Educator Evaluation Overview
Teacher Evaluation
Ohio's system for evaluating teachers is research-based and designed to be transparent, fair and adaptable to the specific contexts of Ohio’s districts (rural, urban, suburban, large and small). The evaluation system builds on what educators know about the importance of ongoing assessment and feedback as a powerful vehicle to support improved practice.
House Bill 1 in 2009 directed the Educator Standards Board to recommend model evaluation systems for teachers and principals to the State Board of Education for their review and adoption. The Ohio Teacher Evaluation System was created in response to this mandate and designed to be used to assess the performance of Ohio teachers.
Ohio teachers, school administrators, higher education faculty and representatives from Ohio’s professional associations developed the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System (OTES) in collaboration with national experts in the area of teacher evaluation.
Beginning in 2014-2015, Sub. House Bill 362 enabled districts to select a less frequent evaluation cycle for teachers rated accomplished or skilled for the previous school year. This bill also introduced the alternative framework, which was subsequently altered by Ohio House Bill 64 in 2015.
In March 2017, the Educator Standards Board made recommendations for updating the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System. Ohio Senate Bill 216, which took effect in late 2018, reflected many of these recommendations and in 2018 Senate Bill 216 directed revisions to the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System.
Representatives of 42 school districts gave the Ohio Department of Education and Educator Standards Board feedback during the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System 2.0 Prototype Project, beginning in fall 2018. This feedback helped guide the Department and the Educator Standards Board in developing the draft version of the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System 2.0. Sixty-three schools, districts and educational service centers piloted this draft Ohio Teacher Evaluation System 2.0 during 2019-2020, providing more feedback to guide implementation of the system in the 2020-2021 school year.
Principal Evaluation
Ohio is serious about its commitment to quality schools. In 2016, the Ohio Department of Education, in partnership with the Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators and Ohio Association of Secondary School Administrators, identified individuals throughout the state to participate in a community of practice. This workgroup of advisors examined what Ohio can do to support high-quality leadership practices aimed at addressing the needs of building principals and each student they serve.
Upon determining gaps in support for principals, the advisors identified that the principal role should be redefined, namely by revising the principal standards to make them precise and reflective of the roles and responsibilities of today’s principals. The 2016 Principal Workgroup recommended the need to conduct a gap analysis and revise the 2005 Ohio Standards for Principals by evaluating, selecting and incorporating language, skills and standards from the National Policy Board for Educational Administration’s Professional Standards for Educational Leaders 2015. The workgroup also examined leadership evaluation models from other states to gain an understanding of the broader national landscape. The revised 2018 Ohio Standards for Principals are intended to be used in conjunction with preservice preparation programs, local districts and statewide policy efforts to support and define the role of the Ohio principal.
The 2018 Ohio Standards for Principals are designed to support principals through their highly impactful work and help ensure the critical success of the learning environment. These standards serve as an important tool for educational leaders to identify and apply appropriate professional learning opportunities as they consider their growth and development as leaders throughout their careers. The education community can use the standards as a common tool to effectively support and assess leadership practices and improve the well-being and academic success for each student in Ohio. The Ohio Principal Evaluation System (OPES) 2.0 Framework and Model have been revised to align with these 10 standards.
School Counselor Evaluation
House Bill 64 of the 131st Ohio General Assembly (Ohio Revised Code 3319.61) directed the State Board of Education to develop standards for school counselors. The Ohio Department of Education and the Educator Standards Board worked with stakeholder groups and the chancellor of higher education to identify school counselors, administrators and other representatives to serve on the writing team that drafted the standards during spring 2015. As its starting point, the writing team for the Ohio Standards for School Counselors began with the standards-based evaluation system and guide created by the Ohio School Counselor Association writing team, the Ohio School Counselor Evaluation System (2013). In addition to the work of the association, the writing team considered the national model created by the American School Counselor Association, the National Board School Counseling Standards, the standards of the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, the School Counselor Assessment Framework from the Ohio Assessments for Educators and the work of exemplary states nationwide.
In October 2015, the State Board of Education adopted the Ohio Standards for School Counselors, which define the skills and knowledge that school counselors must demonstrate at all stages of their careers. These standards promote effective professional practices and provide support to school counselors as they reflect upon and improve their performance over time.
In April 2016, the State Board adopted the Ohio School Counselor Evaluation Framework, which is aligned to the Ohio Standards for School Counselors. The bill further directed each school district board of education to adopt a school counselor evaluation policy by Sept. 30, 2016 that conforms to the State Board framework.
The Ohio School Counselor Evaluation System, created in response to the legal mandates, explains how school districts can implement school counselor evaluations in accordance with the State Board framework and state law. It was designed to be transparent, fair and adaptable to the specific contexts of Ohio’s districts.
The Ohio School Counselor Evaluation System is a standards‐based integrated model that is designed to foster the professional growth of school counselors in knowledge, skills and practice. In this evaluation system, each school counselor is evaluated based upon multiple factors including performance on all areas identified by the standards and the ability to produce positive student outcomes using metrics in order to determine the holistic final summative rating of effectiveness according to ODE requirements. The choice of metrics for student outcomes will be determined locally.
Last Modified: 12/12/2022 7:48:22 AM