctuate from year to year.) Teachers shouldn’t face sanctions from one low value added score.

    3. They are used a tool for teacher growth, not only teacher punishment.

    Reversing their policy without providing an explanation sends a signal to teachers that the DOE will be using these scores to tarnish the reputation of city teachers.

    I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, but Christopher D. Cerf the deputy chancellor that signed that letter came to us from the for profit charter school management company, Edison Schools. It would serve his former company and friends quite well to make city teachers look bad and bring in more charter schools. Is he still on their payroll?

    http://www.linkedin.com/pub/chris-cerf/4/603/883

    It is incredible to me that we have J.D’s running the board of education. Ed.D’s and Ph.D’s aren’t allowed to practice law. Lets get some real experts in the field to run our city schools.

  • queens parent

    I can understand why teachers would not want this information published in the newspapers. But I would love to be able to see the scores for my son’s teachers. I bet most parents would also be very interested. My son’s ela score has never improved. High 3 every year, even though he can ace the math part. This is probably because his teacher ignores everyone who is not remedial. He spends the day reading on his own, with a partner or doing peer editing. Guess what, he doesn’t have a teaching degree and is not qualified to give advice to other students. He is still writing those useless personal narratives and writing journals with no teacher feedback. I think parents of students have a right to see how their kid’s teacher is doing. We want what is best for our children and that doesn’t include a teacher that is terrible. After all, you would want to check out your doctor and your lawyer to see if there were any malpractice suits. Why should you be unable to check on how your child’s teacher teaches?

  • Smith
  • Ellen

    No other public employee is asked to release her/his performance score.
    QP, would you release your performance score?
    Will students scores be released?
    Do we see the scores of a Steve Jobs? of individual employees at Goldman Sachs?
    Private sector employees have protections. Why not public sector employees?

    Personally, I hope the UFT is able to stop the release, especially since the performance scores are based on inflated reading and math scores

  • A Teacher

    I hope that parents understand that not all teachers teach the same kinds of students. Even when it isn’t official most classes are tiered in some way meaning that some teachers will have higher scores because of the type of students they teach not just the kind of teache that they are. I also hope parents realize that test scores are a reflection of parenting, the community, and student effort as well as teaching.

  • Teacher

    So let me get this straight… The NYCDOE made an agreement to NOT release scores but what they really did was just wait until until the State Education Department “recalibrated” the 2010 test scores so that they can release to the press the new lower-than-ever scores. Lovely!

  • Jeff S

    The only problem QP and believe me I respect your feeling on this, do you actually think these ratings have the slightest degree of validity? Remember they’re coming from the office of a gentleman named Joel Klein, a man who never spent a day in a classroom (well maybe he spent several as a substitute teacher, who doesn’t have the slightest qualification to occupy the position he occupies and is now doing his utmost to destroy public education for thousands of parents such as yourself who send your kids to the public schools of this city which he loves to demean. Anything to make his boss another person with total contempt for people poor than himself and for people who don’t live in Manhattan. It is not the same thing as seeing baseball player’s batting average. There we understand the metrics of what’s going on. You are clearly a very concerned parents and I am sure you work with your son to re-enforce that which is taught in the classroom. As I’ve said elsewhere, the vast vast majority of teachers are competent enough, some more competent than others, but certainly teachers that children can learn from and be successful.

  • Invictus

    And let the witch hunt begin.  

  • miss teacher

    Queens Parent, a high 3 for multiple years is a good thing. There’s not very much room from there- it’s not like he’s maintained a 2 for years. I’d be thrilled to see my students maintaining high 3s. Of course, a 4 would be great, but even prior to the cut score changes it seemed like 4s were tough to get- I have kids who I feel could hold their own anywhere because they read, write and speak exceptionally well, but have never gotten 4s.

  • http://themortonschool.blogspot.com Miss Eyre

    “Represents a departure,” GS?  Let’s see.  If I stopped paying my student loans for no reason, the servicer would not see that as a “departure” from my agreement; they would see it as a breach, and rightly so.  If I cheated on my spouse, they would not see that as a “departure” from an agreement; they would see it as infidelity.

    Call a spade a spade, GS.  This is the city breaking a plain-English good-faith agreement.  If the city wants to release the scores, that’s something they should be fair enough to negotiate with the union, not unilaterally “depart” from a good-faith agreement.

  • Invictus

    This is the what the Pandora’s Box has been delivering to the UFT since they so decisively decided to root for the Dear Leader, by dropping an outright endorsement of Thompson..
    There is no leverage to be had by the Union except lawsuits to protect what City Hall so wants to erode, the existence of the Union itself.  Moreover, to make matters worse, this coming Fall, Olde Boy Andrew running under the Democratic banner, with Red/Financial party interests buried in his inner circle, attempting to redo State Labor Laws in Albany.  Talking about the perfect storm.  

