Tomorrow night is my small town’s Trick or Treating. I am so excited! The entire community gets together and enjoys free hot dogs and hot chocolate. It’s sort of a big deal around here 🙂
Working with kiddos, I should have learned this earlier, but I didn’t.
Last year, I was a nice person and let the kids pick out of a bowl which candy they wanted. I had a few boogers grab handfuls and run. This year, I will learn my lesson and be that stingy person who hands each child a piece of candy. Hopefully, my candy will last a little longer!
Anyways, I am curious as to what other speech therapists are thinking about this new teacher evaluation. Here in the state of Ohio, we are adopting a new evaluation for teachers that has a performance-based component (at least 10% must be based on how the student achieves on state tests). My district is throwing around the idea of how to evaluate me and if I (as a speech therapist) should be evaluated on this system along with the teachers.
- My first point (and I might be hated for saying this) is I agree that some aspect of our jobs should actually be performance-based. Our students should be making progress. Even my oldest kiddos with the most severe of disabilities should make progress in a year’s time. If not, I’m not doing my job. My friends who went to work in the medical setting understand this. If they don’t show documentation of progress, Medicaid does not reimburse for therapy time.
- The part that I am having difficulty with is the actual tool used to measure progress. If my students are evaluated on their progress to make sounds, improve their phonological awareness, have a broader vocabulary, deepen their listening comprehension, increase their fluency, or improve their vocal quality….then by all means-evaluate me! I want and need to make sure I’m doing what I need to be doing! However, if you’re evaluating my effectiveness as a speech therapist based on how a student performs on a state test….then I’m not sure how well of a tool is being used.
- The last piece I will add is the fact that I am not a teacher. I love teachers. They do want I cannot not. However, I’m not one. I did not take a single education course when I went to college. I don’t want the convenience of lumping me in with teachers because no one knows how else to evaluate me be my only option.
So….I started researching this option. I discovered that ASHA has come out with a statement about this topic and actually provides school districts with an evaluation option for SLPs. Here is the entire link if anyone is interested in looking into this more.
I want to know your opinion. Have you heard anything about teacher evaluation systems and how do you feel about it?
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Jpetersen224 says
October 25, 2012 at 3:51 pmI work in the public schools in North Carolina. They have had a teacher evaluation system, which includes a performance based part–looking at those test scores!- for a few years. Speech pathologists have not been evaluated using this system. The way of evaluating us varied between counties. We were still asked to create an Individual Growth Plan and our principal was asked to provide some input when the lead SLP came to “evaluate” us. Our evaluation was much less involved than the teacher one. About a week ago, however, the NC Department of Public Instruction has rolled out a new speech-pathologist evaluation system. It is very involved and evaluates us on all aspects of our job. Our district has not yet decided how we will implement it and who will be the one evaluating us (most likely not the principals since they really do not have the knowledge of our profession to evaluate us on each of the points), but at least it’s in the works!!
KDunc says
October 25, 2012 at 7:34 pmWe just started a new teacher evaluation system in northern VA this year. The system as a whole aims to hold teachers more accountable for student progress (i.e., reading scores and cumulative state tests)… but lucky for us, our county’s Comm Dis supervisors convinced the higher-ups that SLPs don’t necessarily fit into the same mold, and we are able to be held accountable for progress specific to what we work on with only one subgroup of our students to focus on. So for example, a professional goal could be geared toward students working on articulation skills and the criteria might be to improve by 6 points on a given rubric. The rubric might be set up along a hierarchy from auditory discrimination to spontaneous conversation (and across positions as appropriate), so kids who are just starting out or make slower progress, can meet that criteria by achieving skills on the lower end of the hierarchy, and student’s further along can meet the criteria by mastering the sound at a higher level. We’ll see how it goes!
Karlie says
October 26, 2012 at 2:38 amI’m a spec ed teacher in WI, and they are just starting to look at incorporating performance into salary. I agree that as a teacher all our students should be making progress. My biggest complaint is, that I have (and still do) work in schools where education is under valued in the community, and I hope that I’m not penalized for my students having less growth than students at schools that have helicopter parents forcing their kids to study and complete their homework. A teacher can only do so much between 8AM and 3PM (minus lunch time, recess(es), art, music, etc.).
Good luck to the SLPs! I hope they find a fair way to evaluate you:)
We are ALL Special!
Laura says
October 26, 2012 at 6:38 pmI’m in Texas. I used to get evaluated with the tool for teachers, but my directors were always very understanding about the differences. For a while, I even got observed by my principals at one school. I was the only SLP in our district who did, though. And I didn’t mind it because the principals always gave me good feedback. Now, I don’t get observed at all, but I still have an evaluation at the end of the year where I meet with my director, and that seems based more on making timelines and paperwork issues. Our district uses a form from TSHA, http://txsha.org/_pdf/Legislative_Information/Generic%20SLP%20Evaluation%20Report.pdf
Oh, How Pintearesting!