Can you believe this? A story in the Washington Post reports that kindergarten students in Georgia will be asked to evaluate their teacher’s performance. The five-year-olds’ judgments will help to determine whether their teachers get a bonus or get fired http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/student-surveys-may-help-rate-teachers/2012/05/11/gIQAN78uMU_story.html.
Have we lost our minds in this country? At long last, are we totally insane on the subject of teacher evaluation? I know that the Gates Foundation has encouraged the idea that student surveys should be used to judge teachers, along with test scores and other so-called measures. For what it’s worth, I think it is not a good idea. In college, in high school and in middle school, teachers will be wary of asking too much of their students, for fear of losing their favor. If they assign too much reading or if they are tough graders or disciplinarians, their students might retaliate by giving them a low mark.
If teachers must seek their students’ approval, how does that make school better?
To rely on kindergarten students to judge their teachers brings this idea to its lowest possible level. At what point does a bad idea get revealed as sheer idiocy?
Diane
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I have been reading you blog for some time. Whether it is Philadelphia, New York, Camden or other system being “reformed”, Memphis is a twin. We just received our teacher evaluation scores that unfortunately include the ridiculous “stakeholder perceptions” as 5% of our score. What you said in this post is exactly what we are experiencing. To make things even more ridiculous, our teachers were given their ratings with last year’s value added data even though it is this year’s data that actually counts. We will all get new scores sometime this summer when the beloved Pearson and Randa Corp. get the data reports finished. Teachers are being threatened, intimidated and maligned in the media here based on evaluation ratings that are completely trumped up. Through all of this Boston Consulting is advising a planning commission charged with “unifying” our city and county school systems. This is of course a front for dismantling our urban system and turning it over to charters and other entities including those associated with the Gulen movement. I read my life everyday in your posts.
My teacher has long hair and wears lipstick. I love my teacher. Sometimes my teacher gives me stickers. I love my teacher. My teacher gave me a pencil for my birthday. I love my teacher. My teacher has a Mickey Mouse shirt. I love my teacher. One day my teacher took us to the farm. I love my teacher.
Is this the best we have to offer? What is really going on?
Priceless, Chris!
Today my teacher was mean to me and made me feel bad for taking Sally’s crayon. I hate my teacher.
This system of evaluation is in place in universities across the U.S. Teachers (professors and graduate students) are rated by the students and the results are published for all to see. The ratings are often the only measure used to determine teaching ability, and they can affect future employment opportunities.
Nice, eh?
I beg to differ. My six-year-old knows a LOT about the quality of his teacher and I value his opinion. No single measure should determine employment but let’s not disparage the voices of students.
Time to get the non-educators out of education…oh, wait. We can’t because it’s about the money, not the children.
Reading this reminded me of Kelly Ripley’s recent conversation about her Mother’s Day with host David Letterman. She said all of her children gave her a card. Her daughter gave her one that said “You’re the best mom, ever.” Later that evening when they were getting ready to go out for dinner, her daughter came out of her room, dressed in something mom didn’t quite think was appropriate and told her to go back and change. As her daughter turned around and stomped back into her room she yelled, “You’re the worst mom, ever.” Kelly pulled out the card given to her that morning and showed her what it said! I loved the story. This is just exactly what happens with young people. One minute, you’re the best, the next minute you’re the worst!
Boy, I tell you, these profiteers creating these student surveys to evaluate their teachers are drinking more than coffee in the mornings. This is insane…5 year olds!
It is time for teachers to educate the parents as to what is really going on here in order to regain the ‘privilege’ of doing our original job of teaching the children! INSANITY
I would add to that something John Merrow said. We need to get to the 80% of Americans that do not have any children in school.