• Who is evaluated??
• Do Resident Educators have to be evaluated?
• When is a full evaluation required in the current year?
• What are the exemptions?
• What are the completion deadlines for the teacher evaluations?
• When will OhioES close for evaluation data entry?

• Can LEAs use their own locally developed rubric for teacher evaluations?
• How will the evaluation be used to focus professional development for teachers?
• Do observations and walkthroughs have to be scheduled/announced?
• What is a completed evaluation?
• What is the impact if an educator’s evaluation is not completed?
• Is high-quality student data (HQSD) a required component in teacher evaluations?
• What flexibility exists in the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System process?

• Who can conduct teacher evaluations?
• How do evaluators obtain OTES credential training?
• What flexibility does the teacher have in who evaluates them?

Ohio law details the requirements for who should be evaluated: 
Any person employed under a teacher license or under a professional or permanent teacher's certificate and who spends at least fifty per cent of the time employed providing student instruction should be evaluated. However, it does not apply to any person who is employed as a substitute teacher or as an instructor of adult education.

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Yes, unless the one-time RESA exemption is applied.

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Full evaluations are required in at least the following situations: 

• Teachers new to the district 

• Retire-rehire  

• When the evaluation was not completed the prior year 

• When an exemption was used in the prior year 

Note: A school or district retains the option, subject to a collective bargaining agreement, to move a teacher on the less frequent evaluation cycle to a full evaluation cycle.

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According to Ohio law the exemptions are as follows:  

• The teacher was on leave from the school district for fifty per cent or more of the school year, as calculated by the board. 

• The teacher has submitted notice of retirement and that notice has been accepted by the board not later than the first day of December of the school year in which the evaluation is otherwise scheduled to be conducted. 

• The board may elect not to conduct an evaluation of a teacher who is participating in the teacher residency program for the year during which that teacher takes, for the first time, at least half of the performance-based assessment prescribed by the state board of education for resident educators. 

• In any year that a teacher is not formally evaluated because of receiving a rating of accomplished or skilled on the teacher's most recent evaluation, an individual qualified to evaluate a teacher shall conduct at least one observation of the teacher and hold at least one conference with the teacher. The conference shall include a discussion of progress on the teacher's professional growth plan. 

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Evaluations must be completed by May 1 and a written report of the results of the evaluation must be provided to the teacher by May 10. 

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OhioES will remain open until June 15 to enter and finalize evaluation data. 

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Yes. A locally determined performance rubric must be aligned to the Ohio Standards for the Teaching Profession and contain the four rating categories with similar indicators of performance. The LEA must complete the alignment process found in the OhioES as well as report the ratings in the electronic system.  

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As described in the OTES 2.0 Framework, either a Professional Growth Plan or an Improvement Plan will be developed annually. Each plan will be:  

• Based upon the results of the evaluation; and 
• Aligned to any existing school district or building improvement plan. 

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This is a district decision. Formal observations may be announced or unannounced. Walkthroughs may be announced or unannounced.

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To be considered complete, all required components of the evaluation must be completed. The following components are standard for a complete evaluation, but additional requirements set forth in law or contained in a collective bargaining agreement may be necessary for some evaluations. 

Full Evaluation Cycle includes components that must be met annually for teachers on a full evaluation cycle. These required components include:   

• Professional Growth Plan or Improvement Plan;   
• Formal Holistic Observation followed by conference;   
• At least two classroom walkthroughs;   
• Formal Focused observation with emphasis on focus area(s)
• Final Summative Conference.  

Less Frequent Evaluation Cycle is an option that is available to districts. This cycle requires full evaluation of teachers rated skilled every two years and full evaluation of teachers rated accomplished every three years. In a year the teacher is not fully evaluated, the less frequent evaluation required components include:   

• Professional Growth Plan;   
• One observation;   
• One conference with discussion of progress on Professional Growth Plan.

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• If for any reason an educator’s evaluation is not completed, the educator will be on the full evaluation cycle the following year.   
• An educator’s contract status may be impacted, however, this is a local decision. The district should work with its legal counsel and may collaborate with bargaining organizations to determine contract status. An educator for whom an evaluation is not completed is afforded rights established under Ohio law.  

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Yes, high-quality student data is a required component in teacher evaluations. For further information on HQSD, see the HQSD Overview page and the  HQSD Frequently Asked Questions.

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There has always been some flexibility allowed when implementing OTES. For instance, schools have flexibility in defining what an observation or walkthrough might look like in their own unique education setting. Additionally, there is no requirement for a rating on each component on the rubric. The Department encourages teachers and evaluators to collaborate on the use of flexibility options. All educators should clearly understand any local flexibility provided and how the evaluation process will work in each school's unique education setting. To help guide these conversations, the Department has posted a document titled “Impact of Education Settings on Teacher Evaluations.”

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From Ohio law (link), persons who hold a credential established by the department of education for being an evaluator can conduct teacher evaluations:

• A person who is under contract with the board and holds a license designated for being a superintendent, assistant superintendent, or principal;
• A person who is under contract with the board and holds a license designated for being a vocational director, administrative specialist, or supervisor in any educational area;
• A person designated to conduct evaluations under an agreement entered into by the board, including an agreement providing for peer review entered into by the board and representatives of teachers employed by the board;
• A person who is employed by an entity contracted by the board to conduct evaluations and who holds a license designated for being a superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, vocational director, administrative specialist, or supervisor in any educational area or is qualified to conduct evaluations.

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Information about evaluator training is available on the Credentialed Evaluators web page.

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The OTES 2.0 Framework describes the flexibility teachers rated Accomplished and Skilled have.

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