  • Diana Senechal

    It is not right that I, a former DOE employee, will be able to look up my former colleagues’ value-added ratings if I so choose. It is none of my business. Nor is it the business of employers outside the school system, or of teachers’ family members, or even of students. And no matter how many disclaimers accompany the information, stigma and status will be doled out–on the basis of flawed scores and formulas. Who gets hurt in this? Not the DOE–they’ll put a spin on each embarrassment that comes up (and there will be plenty). The teachers will get hurt–even the ones deemed “effective”–and, with them, the students.

  • Michael M.

    Egads.

    The underlying NYS Assessment test scores have come under increasing fire — even from the NYPost. (This is itself as comical as Captain Renault decrying gambling at Rick’s.)

    The recent resetting of the Level 1/2/3/4 breaks points STILL does not address much-written-about SCALE score inflation of the NYS tests relative to NAEP. But as pointed out above, it will be murder on teachers, given the system is using these newly stricter proficiency break points.

    Note, as ever, they form the flawed basis of the even more flawed Random Letter Generator known as the School Progress Reports.

    And despite all of that — and the agreement described above — Klein is now more than willing to throw teachers under the big yellow bus. So what ELSE is new?

    Ravitz’s logic escapes me. I guess she thinks Cerf was not authorized to use DOE letterhead.

    Shameful.

    Klein will be appearing at the CECD2 meeting next Wednesday 10/27 at PS33 in Chelsea, 6p-7p. Y’all are invited.

  • Michael M.

    QP,

    You highlight a real problem with the prevailing “proficiency” based philosophy. But that doesn’t mean the teachers are bad for understanding how they’re being gamed, and responding accordingly. Spending effort on kids already at Level 3 (or 4) will not be as rewarded in the system. (Nor should it be, imho.)

    If your teacher got a terrific score for helping kids at Level 1 get to Level 3, is your Level 3 kid being any better served?

    In your analogy, does the report on Doctors give a break to those working on SOME patients more than others?

  • Pogue

    Interesting. That’s P.S. 33 at 281 9th Ave, between 26th and 27th Streets. 6 – 7 PM. And Klein will be there? Will Mulgrew be there, or does he only meet Klein in backrooms?

  • Michael M.

    Why wait for Superman, when Lex Luthor is happy to serve a heaping helping of Kryptonite to the super men and women already spending more time with our kids than many parents are?

    “That man would depress a hyena.”
    – Col. Thomas McKean
    (Rent “1776″ for your kids.)

  • Michael M.

    Pogue,

    That’s the place. I look forward to meeting you, should (any of) you so choose.

  • Tom

    QP,

    “This is probably because his teacher ignores everyone who is not remedial. He spends the day reading on his own, with a partner or doing peer editing. Guess what, he doesn’t have a teaching degree and is not qualified to give advice to other students. He is still writing those useless personal narratives and writing journals with no teacher feedback. I think parents of students have a right to see how their kid’s teacher is doing.”

    If you know all of the above, you know way more about your child’s teacher than the ratings will ever tell you. The only other thing you might want to know is whether this leave-your-kid-to-sink-or-swim-without-any-teaching-from-the-teacher approach is your child’s teacher’s idea, or forced on her by the school’s administration.

  • Diana Senechal

    QP, regarding a “high three”–you probably know this, but if a student loses even two points on the ELA exam (e.g., gets two multiple-choice questions wrong, loses points on the written portion, or a combination of the two), he or she will score a high three (except in grade 4, where one can lose two points and still be at level 4). There is no range within level 4; it is essentially a perfect or near-perfect score. So the difference between a high 3 and a 4 may be trivial. Moreover, some of the questions are ambiguously worded; losing two points is not necessarily a sign of poor preparation or deficient knowledge. Of course this doesn’t mean your son is getting all the challenge he needs in class. But even if he were fully challenged in class, he could score a high three.

  • Esteban Rodriguez

    Uncalled for, Bc. GS should remove that comment.

  • Michael M.

    DS,
    If you’re familiar with the NYS Assessmet reports recently provided to parents, can you explain the index numbers associated with components of each of the ELA and MATH? (Apologies, I don’t have the report at hand for the precise term-of-art used.) Are they the same as “percentiles?” Thanks.

  • Michael M.

    Agreed with ER re BC!
    We’ve made it this far without a moderator….

  • Diana Senechal

    Michael, I am not sure, since I don’t have any of those reports at hand. I’d have to take a look at one.

  • Mustafa

    Bottom line, the data that Klein wants to release is not accurate and is extremely flawed. In many instances the numbers are wrong, the students are wrong, and the classes are wrong. When teachers pointed out the mistakes to their administrators, the typical response was “don’t worry about it”. Now that incorrect info will be used to defame people.

    Marley sang “for every action, there’s a reaction”. I say, if they defame you, sue the DOE!

  • Invictus

    The question as another teacher had stated, when the time comes to “evaluate” every single teacher from standard subject areas to very fringe ones, how will they make sure that there is a single, fair and balanced assessment test that can be compared with everyone else?  The system that the DoE is attempting to ram through the teachers union and to sell to the public will create a de facto two tier system, where a group of evaluated and put in the teacher hunt bonfire while another seems to escape such close scrutiny, creating an impractical and perhaps illegal system of evaluation/discrimination.  

    If and when the time comes for some private/for profit entity to write these different assessment tests to evaluate the “effectiveness” of a instructor in a license area, someone will be making some really great amounts of tax payer’s money.  How will such flawed system can be maintained while everything else in the City system falls apart.  

    I wonder what a home ed teacher’s beginning and exiting test will look like….  Do you know how to make a balanced, nutritious mean, A-Yes, B-No, C-School cafeteria food is unhealthy.  D-McDonald’s represents a balanced meal.  

    Typical convoluted techno junk providing $$$$ that were funneled out from the budget of a “failing school” for the benefit of none of the SpecEd or ELL children but a few, privileged Educational Distorters.  

  • Pogue

    So, this is what occurs when one “has a seat at the table”.

    Union instruction: Slide back. Stand up. Dab corners of mouth with napkin. Push empty chair back under table. Walk out. Join with parents, students, and other unions to battle this attack on regular folk.

    It’s obviously a table where teachers are being abused and we don’t belong.

  • Michael M.

    DS,
    Found it. And the definition. SPI is Standard Performance Index, the prorated RAW score AS IF there were 100 questions in that skill category. NOT percentile. Standard as in performing, not norming. Needs to be read in light of the adjacent SPI Target Range, which can vary, depending on difficulty of the questions.

    Back to the bigger picture, I’m still hung up on scale score inflation relative to NAEP, more than the resetting of the 1/2/3/4 break points.

  • sick of the pr and spin

    Chris Cerf- that trusted authority and beacon of integrity-

    NY Times: “Mr. Cerf [Deputy Chancellor] will help organize public school parents, especially charter school parents; promote the mayor’s record on education; and advise the campaign on education policy until Election Day, when he is expected to return to City Hall.

    In January and February 2006, Christopher Cerf and Joel Rose were hired as paid consultants by the Tweed, despite the fact that DOE had and continues to spend millions on a tutoring contract with Newton Learning, a profit-making Edison subsidiary.
    Cerf, the former Chief Operating Officer of Edison, held $6 million stock in Edison until recently, and Rose was hired by DOE directly from running Newton. According to conflict of interest rules, even if a consultant is working less than 20 hours per week for the City, he is barred from having an ownership interest in any firm that does business with his agency. Yet it is unclear if Cerf was ever asked by Tweed to apply for a waiver from divesting his Edison stock from the Conflict of Interest board, and if so, whether such a waiver was granted and on what grounds. At the time Rose was hired, Newton was under investigation for misconduct by the Special Investigator Richard Condon. In March 2006, one month later, a report was released, revealing that Newton had engaged in numerous unethical and possibly illegal practices, including bribing students and teachers. And yet following these disclosures, Rose was not dismissed from his consultant’s position.
    More recently, Cerf was appointed as Deputy Chancellor, and Cerf in turn hired Rose as his chief of staff. According to an article in the New York Times, even then Cerf was not instructed by officials at DOE to divest himself of his Edison stock, and it was later disclosed that he only sold the stock voluntarily the day before he was going to be questioned about his financial holdings at a meeting of the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council. To this day, it is unclear why DOE decided that Cerf should be allowed to keep his stock in Edison while working as a consultant, and later when he became a full time employee, with substantial influence over the Department’s finances, contracts, and policies. Moreover, at no point was Rose apparently told that he would have to have to take a hiatus between his employment at Newton and at Tweed. 
    “ http://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/search/label/conflict%20of%20interest

    now selling science in a box in Brazil.

    http://gothamschools.org/2010/03/10/chris-cerf-returns-to-the-education-private-sector-%E2%80%94-but-in-brazil/

  • John Q

    The teachers union is demanding the same thing the church was demanding. Frankly, without prior knowledge, I would expect the church to have fewer reasons to keep their records private. The power of the teachers union makes for a big rug. As a provider of teachers to PUBLIC schools, I believe we as tax payers are entitled to look under the rug. Anybody want to resign ?? Nows the time to come out..

  • An Effective Teacher Says…

    This is good b/c teachers’ names and where they work should be broadcast to every identity thief in the world.

    If parents want to know if their children have “good” teachers, ask them! Look at their notebooks, check to see if they were assigned homework, etc.. How about CALL THE TEACHERS?!?

    The rare “bad” teacher is known by all the students in a school from day one. Likewise the effective teachers are also known.

    Asking your own children will yield much more information than some skewed statistical report.

  • http://www.classsizematters.org Leonie Haimson

    Interesting that Queens Parent won’t reveal his or her real name, but she wants teachers’ names to be printed in the paper along w/ their unreliable value-added ratings.

  • I noticed that…

    To Leonie:

    Your comment to Queens Parent, Touche!

  • Smith

    QP, why stop at value-added data? I want the papers to publish my kids’ teachers’ astrological charts as well as their craniometric and phrenological traits.

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